Case study
Driving strategic growth and team effectiveness in Tech Infrastructure
The client
A FTSE250 tech infrastructure business operates two distinct business lines. The first is a legacy broadcast business serving TV channels, particularly those broadcasting live, by providing smart technology for broadcast. The second is a machine-to-machine business in utilities and water, supplying smart meters and consumption trackers.
The brief
The organisation aimed to catalyse a commercial transformation through new revenue streams and engaged with us to support this goal. Specifically, they were looking to:
– Pivot the broadcast business away from sole reliance on legacy channels to diversify into streaming and other areas.
– Facilitate heavy investment in the utilities and water business.
– Break down silos and enhance collaboration, communication, and teamwork towards these goals.
– Integrate and support the new CEO and executive team.
– Onboard a new CTO to modernise the tech stack without disrupting current products.
What we did
Focused on three key areas
- Deepening relationships between the CEO, the executive team, and the rest of the organisation.
- Facilitating long-term, strategic conversations over short-term functional discussions.
- Building a credible reputation for the new direction within the business.
Intervention steps
- Individual assessments: We began by assessing team members individually to identify strengths, risks, and recommendations.
- Team workshops: Over six months, we combined structured exercises and experiential workshops with real-time observation, feedback, and intervention.
Key activities
Making commitments: In the first team session, we used individual assessment themes to create behavioural commitments for improved team effectiveness:
- Labelling conversations for clarity, nominating a chair to manage discussions.
- Recognising ineffective collaboration and addressing it with reflective questions about conflict, collaboration, and communication dynamics.
- Opening up conversations to address unspoken issues and promote healthy debate.
Building peer-to-peer muscle: We fostered collaboration through structured peer-to-peer listening exercises focused on current problems. This encouraged the team to:
- Identify both spoken and unspoken aspects of issues.
- Suggest bold actions.
- Recognise unconscious contributions to problems.
- Leverage available resources and skills for better problem-solving.
The results
The CEO distributed leadership more effectively, involving new team members and reducing his own burden.
The COO function, P&L lines, and commercial roles broke down silos, enhancing central versus P&L collaboration.
Transformation became a collective capability rather than a separate function, promoting an organisation-wide approach to change.
Succession planning gaps were identified and addressed, facilitating leadership distribution and reducing bottlenecks at the CEO level.
This comprehensive approach resulted in a more cohesive, strategically aligned, and effective executive team, ready to drive Arqiva’s transformation and growth.
What our client had to say
The feedback was difficult to swallow at times, but very helpful. It’s rare to get a clear picture of how other people experience you, and the opportunity to reflect on what to do about it.
Participant
Middle Manager Group
The content of the programme was constantly anchored into the commercial realities of our business which allowed me to contextualise everything I was learning. This allowed me to start thinking about real business problems in a different way.
Participant
‘Rising Star’ Group
When my first coaching engagement came to an end, I knew I wanted my coach to continue to work with me through a significant period of business change. I believe my coaching has added real organisational value; if HR didn’t have the budget, I would have funded it from my own P&L.
Participant
Senior Leader Group
In summary
ig’s intervention has triggered a systemic change within this fast-growing technology firm. By developing leadership capabilities across multiple levels and creating a culture that values talent development, the organisation is now better equipped to navigate future challenges. The ongoing partnership with ig continues to build on this solid foundation, ensuring that the company’s leadership pipeline remains robust and that its people are empowered to drive the business forward. The success of this intervention has exceeded expectations, delivering lasting value to the organisation.
