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Leveraging the sweet spot between Agility and Data

In our previous article Leveraging Data-driven Agility in an Agile World, we explored the notion of data-driven decision making in agile delivery environments, which is vitally important in delivering incremental value. The Oxford Dictionary defines symbiosis as “a...

How to make change management happen in the most effective way

Many things can put your business at risk, including changes to your organisation, people or technology. The current pandemic has put many businesses under unprecedented pressure, and some even teetering on the brink of survival. Crises like this quickly turn change...

Future-ready part 2: Diversity – an essential ingredient for a future-ready organisation

In his seminal 1937 essay, “The nature of the firm,” the economist and eventual Nobel laureate Ronald Coase argued that corporations exist to avoid the transaction costs of the free market. Yet with transaction costs plummeting (spurred by rising connectivity)...

Future-ready part 1: What does a future-ready business look like in the new normal?

The pressure to change had been building for years. Well before the COVID-19 pandemic, senior executives routinely worried that their organisations were too slow, too siloed, too bogged down in complicated matrix structures, too bureaucratic. What many leaders feared,...

Organisation Design: Restructuring or Reshuffling to enable Strategy

Customer expectations are not just changing; they are exceeding the ability of a business to deliver on time. They are looking for alternatives, with more emphasis on experience and convenience. To keep up, companies are evolving their offering to meet the...

How to fill the gap between Strategy and Execution

Organisations are great at setting their strategy and identifying their goals, but they fall short when it comes to their operating model review and redesign, the key component that enables the strategy and drives the achievement of goals. Operating models consist of...

Culture PART 2: The role of leaders in a culture shift

In the previous article in this series we examined the effect of COVID-19 on an organisation’s culture. Now, we turn the focus onto the role of leadership and technology in leveraging culture. When an organisation decides to change its culture – be it planned or...

Culture PART 1: Did COVID-19 signal the end for hierarchical organisations?

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, human capital is defined as: “the knowledge, skills, competencies and other attributes embodied in individuals or groups of individuals acquired during their life and used to produce goods,...

Meet MAC’s Executives: Karina Jardim, Senior Executive

“Exceptionally talented consultant” “An absolute pleasure to work with” “Driven by a desire to see people grow” If you know Karina Jardim, you know that these phrases used to describe Karina ring undoubtedly true. She is a name that is valued to every MACer, whether...

Thriving in the Age of Digital Adoption: Embracing the Workforce Ecosystem (part 2)

In the first part of this series, we looked at how the fears of technological innovation are resulting in an unproductive resistance toward modernisation, even as it gains extraordinary pace in 2021. We also delved into the importance of a growth mindset in allowing...



Mac Consulting

Large Energy and Chemicals Provider Change Management, Wellness and Culture Transformation

A division of the group, had to align their own strategy, operating model and organisational structure to the new overall Strategy. The following challenges regarding the above were directly addressed:

  • Current change management plan required a comprehensive review and realignment
  • Key culture shifts and behaviours were not clearly identified and articulated to support the new strategy
  • Oversight was required in the drafting of a new operating model and ways of work supported by change management
  • Wellness approach and initiatives required further development post restructuring

Achieved:

  • An agile change management, communication and implementation plan was successfully developed and applied along the leadership spine – ensuring a smooth transition from the old operating model and strategy to the new
  • New cultural behaviours and ways of work were identified
  • The culture transformation journey and implementation plan was clearly articulated and explained with all roles
  • Employee wellness initiatives were implemented throughout the journey to mitigate the psychological impact of change.

A leading Alcobev company Data foundation to enabled operational intelligence

  • Historically, the organisation was run on “gut feel” and silos of data that was used “just in time”.
  • The organisation was slow to respond to competitor moves, and always lacked decisive (informed) action
  • Invested in building a Master Data Management (MDM) solution to centralise and aggregate data on demand, creating a single point of truth of the entire organisation
  • Leveraged the data asset to deliver operational intelligence through on-demand analysis, insight and dashboards that provided a live view of their entire organisation

Achieved:

  • 6 months post completion of the data asset,
  • The organisation was able to speed up business decision making by a factor of 6,
  • Reduced marketing spend by 45%, and
  • Drive an increase in sales on certain categories by up to 55%.

Large Financial Provider Geyser Claims Analysis

  • Company had bad reviews on their claims handling process and therefore began investigating new ways to better improve the service they provide to their clientele.
  • The group was not aware when customers are having a bad experience
  • There exist multiple customer hand-offs & interactions in the process
  • Claims handlers are handling more claims each day compared to the previous day thus increasing their load

Achieved:
The following are expected business results as MAC was not involved in the implementation phase of the project:

  • Improved customer experience & customer retention
  • Improved NPS (net promoter score) & eNPS ( employee net promoter score)
  • Reduced claims turn-around times(TAT)
  • Gained capacity to identify bottlenecks during early stages of process & mitigate accordingly
  • Create a culture of continuous improvement
  • Improved employee claims handling experience
  • rovide most-profit generating clients with an even more frictionless process

Large Mining Provider Management Programme

  • A need to shift away from command and control management to engaging talent at a humanistic perspective through positive leaders
  • Concern around the negativity due to general unrest in mining industry within the Rustenburg area

Achieved:

  • Contribution towards a positive organisational culture
  • Contribution towards maturity of leadership
  • Contribution towards enhanced relationships at work
  • Contribution towards dedication and discretionary effort through an engaged workforce

