Situation
Following up on the positive results of the commercial strategy study we conducted for one of its large equity joint ventures, our client - a major European automaker - engaged us to lead the design and implementation of an integrated commercial organization for the JV. The challenge was not only to set up an efficient organization to achieve objectives of double-digit revenue growth, but to do so by merging two separate commercial structures, aligning radically different business cultures and management practices, while solidifying the co-leadership of the commercial division between the two JV partners.
Solution
Given the disconnects in mutual understanding and expectations between the two existing commercial organizations, we first needed to rally leaders and management teams around a common agenda with shared objectives. We embarked the client teams on a first phase of the project that leveraged the results of our previous commercial strategy study, analyzed and compared direct competitors' commercial organizations, and conducted an extensive opportunity assessment on all key functions - sales, marketing, promotion, distribution, and customer service - against competitive benchmarks. This led to a collective buy-in on a set of 40 improvement initiatives that would yield over $100 million revenue increase, about half of it achievable within six months... provided that the required changes in decision-making, organization structure and management processes be implemented without delay. With this strong consensus and shared sense of purpose towards tangible results, we then led the client team through the second phase of the project, consisting in the development of organization principles, guidelines, and processes necessary to implement the improvement initiatives.
Results
Our pragmatic, results-driven approach helped deflect antagonisms and disruptive "jockeying for position" in the client's management ranks. We formed, coached, and monitored mixed teams to implement the identified improvement initiatives, starting with those easier to implement and presenting a higher value. In parallel, we developed organization structure scenarios in support of these initiatives that we discussed with the co-leaders and their direct reports. This unconventional approach to developing the new commercial organization based on practical improvements not only gained the followership of lower and middle management ranks who felt involved and empowered, but also accelerated the division leaders' approval and adoption of organization principles and processes they both recognized as necessary and beneficial. Six months later, they were in a position to speak a one voice to their respective headquarters, show an initial $45 million revenue increase, and jointly agree to the deployment of the organization structure we had recommended from our various scenarios.