Every brand suffers from growing pains—particularly in global organizations where multiple teams are constantly creating new materials.

A robust set of brand guidelines is critical, of course. But even the most thoughtful documents do little good when trapped in a binder on someone’s shelf, or gathering pixel dust somewhere on a shared drive.

People need to be entrusted to execute within the parameters of a brand, and flexibility is important when serving multiple markets in different regions and a variety of languages. Yet without proper attention, variety can quickly escalate toward chaos.

That’s why we often speak with clients about an ongoing effort that we call brand stewardship. Using brand fundamentals as a foundation—and guidelines as a source of truth—stewardship creates and sustains regular practices to keep a brand coherent.

Stewardship programs differ based on a number of factors, from the maturity of the brand to the diversity of the teams who run it. But in our experience, they often involve a few key activities.

Audit. A brand acts like a living, breathing thing, often evolving over time. Once a brand system has launched and had a chance to mature, it’s often valuable to take stock of what’s working, what’s not, and what might be improved. Particularly when conducted by an unbiased third-party partner, an audit can reveal important opportunities for small but impactful updates.

Seminars. In a global brand touched by many teams, siloes are bound to form. Convening the brand’s representatives on a regular basis is the best way to break them down. We’ve had great success in designing and facilitating sessions—both in person and virtual—that walk through real examples of what touchpoints are being activated well, how other work can be stronger, and how best practices apply.

Visioning. All industries change over time, and strategies shift. It’s important to keep an eye on the future of a brand and where it may need to evolve in order to keep up. By engaging a partner who can design a prototype of the brand’s next version, teams get a glimpse of what could be, yielding both preparation and enthusiasm for the inevitable refresh down the road.

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Brand stewardship activities don’t need to undo the hard work an organization has done to build a brand. But they can go a long way in smoothing out the sharp edges, building alignment, and ensuring that even a sprawling brand can remain consistent and powerful.