Plante & Moran, the nation’s 12th largest public accounting and business advisory firm, is changing its name to Plante Moran, eliminating the internet-unfriendly ampersand (&). The announcement was made Tuesday by Chief Marketing Officer and firm partner, Jeff Antaya.
Commonly known by the simpler new name, Plante Moran had dropped the ampersand from their Detroit metro area buildings several years ago, Website addresses, search programs, and software does not look at the ampersand as a regular character.
“The ampersand isn’t compatible with current and emerging technologies and can’t be used in a web address, for example,” notes Antaya. “Plus, many of Plante Moran’s entities, such as Plante Moran Financial Advisors and Plante Moran Global Services, never used the ampersand; nor is it part of the firm logo or signage. This change helps make the strong Plante Moran brand even more consistent.”
As part of the demise of the ampersand, Plante Moran employees are competing in “& Now What?”. It is a fun way for employees to say goodbye to the symbol and, at the same time, train the entire employee population to eliminate character. The contest is a 500 words essay wherein the staff will vote for the winning essays.
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