ABSTRACT
Leadership and management must always be wary of the jargon we accept into our decision-making processes, otherwise we might obscure clarity of thought and action. Jargon without sharp reason is a form of blunt thinking. Like the difference between the words 'leadership' and 'management', 'identity' and 'brand' also have differences for those sharp enough to see the opening and closure such a difference can usher in. For example, effective leadership is deciding best direction, whereas effective management is deciding best actions in the service of that direction. Like good management, good branding focuses on the join: between product and identity, in the interests of making this so seamless that the audience cannot honestly tell the exact difference between one and the other. The majority of products find themselves in a marketplace crowded with near-identical products, where only scant identity appears to set one apart from another.