Large Energy and Chemicals Provider Operating Model Change and Communication

  • To support the organisation through large scale change
  • To on-board all levels in a phased and cascading approach
  • To support the new operating model while the work force transition is still happening
  • To ensure multi-level and cross functional organisational learning and change
  • To implement a high performance values driven culture

Achieved:

  • Change and communication strategy, plan and structure
  • On-boarding approach, plan, material and conference for senior, middle management
  • Change and learning approach that supports the Operating model
  • Business and functional entities ready for Operating Model go-live
  • Workforce transition process supported

Large multinational beverage company Operating Model Change and Communication

  • Misaligned operating model
  • Inefficient organisational structures
  • Ad hoc change management with no clear strategy and plan
  • Inefficient “Order to Cash” end-to-end process
  • As-Is process and systems analysis
  • Design to-be (future state) processes including new technology solutions

Achieved:

  • Business Executives aligned on new operating model
  • Organisation structures re-aligned to support the business strategy
  • Key business processes optimised
  • Stakeholder engagement plan developed and implemented
  • Change management processes optimised

Large Mining Provider Organisational Redesign and Optimisation

  • Detailed project charter and plan tabled and approved by ExCo
  • Defined organisational structures, reporting relationships, and shared services
  • Organisational Structure functional analysis
  • One on one interactions with HoD’s and Executives
  • Macro Design of new structures
  • Micro labour review of approx. 12,000 personnel
  • Detailed staffing model

Achieved:

  • Adopted fit for purpose unique organisational structure reduced costs whilst mitigating risk
  • Hybrid operating model adopted with a blend of unitary and limited shared services across all business units and functions
  • Reduction in management levels and costs
  • Alignment of all resource levels across the organisational functional areas

Large Energy and Chemicals Provider Performance Management Capability Building Project

  • Inconsistent application of the performance management system across the group
  • Lack of clarity on how performance management relates to other people management processes and business results/planning
  • Concern that the current differentiating model results in enforced adjusted performance ratings
  • Leaders are not clear on their roles
  • Substantive differentiation of top performance not being achieved
  • There was a lack in transparency in the application of the system

Achieved:

  • New Positioning of performance management as a business enabler/framework for consistent management focus
  • Supporting the internalisation of values driven leadership
  • Implementation of Talent Pipeline
  • Standardised, transparent and objective approach for translating strategy into execution
  • Transparency concerning the different levels of work and serves as a critical input into other human resources processes such as succession, development and talent

Large Telecommunications Provider Potential Profitability Assessment

  • A diversified Group with various Business Units – Telecoms, Banking and Services & Tariff regulation in Zimbabwe has put revenues of $60-150million p.a. at risk
  • Cost increases can no longer be sustained in the core Telco business – HQ and operations need to be ‘right-sized’
  • Increasing ‘cost to serve’
  • New businesses are at an early stage of development and cannot sustain themselves without the support of the mature telco business
  • Duplication of support processes and functions across the Group & Manual and inefficient processes

Achieved:

  • A fit for purpose support services design that can efficiently enable the future growth of the business supported by:
    • Efficient and optimised key business processes (cross-functional) and Lean functional structures
    • Future state roles defined and agreed
    • Technology investments and optimisation
  • Cost savings of $30million over 3 years based on head count reduction, facilities consolidation and outsourcing of non-core and non-value adding activities.

Large mining company Process Re-engineering- Project Breakthrough

  • The Company had separated from their parent group
  • The Business was not profitable and negative EVA
  • Systems and process were outdated
  • New structures were required in the absence of the parent group functions
  • The culture required reinvigorating

Achieved:

  • Benefits exceeded R 1.3 billion
  • The entire organization was restructured into profit centres in which each Business unit and area has control of its own activities and is able to optimize the value chain
  • Enhanced throughput, profits and productivity
  • Increased impetus for the organization’s strategic objectives

Large Energy and Chemicals Provider Agile CoE

  • Sub optimal resolution of existing Business challenges due to limitations of current way of thinking and working.
  • No common language and holistic approach towards agility as different Business units engaged with different agile vendors
  • Perception that agile conflicts with other methodologies being adopted in the organization leading to unnecessary conflict, unnecessary ‘waste’ in the delivery process and opportunity loss

Achieved:

  • Agile CoE was setup and enabled to provide the right guidance on agility for all business units (IT and non-IT domains) in the organization. The execution of Agile CoE functions has resulted in
  • Focus and resolution of gaps in the existing approach towards agile transformation being addressed with a more contextual case of agility
  • Maturity of agility transformation being directly linked to enhanced business/ organizational delivery outcomes supported by relevant metrics. Hence more control on ensuring the ROI for agility
  • Effective Agile people change management across all levels for sustainable outcomes

Large Telecommunications Provider Towards a High-Performing Organisation

  • Business performance consistently below budget
  • Group culture audit results indicate Opco in bottom quartile
  • Silos are beginning to break down between functions, but progress has been slow
  • Work has commenced on Employee Value Proposition and Leadership Brand – but needs to be implemented within broader business improvement drive

Achieved:

  • Agreed high-performance vision and clarified the role of the EXCO team on the journey to high-performance
  • Developed country strategy and helped revise the business plan
  • Defined key strategic initiatives to accelerate the change
  • Identified leadership capabilities, EXCO team assessed against these and ongoing measurement of these using a talent dashboard
  • Personal and team leadership initiative
  • High-performance programme launched
  • Ongoing support and coaching of EXCO team