Our client, a $20B+ industry-leading corporation, was entering a period of profound change in the course of its industry. As customer expectations matured and new technologies developed in its core business, the company recognized that a disruptive moment was about to occur and major changes would be needed to remain in an industry-leading position. Growth in its core business had flattened without any possibility for shifting upward again. Only through significant investments in new technologies, differentiated services and improved customer experiences could growth be generated.

 

Determined to remain an industry leader, the relatively new CEO made significant changes to the company’s leadership team and to the organization design and operating model of the company to focus the team on managing the core business, while investing in new commercial opportunities. The team created a new multiyear, multibillion-dollar investment strategy to position the company for the next phase of growth. Now, flawless execution would be essential in order to make the transition to the future state and capture the return on the investment made by our client.   

Change Needed
As the leadership team shifted from defining its new strategy to executing upon it, the CEO asked us to work with the leadership team to ensure it was perfectly positioned to deliver on the strategic plan. As the company invested in its business, the CEO invested in ensuring the leadership team had the individual and collective capabilities to execute on this ambitious plan.

ELP Solutions

• ELP developed trusting relationships with each member of the senior leadership team so we could serve as partners and advisors to them in our work. We collaborated with each of them in evaluating their confidence in the team’s ability to achieve the strategic plan with our Team Effectiveness Audit and, surprisingly for the team, we found that the leadership team had significant concerns about execution for most of the company’s strategic priorities in the following 18-24 months. By completing the audit, we helped the team ground its efforts with us on the work they needed to do as a leadership team to ensure the success of its transformation strategy.
 
   

• ELP supported each leader in evaluating how well they were prepared to lead and deliver on the most vital work in their respective areas. We then leveraged that information to shape changes in the team and in each leader’s decisions and behavior. 
 
   

• We provided each leader on the team with feedback that revealed how they were helping to advance the company’s strategic priorities and where they had the greatest opportunities to create more impact. We architected a transformational meeting where the team members shared their feedback with each other and made specific and compelling commitments to lead even more effectively in the next 18 months. Over that time, we supported each leader and the team in continuing to define and execute on the few changes in the strategy, the operating model, organization design and talent that would provide the greatest impact on business performance.

Results

1. While we worked with the leadership team members, confidence in their ability to execute on the transformational business strategy shifted from a serious risk to a rallying strength for the company. By helping the leadership team clearly identify the major risks, those within individual leaders and for the team overall, ELP helped the team take pragmatic steps to ensure the successful execution of the strategy.
 
    

2. Our work also improved the quality of dialogue and decision making on the leadership team. Previously contentious conversations that were avoided or ineffectively handled in the past were now embraced as opportunities for the leadership team. By grounding the work we were doing with the team in the work they needed to do to execute the strategy, challenging conversations were not personal or nearly as provocative. As each leader on the team took credible steps to improve their own leadership effectiveness, trust increased and the amount of transparent and purposeful communication followed.
 
    

3. Perhaps most importantly, the team made significant progress in executing upon their transformational business strategy. They both mitigated the decline in their traditional business by taking brilliant steps to preserve their revenue stream and margins while growing their new business by double-digits in alignment with their plans. To support the shift in the company’s culture and operating model, the team members worked collaboratively to reshape the organization designs across their areas, and they began a multiyear talent plan to shift the skillset and investment mix across the company.