After three and a half years of transformation a national charity was in a much better place: finances were more secure; the strategic, operational and cultural foundations for the longer-term were in place; and staff and other stakeholders were more engaged and energised.However, the senior team was now low on energy and there was a lack of clarity and focus on ‘what next?’ There had been some changes in team personnel with a knock-on effect to team dynamics and performance, plus wider structural change within the organisation was on the horizon, driven by one of the new senior team members. Furthermore, the Board was keen to push an ‘ambition/growth’ agenda, putting additional pressure on the senior team…

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Testing the ambition
Through a series of workshop interventions, and working closely with the CEO, we challenged the team on the nature and degree of their ambition for the organisation. Did they want to be remembered simply as the team that had ‘righted the ship’ or for something more?

 

Vision for the future
We then helped them to get real clarity of what success looked like over the next 18-24 months, and the related areas of strategic and operational focus. At the same time, we helped them to review their roles as leaders, both collectively and individually, and to commit to the leadership behaviours required to deliver success.

We also supported the CEO and senior team in engaging the Chairman and Board in developing the longer-term ambitions and plans for the organisation.

 

What were the outcomes?
The leadership of the organisation was reformed and renewed, as a group and as individuals. The energy levels, focus and commitment required of the senior team in order to lead the next phase of development of the organisation were in place.

 

In addition, there was real, shared clarity of what needed to be done over short-term (next 18 months), within the framework of the longer-term ambition and strategy, as well as greater alignment with the Board about the longer-term.

 

Hard components

• Strategic and operational clarity and focus for the next 12-18 months

• Clarity of senior team roles and responsibilities.

 

Soft components

• Integration of new senior team member

• Senior team clear on ways of working and leadership required for the next phase

• Renewed sense of ambition and commitment in the senior team

• Greater alignment between senior team and Board.