When Lou Gerstner took over IBM in the early '90s, he had the monumental task of converting the largest hardware- and software-focused corporation on the planet to a services business. To do that, he needed to build capability within IBM to lead and manage large-scale change. Crossland was called in to meet with Gerstner and his Worldwide Management Council in 2000 to build a structured process that would redefine the strategy and culture at IBM. The process needed to touch all aspects of transformation, from strategic fit and leadership and development to organizational design and mobilization.

 

Crossland began by piloting three versions of its Accelerating Change Together (ACT) process for IBM. Designed to break down functional and geographic silos using specific collaboration techniques that compress problem-solving time and create the necessary conditions to implement actions within ninety days, ACT produced measurable impact across all geographies and business units for IBM.

 

$1B in increased growth opportunity

 

Over the next eight years, IBM leaders partnered with Crossland to design and deliver over 800 ACT sessions globally. We helped their leaders create impact across fields as diverse as sales, research, software, management consulting, operations, and corporate. The results were tremendous. In one case, IBM developed a patented procurement outsourcing services offering resulting in $500M in incremental revenue growth and 18 per cent per year growth in share. In another instance, the ACT process reduced development IT expenses by $31M in areas such as unused capital, WAN charges, and contracted services. In a third example, IBM was able to execute a business growth plan to support their healthcare/life sciences strategy, which increased the company’s growth opportunity by $1B.