Case Studies & Business Solutions

One of America's Leading Automotive Companies (201k Employees / 90 Plants Worldwide)

The Challenge:

Faced with resource cuts, this organization with a global presence needed to restructure and encourage workers to accept buyout.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

BigSpeak Consulting supported Client by supplementing current programs with an educational expert who, through dynamic presentations, provided tools to their employees with which to assuage their perspective, key to working in this sensitive initiative.

The Result:

Unmatchable success. After 8 initial conferences, the goal was exceed by 35% (saving millions of dollars). Client decided to rebook over 12 more engagements. Client is now financially healthy and sustaining improved business results in current market. They are, once again, among the profitable automotive companies in the United States.

Consultants:

Willie Jolley

 

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Iconic Global Non-Profit (21 Million Members / 600,000 Volunteers)

The Challenge:

Client needed to organize a multi-day conference for all of their global leaders, during which they were to announce newly formed values and brand. Additionally, the program called for an educational slant through which to inspire leaders with an emphasis on recruiting and retaining new talent, improve time management skills, increase operational efficiencies, with an eye on leadership development, health and wellness, and ultimately grow member base in a challenging modern economy. Client goals were multi-dimensional and the budget was limited due to non-profit constraints.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

Phase I: BigSpeak Consulting created assessment which the organization fed to global leaders and managers with an eye on deepening the overall efficacy of the program. Results identified areas of opportunity and created vital buy-in.

 

Phase II: BigSpeak Consulting identified, interviewed and negotiated fees for speakers, trainers and subject matter experts for main platform, leadership sessions and specific value-focused workshops. Requirements emphasized reputable credentials and long history of delivery in key areas. BigSpeak Consulting worked to aggregate values into a cohesive message and cross-aligned platforms in order to focus the message for the re-branding launch. BigSpeak Consulting provided oversight for the overall conference educational objectives, all to be accomplished within client's budget parameters.

The Result:

In the past, Client had used multiple vendors which became unwieldy and ineffective. With BigSpeak Consulting as the primary partner, the overall efficacy of the program was cross-aligned for cohesive success. BigSpeak Consulting earned their trust and helped ramp up their global business in a successful re-branding and launch of new values.

Consultants:

Loretta LaRoche, John Maxwell, Terry Sjodin, Simon Bailey, Judy Carter, John Izzo, Willie Jolley, Sally Hogshead, Scott Klososky

 

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Global Financial Holding Company ($3.6 Trillion in Assets under custody)

The Challenge:

BigSpeak Consulting needed to create and launch a strategic leadership development initiative to be implemented multiple times a year in North America and UK.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

BigSpeak Consulting worked with client to design and customize a 2-day training program which would include keynote addresses and interactive sessions. The designated subject matter needed to focus on the DNA of a Leader, How to Maximize Execution, Thinking Globally but Acting Locally, and Account Growth. BigSpeak Consulting identified and brought together industry experts from a number of different fields. As the expert on the experts, BigSpeak Consulting constructed a program which incorporated experts with credible results in the past in alignment with the strategic initiatives presented by the Client. By partnering with the Client throughout the process, BigSpeak Consulting was able to incorporate overtones of diversity, talent management, and emerging market penetration.

The Result:

The newly developed strategic leadership program successfully integrated into the Client's top management development. Additionally, the Client hired one subject matter expert for sustained consulting. The program continues to sustain successful training for the development of their top management.

Consultants:

Dennis Hightower, Marilyn Tam, Howard Putnam

 

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Major Canadian Financial Institution ($50 Billion in Assets / 2 Million Canadian Clients)

The Challenge:

BigSpeak Consulting was engaged to locate an expert required to lead a highly interactive two-day program for the Client's top 1% earners.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

BigSpeak Consulting interviewed potential candidates and, with the Client, identified the proper expert who would successfully engage their team, keeping in alignment with Client methodologies and values. With the help of BigSpeak Consulting, a proposal which outlined the program was presented to the Client's executive team. The program was accepted and customized to address the Client's specific challenges.

The Result:

BigSpeak Consulting saved the Client fixed costs by negotiating directly with one of our experts, based on our professional alignment. BigSpeak Consulting also increased the Client's ROI by working closely with the expert who was required to design an outside-of-the-box program. The chosen expert received the highest score in the Client's program history.

Consultants:

Brian Tracy

 

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Pre-eminent Financial Trading Company ($400 Billion in Assets / Operates in 24 Countries)

The Challenge:

BigSpeak Consulting was engaged to help the Client implement a cultural development program which addressed values and team dynamics while remaining Client-focused. The specific topics to be incorporated into the program included innovation, accountability and passion. At the same time, the program needed to reinforce behaviors, identify ways to improve, explore why organizational values are important, develop shared commitments, as well as generate excitement about the future. No small order.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

BigSpeak Consulting identified a creditable organizational development team who could deliver a highly energized program with proven material, one that integrated all of the above requirements.

The Result:

The Client decided to expand their cultural development program. The program included an executive retreat, company-wide keynote, and multiple daily training sessions for the entire company. Working side by side with BigSpeak Consulting, the Client landed with a cohesive program which resulted in a huge success, a program which cascaded from top to bottom, and scored above 4 on a scale of 1-5.

Consultants:

Rex Pemberton and Patrick Lencioni

 

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America's Value Investment Firm (Managing $5.7 Billion in Assets)

The Challenge:

The CEO of Heartland Financial Advisors, Bill Nasgovitz, needed to evolve a plan for seamless succession planning into the executive team at his company. He read the book: What Got You Here, Won't Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith. The book's key concepts fed into his vision. Nasgovitz engaged BigSpeak Consulting to devise and implement a program regarding career development for senior leaders on his executive team, one that aligned with these principles.

The BigSpeak Consulting Solution:

BigSpeak Consulting designed a team coaching program as an effective method for Nasgovitz to develop a number of senior leaders on his executive team simultaneously. A series of consultations engaged Bill Hawkins, a noted expert in coaching, leadership development and a founding member of the Marshall Goldsmith Group. Mr. Hawkins custom designed a year long program for the top 12 leaders at Heartland Financial. He worked with each of the leaders to identify areas for personal development. In a coordinated effort with Heartland's HR department, Hawkins helped each executive design an action plan for personal development. For example, one leader worked on improving communication skills, another focused on managing impatience and frustration, while another worked to build more effective cross-functional relationships and alliances.

The year-long development process consisted of quarterly visits to Heartland where Mr. Hawkins conducted educational workshops for the entire team. Each workshop was customized to address current Heartland issues. One session, for instance, included Establishing and Maintaining Trust during Times of Change, while another featured Teambuilding. Bill Hawkins also met with each member of the executive team for coaching sessions to address specific action plans.  Every six weeks between visits, Bill conducted one hour follow-up phone calls with each executive to reinforce follow up and provide additional coaching assistance.

 Additionally, the survey tracked changes in overall leadership effectiveness.

The Result:

The results were dramatic. Every single executive improved on the specific issue he/she worked on over the period of a year. The average improvement (on a -3 to +3 scale) was a + 1.3. Even more significant, on the same scale, the overall leadership effectiveness of the entire team improved a + 1.5. The CEO was so impressed with the results, that he set new goals for the next year and employed the same process to take the team to the next level of effectiveness. The process has been repeated utilizing the expertise of Bill Hawkins to even greater and deeper effectiveness over time. This supports the finding that additional coaching has proven to vastly increase the benefits of professional development programs as outlined in this Olivero, Bane, Kopelman action research study: Training increased productivity by 22.4%, whereas additional ongoing coaching produced a productivity gain of 88%.

Consultants:

Bill Hawkins

 

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