Business Imperative
This highly successful, family-owned brokerage house, thriving on quick deals and high-volume activity, was acquired by a large financial services institution. As a new member of the organization, this brokerage house needed to remain successful - but in newly strategic and complementary ways, across more segments of the investment-oriented market.

Leaders were challenged to rapidly and radically shift the entire enterprise away from its traditional, transaction-based model (with its short-term focus and emphasis on raw numbers) … toward a more service-oriented model, with its promise of deeper, longer-term relationships with clients across the full range of their personal and business financial needs. The parent company was counting on the business to contribute profits that were both growing and sustainable over the long haul.

This would require far more than a change of business models. It would require nothing less than a transformation of the business' operating philosophy and culture. Each and every person associated with the organization would need to be engaged in the change and contribute their personal leadership in dealing with its implications.

Leaders recognized that, from now on, how their people viewed themselves, their work, and their clients would be a critical determining factor in the company's ability to deliver on the organization's overall vision. Significantly, they realized that leading change required them to change how they led - and they needed help.

Leadership Response
With the help of Stratton Consulting Group's team (Stratton), leaders carefully assessed their current state and the strategic imperatives facing the business. By analyzing relevant internal data, implementing a Denison Cultural Survey, and conducting interviews across the executive team, Stratton provided a clear and compelling picture of the company's prevailing culture - "how things really get done around here" - then helped leaders discern their best path forward for rapid change, sustained performance, and expanding success.

Based on the information and awareness generated in the process, the leaders declared a bold new Mission for the business: "To be America's fastest-growing major investment firm by becoming the absolute, clear-cut leader in overall customer satisfaction." They realized they needed to target some very explicit and tangible short-term goals to move quickly toward accomplishing this mission, including measures around:

• Employee recruitment and retention
• Employee growth and development
• New customer relationships
• Increased share of customer assets
• A dramatically improved customer experience

They came to realize that, in combination with their strategic partners at the parent company, they had embarked upon nothing short of the reinvention of retail investment banking. How would this audacious approach "fly" with their people? How would the Board respond? … For that matter, investors and shareholders? … The Markets?

Accelerating Toward Success
Stratton facilitated a 3-day highly interactive leadership visioning offsite with the top 200 organizational leaders. This offered them an opportunity to really grapple with the implications of their strategic Mission and the changes it demanded on both the professional and personal levels. Their leadership roles and abilities would be tested and extended in unprecedented ways; it was critical that they felt fully committed to the process as well as its goals.

The highly experiential session was characterized by penetrating questions, frank conversation, and dramatic shifts in shared (as well as personal) expectations and awareness. The clarity of the Mission when combined with the executive team's demonstrated, unequivocal commitment helped to catalyze a new energy for advocacy and contribution across the top layer of the company.

Leaders left wanting some tangible way of clearly demonstrating that a threshold had been crossed, that a new firm was emerging. It was noted, to the surprise of many, that their staff of highly skilled, experienced, and self-motivated trading professionals were still expected to punch time clocks at work. Clearly, this was counterproductive to any spirit of true commitment and contribution, and "Smash the time clocks!" emerged as a signature rallying cry for the event. Within days of the meeting, time clocks were removed from the trading offices, and a new dress code encouraged people to dress for increased comfort and performance.

It was important to continuously build and leverage the momentum of these sessions. Within a few weeks, members of the Top 200 partnered with Stratton to plan, prepare, and deliver an all-company Vision Engagement session. This meeting would not only be a high-impact vehicle for delivering new messages about Mission, contribution, leadership, and success … it would also signal a dramatic shift in the company leaders' focus and commitment.

Never before had all 1500+ employees been called together, as one. Never before had the company invested so much executive time and talent focusing on the needs and expectations of the entire workforce. Never before had the company invested so much money in creating the right conditions for learning, networking, and rallying around their newly raised standard.

The one-day offsite was uniquely challenging because of its scale, the geographic diversity of participants, and the absolute business need to "keep the shop running" without a hitch, so that no customer was in any way inconvenienced or put at risk. Furthermore, participants had to emerge feeling that this was not just an interesting or diverting event, but was truly a watershed event in their careers and in the life of their organization.

Results
The all-company session was a culminating event, signaling a new sharing of leadership responsibility across all levels and locations of the business. People were invited to embrace the challenges of the future as well as all the changes - both planned and unforeseeable - that would be required. The high levels of engagement, involvement, and mutual respect served them well in the months that followed. In addition to the strategic mandate from the parent company, they had to deal with the market downturns that dramatically impacted the entire investment community. Certainly a measure of success in the near-term is how this newly aligned firm responds to critical challenges. They responded admirably:

• A new organization structure was put in place re-calibrating more focus & resources on areas such as business development and product development.
• New alliances were formed with their business partners from the parent company to ensure customers were leveraged, including:
  • Distribution
  • Clearing
  • High Value Clients
  • Small Business
• New production launch capabilities improved dramatically with specific emphasis on accelerating development cycle times.