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So You Think You Need to Change

Marilyn KinnePresident

Accurate Lubricants & Metalworking Fluids, Inc.

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So You Think You Need to Change

Identify it, Facilitate it & Measure it?What prompted you do it?

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The Situation:• Who are we? A $12-16M sales & service organization being run the

same way for the past 20 years

• Who do we want to be? A dynamic, growing, & sustainable organization able to take advantage of new customer & market opportunities

• How are we going to get there? A “gut check” of our capabilities & capacity; with current personnel & physical assets could we redirect our ourselves & the organization to manifest the needed changes?

• What are & have been the obstacles? o Who? Stalled by non-participative to contrary partner(s); push back

not worth the effort to facilitate changeo What? Fear of failure & unclear vision of the change process requiredo What? Need to define the goal for change, “the new reality”o When? Primary partner retirement opens “window of opportunity”o When? Timing for the succession of a sustainable business model

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The New Company Profile:

• The Goal is to become a more Professional, Positive, Focused Organization: a dynamic model for growth and sustainability

• Concerns:o Company must change to survive for long term viabilityo Existing management team must grow & develop to reach self

actualizationo Amount of change & work to do so is at first overwhelmingo Unsure on organization & structure of the change processo Unsure on how to “sell” the change process to management

team & company personnelo Need to measure change process & track ROIo I cannot do this myself; outside assistance is required

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Finding that Facilitation Resource• Serendipitous Luck/Gut Feel: answered a direct

marketing call from HCMM• Multi month interview process due to personal

schedule & team acceptance• Reviewed website testimonials• Logical opt-out at any time in sequence of events• Advisor earns value daily, paid weekly• Take the time to “feel” comfortable with the

resource• Moving forward; a leap of faith

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HCMM Consulting: The Process

• Diagnostics: 3 days for interview of each owner, manager & key department personnelo What you do, why & how can it be done bettero What do you like about the companyo What you do not like & would change about the

companyo Basic company metrics: financials, existing

business plan, organization chart, management team bio’s, current job descriptions

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HCMM Consulting: The Process

• Presentation of diagnosis: The Hard Truth!o Your Perceptiono Their Reality

• Proposed plan to reconcile where we are today versus where we want to be: The Change Processo Knowledge = Acceptance = Changeo The time is “Now”; we start next Monday

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HCMM Consulting: The Process

• The Company Goal is become a more Professional, Positive, Focused Organizationo Professional: trained & knowledgeableo Positive: acknowledged & engagedo Focused: goal directed & planned

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GOAL: Professional• Leadership & Management are not born skills

o Company leadership group spent 2 hours per day with coach in group session discussing relevant principles and applying them to current challenges.

o Managers spent 2 hours per day with coach in a group session discussing skills required and using them to enhance their managers role with their staff.

o Supervisors spent 1 hour per day discussing their role and how to better fulfill their job using skills discussed.

• Unprofessional conduct will not be tolerated o A too casual work attitude had developedo Need identified to develop a “we” not an “us & them” atmosphere within the

company o Setting & maintaining a clear, common company agenda at vendor &

customer interfaceo “Rules of Conduct” mutually established & presented by managers to staff

• Communication within, throughout & outbound from the company needs to be enhanced, improved in quality & brought to higher levels with customers & vendors

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GOAL: Positive

• With knowledge comes confidence• With specific guidelines comes assurance• Biweekly open format meetings with

department managers does not let problems fester or be ignored

• Monthly staff meetings set the work agenda & facilitate completion of goals

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GOAL: Focused

• New in depth & detailed job descriptions• Clearly defined expectations• Sales compensation revamped to drive

behavior toward new business generation • Mutually set target goals for all departments• Planned & anticipated periodic performance

evaluations for all employee levels

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Results• Leadership team is better able to lead, engaged in the process &

embracing their role: transformational changes in their attitude, style & approach • Managers are more knowledgeable, more confident & more effective in

their role: Empowered managers• Supervisors have changed attitude from a worker to a supervisor of

workers: Specific learned skills incorporated into resolution of personal/home events• Goals both personal & company are being accomplished, not because

they have to be, but that they want to be: Managers not only feel empowered, but in control

• A better cohesiveness is evident throughout the organization: There is an over-riding positive attitude & a cohesiveness, a “we” mentality that is now evident across the departments

• The most profound result was the development of my designated successor: Consultant moved into his office & took him “under his wing”. Over the 2 month period people & leadership skills were moved light years forward. Coach has remained as a personal confidant & mentor.

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Results: ROI $’s• Sales revenue PFY: down 18%; CFY: up 24%• BT & AD GP PFY: down 12%; CFY: up 32%

*Before tax & accelerated depreciation

• Operations efficiency: 15% increased deliveries with zero increase on average in personnel

• Administrative efficiency: 21% increased orders, invoicing, A/R & A/P with zero increase in personnel

• Achieved value versus Professional Fees paid to consulting firm: 1.5 X the fee paid

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Things Learned• Your employees perception will not change until your

perception does• Past deeds are in the past• Past successes are in the past• You can never change yesterday, but you can certainly

influence tomorrow• I did not have to be the teacher; I did need to endorse &

support the learning process• Change is a journey not a destination• Return on Investment may not be directly discernable in

dollars, but the subjective changes do translate into higher efficiency, enhanced effectiveness, increased profits & greater personal fulfillment

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The Continuum

• The journey is not over: continued personal & company growth is necessary for long term sustainability

• Next Steps: o Recap & self audit of the past year’s results &

accomplishmentso Succession planning: timing, funding, mechanism for

transition to new leadership team

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Addendum

• Training Reference Books:o Leadership Group: John Maxwell's’ 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership o Managers: Richard Templar’s Rules of Management o Supervisors: Louis Imundo’s Supervisor’s Handbook

• Computer & Professional Skills Training:o New Horizons: both in class & online computer courses & business

etiquette classeso Sandler Sales Training: ongoing sales “process” training