“When you’re surrounded by people who share a passionate commitment around a common purpose, anything is possible.” Howard Schultz
During my corporate days I ran a mining services business in Canada supplying mineral processing equipment. Prior to my joining in mid 2014, this business had delivered long term consistent growth in sales of its core products for more than a decade. The mining downturn in 2013 and oil price collapse in late 2014 had resulted in the deferral or cancellation of new mine developments and expansion projects, leading to significant declines in new equipment sales.
The challenge we faced was how to grow when our market was shrinking. We formed a team comprising members from sales, engineering, operations and supply chain, and empowered them to explore new and imaginative ways to grow our business. “Crazy Ideas” sessions presented a fun and safe way to “throw spaghetti at the wall” and see what stuck. Consideration was given to market share growth for existing products, growth opportunities in adjacent markets, the introduction of new products to complement existing products, and services.
The chosen strategy was to transform the business from a product-focused equipment supplier to a service-based solution provider. This strategy included the decentralization of operations and establishment of service centers and field service operations in key mining regions backed by a team of mineral processing experts (generalists locally, specialists centrally).
With the strategy set, we conducted a company-wide implementation over an eighteen-month timeframe. A total of eight regional teams were each tasked with implementing the strategy locally, backed by a central team of experts to provide guidance and support. Whilst some key positions were filled externally, most were filled internally with a significant reorganization of both engineering and service operations, and the new opportunities presented to our people generated excitement and strong engagement.
Success required a continuous focus on the management of change. Quarterly town halls were held at all locations to communicate and discuss progress and to provide everyone with the opportunity to ask questions and express their concerns. Members of the leadership team regularly visited each service center, meeting with customers and employees to ensure a strong and consistent message. By listening to people at all levels in the organization, everyone in the business felt they had some skin in the game and were committed to making it work.
The transformation of the business resulted in increased engagement with people at all levels of the organization, partnering with customers to deliver viable solutions to complex problems. New products and services delivered growth in an otherwise flat market, with revenues increasing by 30% over a 2-year period, something which every person in the business played a part in creating.
The Lesson
Leadership is not just a role for people at the top of the organization. The key to success for any organization today is the ability to move quickly, and that requires rapid response from small teams. Effective decision making by those who matter requires empowerment and active coaching. Why were we successful?
- We were disruptive, pushing leadership of initiatives deep into the organization.
- We were nimble, empowering small teams to take the lead on initiatives where larger-scale engagement can be difficult early on.
- We focused on engagement at the grassroots level to build buy-in to change and support for strategic initiatives.
- We were imaginative, actively encouraging the sharing of any idea and moving quickly to develop and implement many of them.
- We had fun, using unconventional methods to promote new initiatives.