Global Subsidiary of US Industry Leader - Complexity to the Power of Three

The Challenge

Initially, the assignment consisted of facilitating a series of quarterly off-sites with the aim of

1. easing the transition from China of the newly appointed Italian/American GM to lead two very different businesses in two very different cultural regions of Northern Europe, serving two very different high-precision markets;
2. accelerating the integration of an underperforming acquisition (made early 2017) to the core business whose margins were high despite no top-line growth in the last 5 years;
3. enabling the two SLTs to come together to become one high-performance team.

Approach

In March 2019, the assignment expanded from just facilitating off-sites to also include

1. Coaching of the GM – to unlock his potential by helping him increase his cultural sensitivities
2. Coaching five of the individuals in the combined SLT – each undertaking a major business and/or cultural transition of their own
3. Coaching of the combined SLT to leverage interdependencies and to outperform

Complexity of this assignment included the

1. Multiple layers of confidentiality. Each coaching relationship had to be guarded to honour the individuals concerned even as all benefitted from the single coach’s systemic understanding of the dynamics in the SLT and the operational complexities of the businesses.
2. Multiple stakeholders – as, for each coaching assignment, goals were agreed between the coach, the coachee and the coachee’s boss. In the case of the GM, also included was the Director of Talent Management and Engagement.
3. The businesses faced different challenges in terms of business maturity and operated with very different business cultures, beyond that of the nation state from which they operated.

Results

In January 2020, at the end-of-assignment review meeting, the commissioning President said: “I had high expectations but the results have exceeded those… an improvement that is remarkable … that needs to continue … I commit to sponsor this path.” More concretely, both businesses outperformed in the year against tough targets set at the start. The acquisition’s turnaround was confirmed and core business delivered impressive double-figured top-line growth.

With two businesses as complex and dynamic as these, operating in global markets as volatile as theirs, success is always before them, achievement only a new platform from which to raise aspiration. Notwithstanding, results from this assignment are as impressive as the GM and team members who embraced the changes they want to see in themselves and in others.

If you are ready to take the next step in unlocking your business potential please get in touch