Hilse Consulting

Strategy and succession in a family business

Challenge

A family-run printing company which had grown organically over the years was making two key transitions: new growth areas in its business, and succession planning with a new manager from outside the company. The unfolding situation had led to escalating conflicts between the members of the executive team.

Solution

A multilateral survey was taken of the various different opinions and points of view. These different strands were brought together and new communication formats were introduced to open up the mindset of the management team. An intensive dialog on the company's strategy enabled the participants to openly address the opportunities, threats and fears they perceived. At the same time the external manager was brought on board in his new role. Agreement was reached on a shared vision and strategy. Projects to implement this strategy were then initiated in various areas, and the leadership and project management tasks in the business were professionalized.

Result

Support for the process came to an end two years later with the manager brought in from outside the company now firmly in the saddle. The management team had pulled together and was working toward the same goals, and clear progress had been made in establishing new business fields.

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In family-run companies you typically get an overlap between the rationale of the family and the organization. This is their strength, but also a potential weakness.

Crisis communication and change management in a DAX-listed company

Challenge

A DAX-listed company found itself in a precarious financial situation and was forced to undertake a drastic restructuring program. The leadership team needed to prepare management and employees for these wide-ranging cuts and help them understand why they were necessary.

Solution

I set up and facilitated workshops for the top 50 executives in the company to create a nerve center of change on the management side. Regular joint reviews of the unfolding situation were conducted, as well as planning, checking and monitoring of the measures taken. Managers all around the world were trained to bring them up to speed on the restructuring measures and employee leadership skills. A new approach to employee communication was also introduced: This involved the communication of an ongoing corporate development story through regular CEO and executive board emails and worldwide staff meetings, with advance preparation of site managers and common and consistent messages and materials.

Result

Turnaround was achieved after a difficult 18 month period. Employees stayed loyal to the company despite job losses and lower salaries. Difficult though the process was, it actually created a stronger bond because everyone knew they had saved the company together.

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Development and introduction of a mission statement en route to a high-performance company

Challenge

The background here was a company determined to move forward. Following some major upheavals in the company's business portfolio and changes to the organization itself, the goal was to mobilize the 25,000 managers and employees worldwide to place the company firmly en route to success and growth.

Solution

The positive experience of the recent leadership of the company including a clear focus on results was used as a basis for a new mission statement highlighting "the journey toward a high-performance company". The mission statement was developed by the top management team with a focus on why (mission), what (targets) and how (values), with feedback loops in all the different regions. The mission statement was launched in over 650 workshops around the world in which managers led their teams through a high-performance obstacle course which used a playful approach to show how the mission statement could be implemented in their area of the business.

Result

The introduction of the mission statement opened up a new phase within the company, making the management team's ambitions clear and tangible. Managers and employees felt empowered with the knowledge that they could drive forward their own ideas and make a contribution to the company as a whole.

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Improvements to the leadership and feedback culture in a technology company

Challenge

Managers in a technology company – most of whom were engineers – were struggling to give honest and open feedback and manage their employees in a performance-oriented and potential-oriented way.

Solution

We developed a worldwide performance management process emphasizing dialog and feedback on performance, behavior and development, run in collaboration with managers and works councils. Training was provided for managers to bring them up to speed in introducing the new process. At the same time, the company established binding management feedback workshops, i.e. feedback from employees on their respective managers. The quality of leadership and feedback was comprehensively measured in the annual employee satisfaction survey.

Result

Leadership and feedback quality improved continuously following the introduction of these new initiatives and the learning process experienced by both the managers and the employees. This had a positive effect on employees' identification with and commitment to the company and on the employer's brand in the labour market.

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Leadership program on global leadership and growth in Asia

Challenge

A global company headquartered in Germany had steadily seen "new Asia" become its dominant region, not just in terms of production, but also in regard to sales markets. The company was on the brink of a major shift in the style and nature of its leadership.

Solution

An in-house leadership development program was launched to familiarize executives with Asian target markets, economic systems, business practices and cultures and to introduce pertinent changes in the company's own leadership and organization. The program was run on the basis of ‘tandems’, which consisted of one European and one Asian manager from the same area of specialization. The process culminated in the presentation of proposed changes and change projects to the Board and their subsequent implementation.

Result

The company identified new business opportunities and challenges in Asia. The Asian and European managers acquired a greater understanding of each other's cultures and built up enhanced levels of trust. New structures were established, including devolving greater responsibility to Asia.

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Globalization rests on a mutual and enriching form of interaction between Eastern and Western styles of leadership.

Learning architecture for technical innovation in a high-tech company

Challenge

A company in a high-tech industry was seeking ways of securing its long-term future as a technology and innovation leader and strategically developing its in-house technical expertise.

Solution

The company established a learning architecture of technical communities, seminars and forums which were closely linked to the introduction of a new technical career path. The communities brought together the top experts in each field of expertise, acting as 'centers of innovation'. These communities formed the basis for developing and running seminars for up-and-coming engineers. The forums provided a basis for discussions and dialog between experts and management, reconciling market analyses and business strategies with the opportunities offered by technical innovation.

Result

The engineers enthusiastically adopted and supported the learning and innovation architecture. The company's technical expertise had finally found a home. Following a pilot phase in the research & development department, the new approach was rolled out to the production department, too.

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