Project At A Glance 

Tenacious Leadership Institute collaborated with a leading Customer Relationship Management software company who was currently facing challenges as they expanded operations globally and established offshore partnerships. Rapid growth brought lost productivity and cross-cultural conflicts that needed to be addressed.

Through an innovative on-site program that was carefully designed by the Tenacious Leadership Institute with the intention to re-focus, inspire and collaborate more effectively, the team gained newfound productivity, improved communication, implementation of new collaboration practices, as well as a substantial cost savings of $848,000 annually.

Situation

A leading Customer Relationship Management software company, headquartered in the US, was experiencing the challenges of growing rapidly.  As they expanded globally and established offshore partnerships in India and South America, they experienced the following challenges:

• Lost productivity and missed project deadlines resulting from poor communication

• Loss of one major client and risk of losing two others

• Lack of trust and accountability amongst the teams

• Cross-cultural misunderstandings and team conflict

• High levels of stress and frustration for employees and management

• Challenges with employee and customer retention

Solution

In planning the program for the client, Tenacious Leadership Institute identified three key focus areas with the intention of getting the teams re-focused, inspired and collaborating more effectively.  We factored in the virtual nature of the work as well as the cross-cultural issues associated with operating a global team.

The following goals were targeted for the program delivery:

1. Pinpoint the top three reasons for lost productivity and develop solutions

2. Determine areas of miscommunication; Introduce new meeting and project procedures

3. Create a culturally-sensitive conflict resolution model to implement via conference calls

4. Identify underlying beliefs/stories about the team’s work and each member’s role

5. Introduce five daily stress management practices appropriate for both the team and individuals

Results

As a result of the program, the client gained newfound productivity and enhanced collaboration within the development team as well as throughout the company.  In addition, the team members reported improved communication, shorter meetings, less conflict and greater understanding.

This impacted the results within their projects and they experienced:

1. Team Action Planning to clarify productivity goals, strategies and actions resulting in an estimated 20% increase in team productivity

2. Implementation of new meeting and communication practices to focus participants and save time; Estimated quarterly cost savings US$848,000 (based on salaries and call costs)

3. Individual implementation of collaboration practices; Impact reported: improved sense of teamwork, morale and engagement