Case Study: Technology Company

Goal:

Help a VP manage his team’s productivity and morale through a massive company-wide downsizing and restructuring.

Situation: 

This large, public company was in the middle of a massive re-org.  Company-wide employees feared for their jobs and productivity was very low.  Creative problem-solving was critical as the ranks thinned and fewer staff had to deliver strong results.  The client needed help re-engaging his team, keeping his own spirits strong, and thinking through a meaningful restructure of his own team.

Objectives:

• Re-invigorate an exhausted and dispirited senior team
• Bring out the leadership qualities in team leader
• Identify growth opportunities for the executive and his team so that they would remain excited despite the very challenging corporate culture

Strategy: 

The client gathered his entire senior team and invited them to a ½ day strategy session.  We coached him to listen intently to the fear and worry and even anger in the room and to speak to it honestly.  With the emotional heat addressed, the team was then able to strategize about what was possible with diminished staff and what would have the most significant impact on the business.  The team also identified individual pieces of work they were interested in pursuing– areas that represented growth for each of them.   Daily stand-ups with the whole team invited everyone to learn of progress and to share wins.  Morale picked up.

One-on-one weekly coaching with Vice President over 6 months.  The coaching focused on developing his leadership skills under stress and on finding a delicate communication balance with his team between cheerleader and truth-teller.

Results: 

Over the six months, the client’s team flourished.  There was still worry and anxiety about the future — and it came up regularly as the re-org progressed and jobs were shuffled and lost.  But this team accomplished extraordinary results under the worst of times. The client found his sea-legs as a powerful leader and sourced very deep strength to marshal his team to rise to a tough occasion.