Mext is a brand that fosters innovation and entrepreneurship, internally and externally. It blends Mota-Engil’s rich legacy with a future-oriented approach, positioning it as a catalyst for new ventures with an endless quest: #whatsmext?
Mext
Client.
Grupo Mota-Engil
Starting a business.
Branding.
Communication Strategy.
Internal Culture.
Innovation.
More than a brand, Mext became the driver of innovation and transformation for construction leaders Mota-Engil.
Challenge.
Mota-Engil sought to energise its innovation strategy by making it part of its global culture, accessible to every worker in 23 countries, and open to participation.
The challenge was to craft a brand and a vision that could ignite both internal teams and external partners, preparing Mota-Engil for a future of dynamic entrepreneurial growth while staying rooted in the company’s long-standing heritage.
Immersion.
We conducted extensive interviews with key stakeholders across Mota-Engil to fully understand the project's potential and ambitions. Our close collaboration with Mota-Engil’s leadership throughout the process allowed us to develop a strategy that seamlessly integrated into the company’s existing culture while pushing the boundaries of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Strategic Insight.
The interviews highlighted the dual role that the new brand needed to play: as an incubator of internal creativity and a bridge to external innovation. They reinforced the understanding that adopting a forward-looking mindset was crucial for Mota-Engil to maintain its success and leadership.
From here, we defined the brand purpose - We strive to be an accelerator of local and global transformation, giving voice to our stakeholders and engineering ideas with a positive impact on business, society, sustainability, and everyday life. We created the guidelines: openness for everyone, ideation for real, and transformation for life. And we defined two key areas: internal culture and business.
Naming.
Having the interviews’ outputs and the strategic insights in mind, the creative process started with the naming.
Mext — a fusion of "ME" (Mota-Engil) and "Next" — encapsulates the concept of what’s coming next for the Group, symbolising the ongoing journey of innovation and transformation that Mota-Engil is embarking on, always looking ahead to the next opportunity and challenge."Engineering Ideas" is the signature created to connect the Group's past and future.
Visual Identity.
Mext’s visual identity blends corporate and contemporary elements to reflect its focus on innovation within the Mota-Engil Group.
The Group's symbol inspired Mext's two dots, which are an invitation to new ideas, opening new conversations and transformations; the custom unicase font, paired with the Galano font, conveys a sense of modernity and corporate solidity. The adaptable colour palette we created ranges from solid black and white to vibrant colours. The pink and green (for people and sustainability) were added to the yellow and blue (already part of Mota-Engil universe but now with a vibrant boost).
Brand Expression.
We crafted Mext’s brand expression to resonate with both internal and external audiences. Internally, under the motto “You’re Mext”, Mext launched initiatives like events, workshops, and competitions to energise Mota-Engil employees and encourage creativity across the organisation to find out “The Mext big thing”.
The "#whatsmext?" campaign became a central theme, challenging everyone in the company to consider the next big idea or innovation, fostering a culture of openness and experimentation.
Today.
The brand quickly became more than just a name—it evolved into a movement within the company, promoting a new way of thinking that now permeates all levels of the organisation.
Since its launch, Mext has played a pivotal role in Mota-Engil's ongoing transformation. It has successfully incubated new businesses and fostered an entrepreneurial spirit that has led to the development of innovative projects and ventures. The brand's initiatives, including a platform for new ideas to fuel and sponsor creativity and entrepreneurship within the Group - have generated numerous ideas that have been implemented within Mota-Engil, driving the company's evolution and ensuring its continued success in an ever-changing industry.
"#whatsmext? represents more than a project. It is an attitude and a cultural change based on an open mindset and a predisposition to look at the World to find ways to become holistically better. Mext as a company will be the vehicle that will develop this purpose, supporting the development of the new opportunities that are already being identified.” Silvia Mota, Mext's CEO
Key Figures
1104 participants in the first challenge
647 innovative ideas and initiatives