Case Studies

CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Team Development

In a medium-sized company in the healthcare sector, there was a lack of basic forums for coordination between departments, and in some cases, even within departments. Employee churn led to new hires, resulting in long-standing staff encountering new managers and colleagues. Both scenarios caused conflicts within and between teams, negatively affecting their work outcomes.

To resolve internal departmental conflicts, I asked the managers and their teams to clarify the criteria that define good collaboration:

Clarification of previous and new tasks as well as the strengths and experience within the team
Coordination of future task allocation and an action plan
Clarification of the information flow within the department

To improve cross-departmental coordination, I asked the managers to engage in direct exchange with one another and, if necessary, arrange regular meetings to address operational matters. In addition, I introduced a management circle to ensure company-wide information flow and the coordination of overarching topics.

After a manageable period of coordination between managers and their respective teams, effective successes were achieved for the company. A lasting sense of “we” had been established.

Reorganisation and Realignment

In the internal division of a mid-sized company within the healthcare sector, the staff’s focus was on processing customer orders. Additionally, work was strictly organized around key accounts. The department was also spread across several offices. As a result, customers found it difficult to reach the company by phone, leading to dissatisfaction and tendencies towards customer attrition. To comprehensively strengthen customer orientation, I discussed suitable measures with the manager:

Removal of physical separation through relocation to a shared office
Implementation of real-time call monitoring visible to all staff and defining telephone accessibility as a target relevant to bonuses
Renaming the department from “Order Processing” to “Sales Internal Service”
Staff training in telephone sales promotion and development of action-based performance bonuses

The packaging of measures was jointly developed, planned, implemented and tracked by the departments involved.

As a result, not only did the self-image within the Sales Internal Service change, but telephone accessibility also increased by 56%. Customer orientation has become the key success criterion for the department.

Post-Merger Integration

As part of a merger, an external, multi-member sales team based at several locations was to be integrated into a medium-sized company in the healthcare sector. To ensure successful integration, I coordinated the following milestones with the shareholders and stakeholders:

Preparation of FAQs and a coordinated flow of information for the employees of both companies. Conducting personal conversations with the new employees
Organizational and technical integration of the new team, as well as clarification of new tasks and processes with those affected
Mutual visits to various locations, to develop mutual understanding of processes and working methods, as well as for integration and training purposes
Inclusion of the new team into existing information and coordination forums
Establishment of feedback loops, for the continuous improvement of processes

By involving the relevant managers during the implementation of the integration, I was able to ensure smooth integration and quickly resolve any uncertainties that arose. As a result, turnover, profit, and market share of the acquiring company increased significantly.