Overachieving business goals and reorganizing the organizational structure with the knowledge of people’s strengths

Case in numbers

The challenges: Implementing new organizational structure and optimization of stock.

Panteh is a distribution company that distributes various products on the Slovenian market and abroad and sees the future in the rapid growth of technology, which raises the quality of life and interconnection. The goal is to supply retailers and online vendors. The largest part of their offer is technological, i.e., audio, video, movies, home appliances, technology - in short, all technological products published online. Partners appreciate the Panteh team's strong ties with them, as well as the welcoming environment and sense of teamwork, both of which have had a major impact on the company's growth. The number of employees of the company increased from 10 to 20 people in a last couple of years.

• With the growth of sales from 15 million to more than 20 million euros, problems initially arose in the distribution of work tasks among the employees. All original employees initially completed all tasks, but as the volume of work increased, this way of working was no longer efficient.
• Great uncertainty and tension among employees due to excessive workload and lack of structure within the organization. The challenge was to find a common language that people would use to reduce workplace ambiguity and increase employee well-being in the workplace.
• With only 20 employees, it was also not possible to set up structured departments. It was necessary to change the way the organization was structured and managed - how who managed what. The challenge was to establish the management of an organization in which the work of all employees is meaningful and coordinated.
• Managing inventory is a complex business. One of the burdening factors in this industry is the old stock, as other indicators are tied to it. In recent years, it has not been possible to reduce the level of these stocks. Therefore, the company has set itself the goal of optimizing the inventory, that is, after the end of the e2grow High Performing Team program, to find and implement a way of working that keeps employees engaged enough to achieve this goal.
• Smaller goals were also communication between employees and mutual understanding, as well as the creation of order, which had not existed before.

The process

1. They administered Gallup's Q12 engagement test to measure the extent to which team members are truly committed to their work. Although the team seemed outwardly connected and enjoyed spending time together, the results showed that they often did not know what the purpose of their work was, and they also felt they were not giving their best to each other. It turned out that these contrasts between their talents and not acknowledging how their colleagues' talents contributed to this friction.
2. They have been going through the trial version of aim & reflect on a weekly basis, setting a goal each week at the Monday meetings and reflecting on the goal achieved the previous week. This has become a habit that helps them stay focused on the goal they set.
3. They took the Clifton Strengths test to learn more about their talents and the talents of others. Some resisted it at first (boys will be boys) and had to be encouraged by the coach.
4. During the one-on-one coaching, they got a better insight into their talents and found themselves in them. They were shown how to use this knowledge to work on themselves, not only in the workplace, but also in all relationships in their personal lives.
5. They participated in 4 group workshops as part of the High Performing Team program and conducted a wrap-up at the end of the workshops. A special adaptation of the program was to spread the workshops over every three weeks so that the knowledge and habits learned in the workshops could be implemented and at the same time the program would not be a burden on employees who had busy schedules. During the workshops, many group discussions resulted and developed well.
6. Upon completion of the High Performing Team program, they conducted individual coaching with key managers who were reappointed based on their talents and skills.

The results

They have achieved the set goal and successfully reduced inventory by 5% compared to the same day last year, while at the same time increasing sales by more than 8% in the same period and also reaching other personal KPI's too.

Immeasurable, but extremely important results for the CEO and well-being of the company:

• Natural distribution of roles to employees according to their talents, i.e. according to what they are good at (people who do not see themselves in the role of manager and would find this an additional burden are now in a team role).
• Relieving the burden on the general manager because he can trust that the heads of each department are working as they set out to do.
• They understand each other better and communication between them is excellent. They continue to maintain good workplace relationships which makes their CEO especially fulfilled and proud.
• Before the program, they found that there was not enough action or leadership activity from the workers. There was a lack of meetings with concrete action plans. Now, with the help of the program, it is easier for them to follow their plans and achieve their goals more efficiently because they' have started to implement action plans and schedules.

Due to the more male-dominated environment, there was initially a rather rebellious mood toward the program. Nevertheless, the program was successfully implemented and the alignment of the employees was growing without them even noticing it right away. Many of the employees contemplated about themselves when they pointed out what immature and mature behavior looks like in the case of talent. After this group meeting, there was a better understanding of how each individual approaches different tasks, because everyone understood the way in which they work. Also, "the achievers" knew to admit to themselves that they do not have to do everything by themselves.

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