A Division CEO wants to become CEO of the Parent Company
A leading Fortune 500 multi-billion dollar company in a fragmented industry has a $1.5 billion dollar division that was acquired in acquisition several years prior. This retail conglomerate serves the public with traditional practices and values.
THE CHALLENGE
The Division CEO of the $1.5 billion dollar acquisition is a “seasoned veteran” of the industry. The CEO of the parent company is fifteen years younger, Ivy League trained and has a background in investment banking. After 30 plus years of successful industry experience the Division CEO is being pulled by two competing forces. First, to continue partnering with the Parent CEO as they continue on the path of growth through M&As. The two have partnered on this path since the CEO’s Division was acquired five years prior and up to this point, the partnership has been mutually beneficial. Second, the Division CEO has a long-held, personal dream to one day be the CEO of a publicly traded company. This has been a driving ambition since early on in his stellar career.
The Division CEO is beginning to realize that the likelihood of becoming the CEO of this particular Parent company is slim since the current CEO is fifteen years his junior and well entrenched in the role. In addition to this, the Parent CEO has most recently begun to question some of the Division CEO’s decisions and initiatives, something that never before occurred until recently. The Parent CEO’s confidence in the Division CEO has diminished. Consequently, the Division CEO’s lateral abilities have begun to erode. It seems as if the Parent CEO is in the early stages of pushing the Division CEO out. The “air” has changed and the Division CEO is astutely aware it has changed.
As a result, the Division CEO sought a consulting/advisory partner that could help him think through and navigate the many variables of his business/career decisions while systematically addressing the internal management issues between him and the Parent CEO.
THE SOLUTION
TLS’ relationship with the client’s senior and executive teams go back for several years. We understand the organization, its people, culture, industry and the varied nuances of each of the key senior players, including the Parent CEO, the Division CEO and just as importantly, the other supporting cast-members in the Parent CEO’s C-Suite. Because of this background, we quickly understand and grasp the big challenge the Division CEO faces. From our intimate knowledge of this organization, we realize the Division CEO, not us, has to drive this project as we walk side-by-side in an advisory role.
THE VALUE
After several months of weekly deliberations and coaching, the Division CEO gained a clear view of his direction going forward. TLS was able to help the Division CEO to understand the opportunities he had with pursuing both issues; remaining with the company and restoring the Parent CEO’s trust and confidence in his abilities, and moving on to another opportunity in an attempt to realize his long-held, personal career goal of being the CEO of a publicly traded company. For the next 18 months we walked alongside the Division CEO to define, develop and deliver the core message needing to be translated to the Parent CEO in a way that allowed the Parent CEO to hear, receive and regain his personal confidence in the Division CEO. This was a message that had to be translated over time, not just a one-instance conversation.
The delivery of this message made an immediate and material difference in the Parent CEO’s trust and attitude toward the Division CEO, while at the same time improving the Division CEO’s measurable performance. Short term, the Division CEO saw dramatic gains in personal and Division efficiency and productivity by eliminating unnecessary activities and better coordinating other activities. Long term, the Division CEO was in a position to fundamentally transform the way his Division worked, freeing up people and revenue to take advantage of new opportunities. In addition, he was able to attract top talent to fill time-critical jobs.
Now to the twist, once the business relationship and trust were restored and once the Division was growing at an extremely healthy pace, the Division CEO realized, on a personal level, he still needed to pursue his personal ambition before it was too late (retirement was not that far away). With this both good, yet sad revelation, the Division CEO communicated his plans to the Parent CEO. Because of the patient, time-effective foundational work the Division CEO performed over the prior two years (restoring the Parent CEO’s trust and faith, and setting his division on an accelerated growth path) the Parent CEO went out of his way to support and help the Division CEO realize his personal dream. Within months, the Division CEO secured the opportunity to become the CEO of a $400 million dollar mid-sized, investor-backed company. Today, it is publicly traded.