By 2019, Verdi Group was growing faster than ever. Founded in 1987 as a civil engineering company, it had expanded rapidly by acquiring smaller offices across France. But with growth came growing pains. Each office operated independently, with its own culture and interpretation of Verdi’s mission. Instead of feeling like a single, cohesive organization, Verdi felt scattered, fragmented, and unclear. Employees, particularly in the newly acquired offices, struggled to understand what they were part of. Clients and partners felt the confusion too.

For Olivier Renaud, Verdi’s CEO, this wasn’t sustainable. He could see the momentum slipping away, the lack of alignment holding the company back. Olivier wasn’t interested in simply running a successful business—he had a vision of Verdi as a leader, not just in civil engineering but in shaping communities and preserving the environment. He knew it was time to step back and ask the deeper question: What does Verdi stand for?

Through a process of clarifying conversations, reflection, and digging into what really mattered, the answer emerged: Verdi wasn’t just a civil engineering company. It was Designers of Territories. This wasn’t just a new tagline—it was a defining principle that aligned everything Verdi did. It captured how they wanted to show up in the world and the lasting impact they wanted to have on communities and environments.

Olivier embraced this vision, and it transformed Verdi from the inside out. Employees across all offices began to see themselves as part of a greater whole. Leaders finally had a clear framework to guide decisions. New hires and acquired teams felt grounded in a shared identity, and even clients began to see Verdi in a new light—not just as engineers but as visionaries.

Olivier and his team transformed Verdi from a fragmented group of offices into a unified organization with a shared purpose. The clarity gained through this transformation not only redefined the company but also reshaped how Verdi could present itself to the world and the impact it could achieve.

This wasn’t just a business evolution—it was a story of purpose, alignment, and becoming more than what they were before.