Started late on the 90,000 existing clients to transition because of a change in leadership. However, the time commitment made by the CEO held. Hindrances included lack of resources and client resistance to change. Needed to maintain current work with clients while allocating resources for the migration. In addition, some clients faced lost functionality.

Identified the method for client selection to convert the clients from easiest to most difficult. Noted key functions and aligned clients that needed those features. Allocated additional resources to the migrations and created incentive programs to encourage additional volunteers to participate during down periods. As the project progressed, expanded the number of resources working on migrations by carving additional resources out of the new business volume strategically throughout work peaks and valleys.

The regional dedicated associates completed 50% more migrations than any other regional team despite starting the migration project last and completed the project within the three-year time allocation.

Needed to integrate the product of an acquisition into the existing flow by incorporating the interface files and technical support models while still maintaining the integrity of the integrations that drove the file creation. Evaluated the new product capabilities and determined the adjustments needed to complete the interfaces. The teams for the acquired firm believed their methods, tools, and processes surpassed the existing tools. Needed to balance egos to make the integration occur and maintain the integrity of repeatable successful processes.

Appointed a knowledgeable team that included key members of the acquired organization. Identified a methodical approach to evaluating the product capabilities and similarities / differences to the existing product. Compared file layouts and implementation project plans to ensure tasks occurred in the appropriate order and at the correct times. Adjusted tasks to highlight all necessary steps and called out key differences to the current process. Collaborated with the project team to ensure early issues did not reoccur on subsequent projects.

The acquisition teams gained confidence in the process and the product as 100% of interfaces worked at the time of client go-live, compared to the 25% readiness historical average on other projects.

Each vendor contributed a portion of the bill-rate to fund the competition; therefore, failure to come in first or second resulted in a loss of revenue. The internal team continually trailed in competition metrics. Agents did not invest in the contest while leadership did not proactively manage the data to produce results. Needed to identify the root cause, enact a plan to over-deliver, and inspire the agents.

Reviewed the objectives with the agents to ensure clear understanding of the metrics and methods to achieve the goals. Assessed individual agent performance daily. Cultivated peer-mentorship opportunities as appropriate. Established coaching expectancies with team leaders to facilitate agent success. Ensured daily review and calculation of data. Set vision of reward for winning the competition. Created a recognition program to instill enthusiasm and agent buy-in throughout the month.

As a result, the team won 75% of the vendor-to-vendor competitions in 2017. This led to no loss of revenue and an additional bonus of $25,000, subsequently used for agent recognition and rewards.

During the three-week training course, many agents fell to attrition. As many as 75% of a class left the firm during the training period. This made realizing headcount goals a significant challenge and remained an inadequate return on investment. The recruiting team kept motivated through filling classes not agent retention. This necessitated a new approach to interviewing and approving candidates for hire.

Introduced a group interview process with a leader from the line of business conducting second-tier interviews. In the second interview, the leader outlined the support the team provided for the client, set definite expectations and performed scenario-based role-plays with the candidates. Instituted additional participation from operational management throughout training to deliver inspiration, guidance, and support to trainees.

By restructuring the interviewing process and including inspirational moments during training, ensured hiring of top quality candidates and experienced a 42% drop in the training attrition rate.

Due to an acquisition, the organization needed to realign 25% of existing resources to support the new product offering while still maintaining the volume of existing business. Decided to streamline the implementation process and allocate on and offshore resources more effectively to provide the needed capacity. The onshore associates felt uncomfortable with the future. Needed to assuage employee fears and bolster confidence in the offshore team by overcoming culture bias.

Developed a high-level proposal for the project and identified an acronym to name the project: Project MUSIC (maximize utilization, strategically increase capacity). Pitched the proposal to senior leadership and obtained buy-in for the timeline and budget. Formed a project team of peer leaders and individuals open to change. Determined ways to improve the flow and shift additional tasks to the offshore team. Observed training needs and developed a support plan. Identified ambassadors to train remote and onsite in India to increase the configuration capabilities of the offshore team. Hosted bi-weekly meetings and transparently communicated next steps to assist with positively incorporating the offshore team.

Delivered on the pilot projects and trained remaining associates. Improved enough efficiency to align the necessary 25% of associates to support the new product offering. Exceeded the onshore associate retention target of 94% with a 95.9% result.

The associates complained of moving too fast, lacked understanding of the point of the changes and struggled to adapt. Needed a clarifying vision to succinctly summarize all the changes that resonated with the employees and made sense to the frontline staff.

Narrowed the changes down to the main behaviors or the five key organizational pillars. Created an acronym that told a positive story: Midwest C.A.R.E.S. with each letter in C.A.R.E.S. representing one of the pillars crucial to success. Engaged a resource to create a logo and timed the rollout with the peak season. Developed a recognition program in which the senior team selected winners, based upon those demonstrating the key behaviors of the pillars. Every change aligned with the individual pillars. Used an internal social media website for associates to post photos and team successes to foster communication, excitement, and unification.

The associate engagement for the region increased 11%, representing the highest result within the division. The program generated such strong results, the company modified it to implement across all regions.

Needed NPS improvement to achieve annual goals. Believed the sales team positioned deals to clients that impacted satisfaction. No methodology existed to effectively communicate to the sales staff to change behaviors. As a 60 to 90 day indicator across multiple areas, found it difficult to separate and determine specific team influence. Individual associates did not obtain ready access to personal performance trends in order to proactively adjust behaviors.

Worked with a report writer to create a dynamic NPS scorecard. Used data from the NPS system to update the scorecard weekly rather than monthly. The scorecard exhibited associate level detail per client and month with a 12-month review. The associates rolled up to managers to compare teams. Expected managers to use the scorecard in individual one-on-ones and to educate sales teams. Identified results against other business units to determine any negative impacts.

Readily distinguished star performers to leverage as peer examples. Associates on the bubble quickly realized the need to improve to achieve the goals by looking at the scorecards. Sales teams responded positively to the consistent feedback. Evaluated the manner in which the process and behavioral changes impacted the results. Realized a 15% increase in the annual NPS results and posted record-breaking months thereafter.

The company lacked consistency in measuring employee performance, which made it difficult to effectively coach the low performers. Justification for a star performer seemed more anecdotal and open to the perception of favoritism rather than proven metrics. Leaders never justified evaluations or peer assessments in the past. No one seemed prepared for performance to negatively impact pay.

Created a manager and associate fundamentals document used for performance measurements, daily tasks and expectations and making associates and managers accountable. Gathered input from managers and peers to verify the application of consistency among the teams. Identified the behaviors and metrics that associates needed to achieve. Provided examples for success and communicated all of the information to the associates. Calibrated the rankings as a team and across the departments at review time.

Set a baseline of expectations with the associates regarding pay for performance and communicated that failure to achieve the fundamentals resulted in further performance management conversations. Used the fundamentals for coaching conversations and applied performance improvement planning techniques. Leveraged the information and conversations to appropriately impact the bottom 10% of the organization and recognize the top 20%. This methodology improved the ability to challenge and reward strong performers; additionally it increased the promotion of top talent 33%. The company subsequently leveraged the program across the national implementation team.