Our consultant led the teams in the communications and marketing unit of a Finnish global company for over a year.
The working model of the communication and marketing unit was significantly changed, as were the team structures. The aim was to clarify the different teams’ roles and to build clearer job descriptions for team members. During the change, one team leader and the head of unit moved to new positions outside the company. Our consultant led two of the four teams during the recruitment process and later lead the whole team during the leadership search.
To implement the change, everyone had to reflect on their own job descriptions and growth needs. In addition, the teams had to agree on new common operating methods and establish them both within the communications and marketing unit and with key partners. New models were also modified, because not everything that looked good on paper worked in practice.
Although the teams had a good understanding of the goals and need for change, it took time to accept the change, and each team member had an individual change path. The feedback from the communications and marketing teams of the change was assessed in a pulse and a personnel survey. The response rate was high in both, and the feedback went up from a good to excellent.
“Successful change requires everyone to be involved in the discussion, in reviewing and renewing working methods, and finally in implementing it. The team leader’s role is to be the anchor of change, maintaining faith and hope throughout the process. The key is to listen to feedback and emotional outbursts – to be reachable to team members. In addition, you need to be involved in everyday life: understanding where the change is getting stuck and helping to find solutions to problems.
Marianne Holmlund
