After a string of disappointing acquisitions and problematic integrations, the CEO of a global technology services company brought in a new head of Corporate Development and tasked him with making mergers and acquisitions (M&A) a competitive strength. After initially engaging Mark to be his personal coach, the new SVP partnered with Mark and his team to transform the culture and skills of the global corporate development function.
In addition to providing top-team coaching and strategic advisory, Mark and his team designed and delivered multiple leadership and business skills programs for the unit, including the now annual Collaborative Leadership Program (CLP). CLP, a six-month curriculum combining large group workshops, small group “pod” meetings, and one-on-one coaching, helps participants gain control over their unhelpful reactive tendencies, build trust through collaborative sense-making conversations that support working with people rather than working on them, and engage complex problems that cannot be permanently solved but must be managed over time. In fact, collaborative sense-making has become a foundational element of the new Corporate Development culture.
Within four years of beginning their work with Mark, the Corporate Development function went from being perceived as a disempowered and underperforming unit to becoming the single largest contributor to the company’s profitability. After a string of successful deals, they have become so adept at managing the entire M&A process that the company now boasts world-class retention numbers, and their stock price actually goes up rather than down when a new acquisition is announced.