From national brand research to government strategy: Barbara Mróz-Gorgoń appointed Government Plenipotentiary

On 29 July 2026, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced the appointment of Associate Professor Barbara Mróz-Gorgoń of WUEB as Government Plenipotentiary for the Promotion of Poland’s National Brand. The Wroclaw University of Economics and Business expert will coordinate government work on creating, implementing and developing a coherent national brand. The appointment documents the use of her expertise at the level of national public policy.

One strategy in place of fragmented activity

The position was established by a Regulation of the Council of Ministers dated 28 July 2026 and published in the Journal of Laws under item 1011. The new arrangement is intended to ensure coherent management of the national brand and more effective development and protection of Poland’s image at home and abroad.

The remit covers the full brand-management cycle, from strategy design and the implementation of common standards to monitoring results. The Plenipotentiary will:

prepare a strategy for developing and promoting Poland’s national brand, together with an implementation plan;
develop the Brand Poland book, setting out common communication and visual standards;
coordinate activities aimed at increasing Poland’s recognition at home and abroad;
monitor the implementation of the strategy and conduct regular reviews of its results;
lead information and promotional activities supporting the development of Poland’s national brand.

At the press conference, the Prime Minister noted that activity previously undertaken by several ministries and institutions had not formed a single, recognisable system. Professor Mróz-Gorgoń will be responsible for coordinating these efforts around shared principles and a long-term strategy.

From diagnosing the national brand to designing public solutions

The appointment is the latest stage in Professor Mróz-Gorgoń’s long-standing work on nation branding. In 2025, she joined an interministerial team tasked with promoting the Polish brand. She is also the founder and President of the Brand Poland Think Tank Foundation.

Under her direction, the Foundation and the Polish Conference and Congress Association prepared the report Poles’ Self-Portrait: Report on the DNA of Brand Poland. The project was delivered as a public task supported by the Ministry of Sport and Tourism and combined marketing, psychological and sociological perspectives. The team analysed more than 180 hours of recordings and almost 400 pages of transcripts, coding statements into 47 thematic categories. More than 100 representatives of business, academia, culture, the creative industries and expert communities participated in the study.

The study identified both strengths of Polish identity and barriers to building a coherent national image. It proposed “Strength in Action. Creative Resilience” as the essence of the brand and set out principles for long-term communication grounded in Poland’s achievements, capabilities and competitive strengths.

What can already be documented as knowledge uptake

When assessing research and expert impact, the use of knowledge should be distinguished from the subsequent outcomes of implementation. The expert’s contribution to the decision-making process can already be documented: first through her participation in interministerial work and now through a central coordinating mandate.

The outcomes of the new system will require separate measurement. They can be assessed through the adoption and implementation of the strategy, the use of the Brand Poland book by public institutions and the results of regular reviews. Monitoring the strategy is explicitly included in the Plenipotentiary’s remit.

This sequence illustrates the full pathway to impact: research and diagnosis, institutional uptake of knowledge, and the design, implementation and evaluation of a public solution.

An expert connecting academic knowledge with practice

Associate Professor Barbara Mróz-Gorgoń specialises in branding, brand strategy, marketing and communication. She is the author of academic publications, including Rebranding: Strategic Change for an Organisation, and a co-author of the Polish edition of Essentials of Modern Marketing. She is also a Visiting Professor at Kasetsart University in Bangkok.

Her appointment strengthens the presence of expertise developed within the Wroclaw University of Economics and Business community in nationally significant processes. It demonstrates how academic capabilities can support solutions for public administration, the economy, culture, tourism and Poland’s international visibility.