Photo: Jeremy Bishop
Leanne* inherited a poison chalice when she took her new role. Her new employer, a global technology services business, had lost the confidence of a major client. Her job was to rebuild what had become a poisonous relationship. It was a multi-million dollar account and the client’s perception of her employer was at an all-time low. Attempts at conciliation had turned into threats of legal action.
All eyes were now on her to turn things around.
She committed to the objective of restoring the relationship in the next six months. She sensibly aligned her team on the objective. There were plenty of naysayers who said that it was not possible but she decided to give it her best shot. She took responsibility for the client’s perception of her employer and presented a plan that would provide the client with the value that she believed was missing. She asked for and received support from her global leadership team.
It was not long however, before her little voice of doubt kicked in. “Who are you kidding, you don’t really have what it takes to deliver on your promise,” it told her. This was a familiar dialogue which had dogged her career. Whenever the stakes were increased she knew that this conversation would kick in. If we are honest, every one of us could identify with her, especially when we have taken on a big commitment. She thanked her little voice for sharing and started a bigger new conversation about putting the client at the centre of the universe.
She did produce a complete turnaround through her ability to listen to the client’s problems and address them in a committed way. The results she and her team produced spoke volumes. Key stakeholders in the client organisation began to sing her praises.
She now has a personal brand as the turnaround person and has since been promoted and given more challenging turnaround assignments. Her reputation in the marketplace has also grown and she has been headhunted for exciting assignments that she is evaluating.
Leanne confronted her demons to avert a significant risk for her business. She changed the game for them. Of course, game-changing leadership is not for everyone. It is certainly not for the faint hearted. It takes courage and commitment. Because there is no formula, it is never comfortable. But for leaders like Leanne it is ultimately more fulfilling than playing it safe.
We believe that leaders who produce game-changing results will be in big demand. The market feedback in the latest Big Kahuna Leadership Survey supports this view, particularly as businesses seek to execute strategies to avert the risk or capture the opportunity of technology disruption.
Are you building your brand as a game-changing leader?
Best regards, Brian
*Name changed to protect the innocent
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