Case Studies
Case Study 03
A large state-owned oil company was faced with a unique situation. Approximately 40 years earlier, in the wake of nationalization, the government had set up four major vertically integrated oil and gas companies with the intent that these companies would compete with one another and thereby attain the ability to compete in global markets.
Recognizing that they could achieve economies of scale by combining the now well-established companies, the government planned to start the merger. However, national laws made any sort of layoffs or downsizing financially and politically unattractive. The solution was to create a shared services organization that would have an initial staff of 12,000 employees. Beyond providing services to the newly merged companies, the shared services organization would provide additional services to third parties, beyond what is typically seen in this type of organization.
Jess Dods was the project leader for a team of external consultants who were assigned to work with the internal management group and representatives of the employees to develop and implement the lines of business, organizational structure, staffing, roles and responsibilities and coordinate the training and culture change efforts for this venture. The consulting team also provided assistance in market research and strategy.
The participants took over an entire floor of the headquarters building and began work, starting with Vision and Mission statements. There were over 400 employees on the floor, working in groups correlated with the business lines. The organization model selected was a customized variation of the Fluid Network Organization. This model emphasized inter-related processes and minimized the formation of silos, which was a concern of the stakeholders. Working within this structure, the participants were able to identify over twenty potentially viable lines of business. These ranged from administrative services to be provided to the parent company, such as Accounts Receivable and Payroll, to diverse services such as air transportation and geological studies.
In addition to performing a variety of tasks, including progress reports to senior management, facilitating change leadership, workshops and brainstorming sessions, Jess worked with the identified leaders of the businesses to ensure their capabilities and success in their new positions. This involved developing competency models, identifying skills and skills gaps as part of individual and group coaching efforts. The teams that he worked with also learned to build projected revenue models and other financial spreadsheets for planning and funding purposes, along with constructing Service Level Agreements.
As the employees had come from any of the four companies, there were also situations involving differing corporate cultures and ways of doing things. Jess and the teams worked on identifying areas of cultural disharmony and ways of working through them with the philosophy that disagreements and conflicts, when handled constructively, can be drivers of forward progress.
