McCombs School Updates Logo

Just as an ambitious student will dress sharply, with an eye on modern business fashion, for an important recruiting interview, the school takes care to maintain a strong image with its important audiences. This image is often referred to as the McCombs brand.

As the school continues its drive to become the No. 1 public business school in the nation, the time is right to strengthen the McCombs brand image and reintroduce the school to the marketplace in a manner that expresses energy, growth and momentum.

Say it with Class
In May 2007, we launched a modernized brand look for the McCombs School of Business. This included a new logo to represent the school and its constituents, created with the assistance of HIXO Design and Dandy Idea Design, two of the premiere corporate identity firms in Texas.

The team’s assignment was to create a logo that would work more effectively within a range of print and online materials, develop a clear tie-in with the reputation of the university and introduce a text font that is bold and easy to read.

After sifting through dozens of design variations, the designers arrived at a solution that began with a slight rotation of the McCombs star. Flipping a portion of the star around, while slightly modifying the shape, they created the top portion of a burnt orange M, with the lower portion of the letter hidden from view. The top of the M forms a white shape that suggests an abstract Longhorn to many viewers—the ideal blended image of the McCombs School of Business and The University of Texas at Austin.

Whether you recognize the remnant of the star, or see the M or the Longhorn shape, the new design is easily remembered and distinctive. The burnt orange color is balanced with a more subdued khaki gray tone.

The Right Time for an Update
“The star logo was starting to look dated,” explains David Wenger, director of communications, marketing and public affairs at McCombs and a former brand consultant for top corporate clients. “A five-pointed star in Texas is not differentiated; there are several big brands with logos that look almost identical to the McCombs star.”

With the more contemporary and distinctive look, the school leverages the reputation and image of the university by bringing burnt orange back into the McCombs identity, while incorporating a stronger, bolder design.

The new logo symbolizes the growth and forward momentum of the school. McCombs is contributing significantly to the planning and building of the university’s Executive Education and Conference Center, destined to be the premiere facility of its kind in the nation. The Texas MBA now includes the full-time program plus five other options for receiving one of the most prestigious graduate business degrees offered at any university. Additionally, the reputation of the highly ranked undergraduate program continues to grow, while the accounting program has consistently secured its top national ranking for several years.

Transition Timeline
By the beginning of the fall 2007 school year, the majority of the school’s brochures and other materials will feature the new visual identity. Efforts are underway to redesign the Web site, and a major restructuring of the site is planned for 2008. All of these efforts have been initiated to tell the McCombs story in a manner that the school, its students and alumni deserve.