European function change

The leader of this Fortune 50 company’s European unit recognized the need to evolve in light of a new regulatory regime, increased pressure on margins, and underlying shifts in the company’s distribution model.  In addition, a series of looming technological and structural paradigm shifts in the wider organization threatened to leave the unit behind if it did not get out in front of this inevitable wave of change.

We acted as an analytical resource and advisors on pragmatic action. As a first step, we interviewed a series of employees and internal customers, alongside an analysis of the unit’s structure and performance data. We identified a series of changes needed within the leadership team, field deployment, customer-facing practices, and internal communication; interestingly, there were few issues with organization structure.

With the senior team, we developed a sequence for achievable changes over time comprising several key initiatives. We helped mobilize project teams and install progress tracking  using simple tools that were adopted for future use. The unit leader also relied on us for counsel in engaging senior management and building a critical mass of sponsorship needed to implement the change. The project teams achieved tangible early indicators of progress in the first six months of implementation, at which point our involvement was no longer necessary.