Achieving Class A Business Excellence: An Executive's Perspective

18

COMPETITIVE PRESSURE

We have some good news and some bad news. They aren’t going to roll over just because we’re getting better, are they?

 

 

 

 

 

So that there was no question about the Customer Satisfaction Initiative being the end of their quest for excellence, Greg and his Leadership Team used the company newsletter, bulletin boards, and every team meeting to communicate their expectations that continued process and performance improvement was essential for sustaining their recent success.

Financial performance continued to improve, making the Cosmetics Products division the best performing division on a volume-adjusted basis. Susan, the CEO, and several of her Executive Team members, including Andrew Jones, the CFO, visited with Greg’s Leadership Team and toured both factories to satisfy themselves that the improved results were real and sustainable. Feedback from these visits was positive and resulted in Cosmetics Products being named Amalgamated’s ‘Business of the Year’. Accompanying the award was a cash bonus shared among all Cosmetics Products employees. Susan, through the Board of Directors, gave Greg a significant salary increase and stock option grant. Susan viewed Greg as Amalgamated’s most valuable player for the future; she didn’t want to lose him to another company. She planned to expand the work done in Cosmetics Products to the other divisions, with Greg’s help.

Greg asked Sara Miles, VP of Finance, and Alexandra Templeton, VP of Sales and Marketing, to analyze ...