Old Hand and New Blood (HBR Case Study and Commentary) Confusion struck Fusilier Technology when three different events suddenly seem to coagulate and stack on top of each other bringing about a unified consequence — the organizations decline. The members of the board convened to re-assess the situation and find out the reasons why the companys performance edge has started to erode. More than a year ago, Bill MacLeod, Fusiliers CEO, in order to steam up growths has introduced his Integrated Solution Strategy and brought the organization from the traditional Product Performance Approach to a new level — the Solutions Approach. He even pulled up few division staff as well as outsiders to set up the new professional services division whose aim, through a Solution-Centric Approach, is to be able to go deeper and offer more services to major clients on key issues facing them. But instead this triggers disarray amongst divisions and the companys new growth strategy to sell customized business solutions does not seems to be working at all. Troubled by the dilemma, Macleod and Zorthian thought of taking in an expert outside of the organization who can handle the companys pressing situation.
The most notable is Jon Sapiro, who is said to be a mover and a shaker and has a lot of experience in selling solutions. However, given Sapiros solutions and plans, Macleod and Zorthian surmised that he does not know the industry that much and they were not convinced his plan will work; in fact they consider it risky as far as the companys organization is concern. They do not need a house cleaning for the solution to work. An insider veteran sales director, Elena Gonzalez, on the other hand, has excelled under the old order and is mostly responsible for all the major accounts in the company yet she does not seem to be a likely candidate considering the new set-up of the organization. Now the issue remains that time is running out for Fusilier, they need to get their acts together otherwise it will continue to imperil their performance edge. Confronted with the dilemma, MacLeod with Zorthian surmise that if they can have a vice president of sales who can make the new solution work for Fusilier then the organizations predicament will be resolved.
What is needed is someone who can stir the company into the transition it needs. Why does the new “solutions” strategy require a new structure? Fusiliers new solutions strategy is the deciding factor from which the decision of hiring the new VP for sales must be based. The newly adapted Integrated Solution Strategy is a complete digression from the old system. While the old Fusilier structure is focusing more on product features and cost-performance advantages and of course the selling of these. The new strategy is a revolutionary move that aims to solve and cater to the needs of the customers beyond the necessity of acquiring a certain product. Importance is not just on the products but also on the business issues facing customers.
With the new model, Fusilier must revamp and overhaul its incentives, training, and processes for deploying the sales force. The formation of a solution-oriented sales force that is tightly aligned with the consulting organization will help the different divisions realize that cooperating rather than competing is the solution to their plight. This will also eliminate the confusion of roles that seems to steam up from the establishment of the new system. There is also a great need to tailor-out a new organization model that will fit the organization so that each and every segment of the company will be able to work complementarily and collaboratively towards the new strategy. Implementation of new structure will help in the evaluation of what causes the wearing down of their performance edge and thereby design an approach to address the problem. With the new structure, Fusilier Technologys leadership will be able to bring forth cooperation and collaboration on all the product divisions. Does the new structure require a culture change at Fusilier? Macleod had pioneered a new culture within the organization yet the people within it are either too conservative to embrace the new ways or they have no properly understand the new system. By shifting from selling to re-engineering his system, which is a lot cheaper and easy in the long run he will be able to help his customers cut down their expenditures.
The loss of Chase Dynamics account is mainly because of the inability of Fusilier to answer the particular requirement of of the customer. Chase need not purchase another $40M new technology but to re-engineer, to cope up with the SOX requirements and to their customers issues, which is supposed to be the very purpose of the Professional Division. Macleod had employed his Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technique by creating a Professional Division, thus, amending the old structure to a new one in order to adapt to the changes in the modern world. However, due to the absence of clear cut guidelines and lack of support to the newly created division, there were difficulties in implementing the new solution. In fact, both MacLeod and Zorthian perceive Hartleys retirement as an opportunity to give the new solution a break and bring it to full force, this gave us the clue that the divisions are not so much in harmony. What is needed is to make the organization fully understand what course it has to take, the how to sell and deliver the Integrated Solution effectively.
The salespeople need to appreciate and recognize the value and importance of the new system so that they can promote and select from an entire portfolio of products and services offered both by Fusilier and by its business partners. Whats more, they need to collaborate with Professional Services, the new consulting unit whose mission is to jump-start the solutions-centric approach. Ironically, if eighteen months ago Macleod has thought of this already, then why did it fail? Could it be possible that MacLeod was truly skeptical about his own business strategy? Or, plainly because the new system have gained little support from the board? These two questions are simple questions that need not be answered by an outsider like Jon Sapiro, a mover and shaker who does not have enough background on the industry and will more likely be a wrecker and a mender. The answer is right inside the organization; make Elena Gonzalez VP for sales and she will surely bridge the gap. What with her seemingly strong leadership command and her clout on her team and the admiration of the staff. For the new solutions strategy to work it needs a new structure and for the new structure to work it needs a culture change. People in Fusilier should alter and revolutionize how they think and how they do things.
Apparently, in Fusilier, they have not yet imbibed the idea of team work. This particular value should be inculcated into everyone so that they will view the success or failure of one team as the success or failure of the whole organization. Reference List Franks V. Cespedes, Alston Gardner, Steven Kerr, Randal D. Kelley and Andrea L. Dixon 2007, Old hand or new blood, Harvard Business Review: Case Study and Commentary, July 1, 2007 issue, pp. 26-40..