Forget the Guardian Protection Services you think you know, because starting today, the brand has been made new, and is going simply by Guardian Protection — drop the Services. 

On Thursday, May 16, Guardian held the first ever company-wide town hall in its 69-year history to announce a brand refresh and reveal a new logo to its employees and their families and friends. More than 500 people were in attendance at the DoubleTree Hilton across from the company’s Pittsburgh headquarters, and approximately 400 employees located at Guardian’s branch locations across the country were able to watch the announcement as it was screened in local movie theaters.

The event — which included pyrotechnics and lights in the signature Guardian purple (whose hue has been intensified with the refresh) — began with opening remarks from Kevin Bish, Guardian’s vice president of marketing, on the importance of what Guardian does.

“What you do matters,” Bish said to those in every position at the company, from service technicians to executives. “So be proud to work at Guardian Protection.”

Bish then went over the company’s accomplishments, focusing on the value its employees bring, and the impressive length of time most choose to stay with Guardian (the average employee tenure is eight years, and many have worked there for 20+ years). 

Then, he moved on to Guardian’s struggles. The company was growing, but its systems and infrastructure were not adapting fast enough, which affected profitability. It was time to take a closer look at technologies supporting the infrastructure as well as the company’s geographic footprint and its strategy in creating memorable customer experiences. 

Externally, the competition had been increasing, along with product complexity and customer expectations. 

“To succeed in the business of safe, we had to change,” Bish said. 

Recognizing this, Guardian has recently reduced transferred customer calls by 40 percent, refocused its footprint to the areas where Guardian has optimal service capabilities and rolled out new cellular iPads for technicians. 

To take the conversation further, Bish brought Bryan Cipoletti to the stage for “Chattin with Cipoletti,” a talk show-style set up where the new-ish president was able to share his thoughts on the company’s past, present and future.

Cipoletti also stressed the importance of the employees in Guardian’s success, and how they impress him daily.

“Our employees are so proud to work at Guardian, and they want us to be successful,” Cipoletti said. 

He said the changes the company is rolling out come from what employees have suggested in the interactions he’s had with them.

“I’m all about us being better, and I know the insights about being better come from the employees on the front line,” Cipoletti said. “There are no limits to our ability to be successful . . . This is really an exciting time to be at Guardian, and the best is yet to come.”

Bish then took center stage to get to the point of why everyone was gathered that day.

In the fall of 2018, Guardian’s marketing team started rethinking the brand, and how it could better show who the company is and what it’s bringing to the table. What they came up with was a new mission, vision, brand idea, logo and multimedia advertising campaign.

The mission is now “to make homes and businesses safer, smarter, and more connected for the people who live and work there.” The vision is “to become the most trusted brand in smart security.” And the new brand idea is “life is better when it’s safe.”

Then the new logo was unveiled, and welcomed with applause and hoots and hollers from the audience.

Calling the old logo outdated and hard to read compared to competitors, Bish said the new design is modern, simple, strong and safe.

“Our logo should represent the best of who we are and who we want to be,” he said. “When we looked at our old logo, we started to realize it just wasn’t who we are anymore.”

Starting today, the new logo will be on the company’s vans, apparel, email signatures, sales pieces, yard signs and anywhere else the old logo stands. Employee emails are different now, too, replacing @gpsx.net with the more recognizable @guardianprotection.com. And after unveiling a new commercial which stresses Guardian’s renewed focus on life and safety monitoring, Bish announced the company’s new partnership with Minor League Baseball, bringing more promotion to the areas where Guardian has branch locations. 

The employees seemed overjoyed by the newness, giving Bish an enthusiastic standing ovation before enjoying refreshments provided by the company.

“Each of you has what it takes to bring Guardian to the next level,” Bish said. “Are you ready?”

To learn more about Guardian's brand refresh and other changes coming to the company, listen to SDM's exclusive podcast with Cipoletti and Bish.