CASE # 7
TELECOMMUNICATION
COMPANY
Australia leading
telecommunications organization had recently formed a new division by merging
five disparate branches. The challenge at hand was to integrate the branches
and develop a winning division. This involved over 650 staff and contractors
Australia wide. The five groups had been pulled together without any prior
consultation. Each group viewed the others as unprofessional and incompetent.
The one view they did share was that this move was a prelude to the organization
retrenching them all. This negative view resulted in staff morale being at an
all-time low and resistance to change at an all-time high. Achieved a massive
attitudinal change via setting a new vision and clearly defined goals, the
creation of a new management team, involving senior executives to talk to staff
about the broader direction of the company, creating a leadership program for
staff and with specified selection criteria, leadership training for managers
and team leaders, and working cooperatively with unions. The fragmented and
geographically disparate division was transformed into a cohesive and motivated
winning team and a division that delivered results. This was evidenced by
improved project delivery and customer feedback. Staff moved from being victims
to people who were confident enough to own their work issues and take control
of their own careers with the overall employee opinion survey results improving
significantly within 1 year.