Why Your Internal Police Brand is Key for Recruiting and Retention
Forward-thinking police agencies know the value of a strong, public-facing brand in shaping perceptions of their professionalism, credibility, and capabilities. But often, these same agencies don’t give their internal brand equal care and attention. Yet – with police services across the country facing huge staffing challenges – your agency’s internal brand is a key tool for recruiting and retaining employees.
What is an internal brand?
We define a brand as the experience you offer your audience everywhere they interact with you. All brands have an external-facing (public) and an internal-facing (employee) component, and – ideally – these are aligned in their values, voice, and behaviour.
Your internal brand is the intentional expression of your culture and values through your communication, physical environment, leadership, and everyday behaviours. It is reflected in:
The day-to-day experience of your employees
The way your organization’s values are lived in daily operations
How your staff feel about your workplace
The important takeaway is this: your internal brand shapes how your people feel about working for you – and whether they stay or leave, or promote you through word-of-mouth.
A strong internal brand can help you recruit and retain staff
A strong internal brand can be the voice for a values-driven culture in which personnel feel supported, valued, heard and respected – leading to stronger teams, new initiatives and innovation, and a reputation as an excellent employer.
Your employees are your most important brand ambassadors. If they have a positive workplace experience, they’ll naturally share that positivity in conversations with others, including potential hires.
Recruits are increasingly looking for organizations that are well-run, with aligned values and a culture that supports wellness and career development. And, when it comes to retention, the most recent data shows that salaries are only part of the picture.
As former Delta Police Department Chief, Neil Dubord, notes in an article co-written with Cal Corley in the July/August 2025 edition of Blue Line magazine, “Recent studies reveal that wages and bonuses are not the key to retention; in fact, organizational culture, leadership and wellness far outweigh compensation in influencing an officer’s decision to stay or leave.”
Your culture is your internal brand in action
We mentioned above that your internal brand is inseparable from your organizational culture and values. Put another way, your culture is your internal brand in action. If, for example, you say your brand is transparent, respectful, inclusive, and fair, it should be reflected in how you communicate with your teams, negotiate disputes, and promote staff, and in your expectations for how staff treat each other.
To build a strong and authentic internal brand, you must walk your talk. Values are the building blocks of police brands and when they are lived in-house, it builds trust in your agency’s leadership and increases employee buy-in for your mission.
How can I strengthen my internal police brand?
Make sure your brand is authentic.
Your brand must be founded in an approach and values that your organization “lives”. Trying to implement a brand that isn’t true to your organization is a non-starter, both your community and your employees will see the disconnect between what you say and do.
Build a healthy organizational culture.
An organization’s culture can make or break it – particularly in policing. It doesn’t matter what goals, strategies, and policies you have in place – if your culture doesn’t support them, it will derail them. It is one of the determining factors – along with resources, clear communication, and strong leadership – in whether your people will be able to work together effectively towards common goals.
Communicate your identity, culture and values internally.
Most agencies invest in public-facing branding and marketing efforts such as crime prevention campaigns, events, recruiting ads, and vehicle graphics. But often, internally, their communication channels and physical environment are uninspiring or outdated – with no meaningful expressions of their values, culture, and identity.
When you invest in internal branding, you’re investing in your employees and setting the standard for how your brand looks, feels, sounds and acts in-house, as well as on the street. Effective internal brand communication and visuals can help to:
Align your team with your mission and values
Onboard new employees
Remind employees of the value of their work
Support employees emotionally
Inspire energy and engagement
Promote a modern, professional and progressive identity to visitors and potential recruits
Indalma’s work with internal police brands is as varied as the agencies themselves
As a design and branding team with a specialty in police branding, Indalma has helped a number of agencies create materials to support or amplify their brand internally: from newsletters, to online content, to signage in public lobbies, training rooms, employee gyms, and offices.
We’ve completed many internal signage and messaging projects, each with a different goal:
For Port Moody Police Department, we created a series of signs that expand on the meaning of their core values – to update them and make them more meaningful for employees.
At Delta Police Department, where core civilian services are housed in a separate building from the frontline, we created wallpaper signage that highlights the importance of civilian staff in helping the frontline function. The messaging is one of the first things new recruits see when they visit the services building during their onboarding process.
At Saanich Police Department, they needed messaging for a multi-function room that reflects their identity as a modern and progressive service. The new signage concisely expresses their culture and inspires pride, whether it is being seen by employees, potential hires, or the public.
For Surrey Police Service, our team designed community-focused, brand-building signage and messaging in the public-facing areas of their new headquarters – from the boardroom where press conferences are held, to the reception area. We worked with the team to transform an anonymous concrete environment into a space that is welcoming to all.
You can learn more about our design and branding work for Canadian police agencies on our project pages and in our services section.
Build your brand from within
Sometimes, police agencies focus on their external audiences at the expense of their internal ones, but in policing, especially, the strength and culture of your team determines your outcomes.
A well-built internal brand has all of the elements in place to ensure that your employees’ experience consistently aligns with the values and approach you want to be known for. By investing in your culture and communications, you can build a workplace that attracts – and keeps – top talent.
If your agency is looking for ways to better communicate your values and culture to your employees – and boost recruiting and retention – we can help. Indalma Creative has been working with Canadian police agencies since 2011, and our Chief Brand Strategist, Angela McGregor, has lots of ideas when it comes to internal brand strategy and design. You can reach her at angela@indalmacreative.com