CONVERSATIONS WHICH ULTIMATLEY CHANGED THE CULTURE OF THE COMPANY

Constance Howlett manages all the components of packaging and production for a luxury global brand.  She is responsible for a team of 50 that are broken into three groups. As a manger of multiple projects for many products, communication with all departments was both essential and difficult.  Her biggest challenge was to change the perception that her department was “always late.”

In our work together, we delved into each aspect of every job noting the greatest amount of time was taken up on the front end, during development and design, which left little room for her team to do their job.  They were in constant “crisis mode.”  Constance had crucial conversations with Brand Managers to develop realistic expectations, then designed an electronic system that tracked every aspect of a job, from start to find, across all departments.  Everyone was held to account and data was the best ally.

Results

• Realistic expectations were aligned across all Brands
• New communication structures were created that empowered employees
• The culture of blame was transformed into one of accountability and collaboration
• Productivity soared and deadlines were met