Chapter 16

Sealing the Deal

Each team had prepared its portion of the presentation as if it were the most important part of the presentation, yet they flowed together like a well-reasoned plan. Each recommendation had been thoroughly thought through, not just in terms of viability, but also with the criteria of novelty, value to add, and ability to be accepted as their benchmarks. The ideas built on one another to form a full-fledged strategy. The first hurdle was Tony.

Kate wanted to be sure those in the subteams were recognized for their hard work so she coached each member of her team on how to encourage their people's success. Each subteam member was responsible for the presentation while the team leader listened on, occasionally asking a clarifying question to be sure the information was presented fully. Each presentation had to be succinct yet thorough. They had to present their ideas, the benefits, as well as the potential sticking points. Each had to be compelling and had to anticipate potential points of resistance realistically. They had to find those points of resistance and present workable solutions even before the resistance had been expressed.

For each team leader, this represented a challenge in that they had to have a competent and convincing presenter from their team. Also the material the presenter brought to bear had to be well reasoned and sensible. Their recommendations had to be novel and wise, two things that occasionally are difficult to find in the same place. The team leaders had to spend a few hours with each presenter to be sure that they were competent and well versed in the ideas they were promoting and ready for potential questions. Damon thought it was a lot like the way a candidate might prepare for a town hall meeting. He would try to poke holes in his presenter's arguments, just to try to uncover additional points of resistance. The presenters followed the politico's special formula: know your talking points, listen actively, and seek commonality of purpose—these were the elements of success.

The teams prepared quickly and soon the day had come to present to Tony prior to the big meeting with Alicia and Consolidated. Tony sat back and listened to each presentation over the course of three hours. The leadership potential among the subteam members who presented pleased him greatly. He saw budding talent that he was sure would be relied on over the next several years as more seasoned members of the firm retired. It was these types of experiences that would develop the best successors. As he listened to the presentation he made a note to be more deliberate in developing the high-potential members of the organization. If these types of opportunities were standard practice, the firm would be setting itself up for success in the long run by creating a thick pool of talent to take over when the old guard, like him, finally retired.

Another thing he noticed was that each team member seemed entirely focused on resolving the issue for the client. Posturing for one's own benefit seemed absent from the presentations. He wondered if this was a happy coincidence or if each team had talked about what would make them a success beforehand. In an industry where certainty of expertise was the norm, he found it strangely comforting to see his people seemingly devoid of self-promotion. They let their work speak for itself.

There were a few exceptions to this rule, however. Lyndon Mainland from Elaine's group did seem to overemphasize the ease with which the idea could be implemented. Chris Allen from Juan's group seemed to spend more time than necessary enamored with the reasons for the recommendations rather than the recommendations themselves. And Eleanor Biddle from Damon's group was clearly determined to present as many ideas as possible.

Tony noticed these examples seemed to reflect the style bias of that subgroup's leader. It was continually fascinating to him how styles manifest themselves. He made a note to recommend to Kate that her subteam leaders should edit their presentation for style bias before the final presentation to Alicia and the other senior leadership of Consolidated. If the emphasis remained on the ideas, their client had a good chance of being blown away. He was very happy with the outcomes and was confident their client would be as well.

The day to deliver the end product approached quickly. The team—confident, prepared, and a little anxious—met in the lobby of Consolidated's corporate headquarters prior to the presentation. They stood in a circle, materials in hand, and held a quick powwow.

“We have an hour,” Kate reminded them. “They will have a chance to read the report thoroughly after we leave, so we have to be clear with the key points. What's our main goal again?”

“To open their minds to possibilities,” Elaine and Amy said almost simultaneously.

“To get them excited about the directions we took,” Damon added.

“To make them want to read this tome,” Juan added, tired of holding a bag of fifteen 150-page reports.

“And how are we going to do that?” asked Kate.

“We're going to present the data that drove our solutions.” Juan was getting ready with his part.

“We are to present the ideas enthusiastically.” Damon was also ready.

“We're going to show how these ideas are fully developed,” added Amy.

“We are going to show them the bullet points that can guide their implementation.” Elaine loved the ending.

“It's all about the results they want. If they want to do something about the data we present, we've got a way forward that hits several fronts at once.” Maya was the closer and she was ready to bring it home. “We can help them deliver better products for their customers more effectively.”

“Let's do this!” Damon's smile, as always, was infectious. The team was confident and headed into the meeting filled with positive energy about what they were going to present.

Within six months of implementing much of the team's recommendations, Consolidated began to show a return on its investment in strategy. Its innovative approaches were being noticed and attempted to be copied by their competitors. Within fifteen months, Consolidated produced record cost savings, increased employee satisfaction, and was able to quantify a higher level of customer loyalty than it had seen in decades. Along with Consolidated, the market itself began to change, with new alliances and crosspollination of ideas forming among the players in the industry almost on a daily basis.

With Consolidated's success, the firm itself saw a resurgence of interested clients. The team members became the core leaders facilitating the breakthrough thinking process with engagement teams throughout the firm. Along with the process itself, the team members taught and spread the principle Kate would so often go back to—success is about knowing yourself and knowing your process. Being aware of how you manage yourself through the process and how you engage with others on your team is central to getting truly innovative results.