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Operational Strategy Design & Rollout (Post Merger)

Client Situation: Our client is part of a leading global pharmaceutical company. The client was facing major changes both externally and internally. After consummating a major merger in a time of industry consolidation and market uncertainty, it became clear that a new operational strategy was called for. Our consultants were asked to work with a senior team to clarify and detail a strategy that could give direction to the many business units/sites around the globe. We then developed a global implementation program to implement the new strategy in the company's plants across eight countries.

Endeavor Management Solution: The approach followed our Engineering Organizational Change model:

• Complete Vision – sufficiently detailed and personalized so that managers in all key areas understand – in actionable ways – how the vision impacts them/their work groups and, where appropriate, customized to account for different cultures and regional sensitivities
• Communication, Communication, Communication – to get input, feedback and buy-in from key players to finish crafting the vision, winning performance and capabilities list and, in turn, to provide key players with the tools and incentives to "show, tell and sell" the vision to their direct reports
• Comprehensive Communication Plan, with key messages that span the globe – the messages and the media (people and other tools) chosen to deliver them must have an international perspective to translate appropriately in France, Germany, Japan, Mexico and Australia as well as the U.S.
• Defined Linkages – translation of the new vision and strategies into executable business unit or functional implementation plans (One of the reasons strategic initiatives often fail to produce desired results is the fact that the linkage from overall strategy to departments or functional levels is not well defined or well managed.)
• Refined Business Processes and Metrics – processes involved in working the strategic initiatives may need to be altered in order to produce the desired level of performance
• Fine-tuned Plant, Equipment and Tools – alterations in physical plant, equipment and tools/technologies needed to produce the desired level of performance
• Aligned Incentives – alignment of the performance management system to reward/incent actions and behaviors that lead change toward the vision and produce levels of performance
• Action Planning – detailed, tactical level plans that demonstrate actionable understanding of new vision and winning performance statements throughout management and staff

Results and Benefits: The new operational strategy was developed on time and on target, communicated to all operations globally and implemented through a series of timed steps at each of the locations. Our consultants served as both the principal strategic designer and implementation staff for the strategy program manager. We provided support for the global communication plan, the global implementation plan, as well as quantification of both roll-out and business performance. Within a six month period, all units had implemented their own version of the operational strategy and considerably increased the level of required coordination between units. Working with a single strategy allowed the company to eliminate major redundancies and make major cost reductions across their global operation.

The rollout project success was measured by:

• Successful communication of the vision which resulted in aligned goals, initiatives and day-to-day actions. Implementation resulted in strategies aligned with business goals and prioritized in a way that optimizes opportunity for success, including:
• Roadmap for successful implementation of strategies
• Methods for improving business processes
• Assurance that day-to-day actions are aligned with the new direction
• Promotion of the "Customer First, Quality Always" message throughout the organization
• Program that is appropriate and performable to involve top leadership in roles that persuasively demonstrate commitment to successful implementation of the vision