Turnarounds: From the Oval Office to the Corner Office

The headlines recently have focused on how the replacement of President George W. Bush’s chief of staff may serve to salvage the President’s second term. His new chief of staff has set an agenda, made announcements and started lopping off heads, so to speak, in a very public way. This is not too different from what has happened at corporations during turnarounds. Whether looking at financial institutions, industrial companies, airlines, consumer goods companies or telecommunications giants, the visible dynamics are they same. But are they effective? Why are the characteristics of an effective turnaround process?

Identify the problem. Whether it is the White House or Burger King, measures of success should already be in place. If not, the extant of the turnaround will be bigger than anticipated. Are the right things being measured? Do they tie to the vision and the mission? Are the objectives high enough? And which are hitting the targets, which are below the targets and which are exceeding the targets? If the measures are in place, they align with the vision and mission and they targets are realistic then the focus should go to the top two or three areas where performance is below the target level.

Review the goals. For the areas below their target levels the objectives need to be reviewed. Are they market based? Are they best-in-class? Do they include stretch? Do they align with the vision and mission? Are the objectives and timeframes clear? Are they trackable and quantifiable?

Ownership. Each metric or measure of success should have an owner at a senior level. While it may send out positive signals to the press to fire a chief of staff or to Wall Street by firing the CEO or CFO, the question is - how will this impact the specific problems? If the answer is to fix everything then replacing a leader is just a gesture. Who is accountable for each metric? Did they perform? If not why? If their performance resulting in the objective not being met then they should be replaced - immediately. And remember - replace and eliminate people starting at the top and work down. Not the other way around. Again - each measurement needs to have an accountable owner at a senior level.

Action Plans. Each measurement area targeted for turnaround needs to have a specific action plan. The action plan must include deliverables, dates, a budget and dedicated resources. Doing an action plan in the margins is the same as saying that it is not important. Weekly if not daily updates to the action plan need to be developed and presented. The time frames must be aggressive. Again, the overall owner of the metric or measurement must be held accountable for results and outcomes.

Track Progress. The actual performance against the action plan or turnaround plan should be tracked and updated daily. This should be available to all team members and all members of the senior leadership. It must be visible. If the progress misses dates, misses targets, goes over budget or does not get resources, this must be visible to the team members and also to the senior leadership. It is up to both the senior leadership and the action plan team to take the steps needed to insure the action plan stays on track.

Communicate, communicate, communicate. Whether it is the White House or Continental Airlines or Bausch & Lomb, communication externally is not as much of a problem as is internal communication. The problems, the proposed solution, the measures of success, the targets and the actual performance need to be clearly communicated to internally and externally. Customers, suppliers, employees, contractors and investors all need to be on board through clear, consistent and constant communication. And the news media should not be the only conduit for this purpose. The web, conference calls, e-mails, meetings, forums, retreats and other means should all be utilized for this purpose across all the constituencies.

Celebrate. When the goal is achieved - within the project plan, within the budget, within the headcount and by the target dates should be celebrated. The achievement of the clearly communicated goals or objectives for the turnaround projects should be cause for a celebration. This is not just a gesture. This is a tool to both communicate and to reinforce the achievement of goals or goals established in the turnaround action plans. Too often a moment for celebration passes without notice and it is on to the next crises. This is demoralizing for all parties involved in the turnaround initiative.

Raise the bar. With the achievement of the turn around plan it is time to reevaluate the measures, the objectives and actual performance in light of the vision and the mission. This must be a continuous process. Raising the bar - always striving to perform better - should become a way of life for any institution that wants to move beyond a turnaround and to ever improving performance excellence.

Turnarounds have become a clich. The White House, corporate America and educational institutions at all levels talk about turnarounds. The steps to achieve a turnaround are common regardless of the institution or organization. The investments of discipline, focus and energy required to achieve a turnaround result in consistently higher levels of performance that align with the institution’s vision and mission.