A large, global hi-tech corporation was consistently ranking seventh or eighth on key performance metrics used to rank the top eight U.S.-based data processing corporations. These metrics included earnings, sales growth year–to-year, profitability, and market share. The company wanted to accelerate its growth in all these areas and climb the list.
The company reached out to Chuck McFall for help in achieving this objective, adopting and implementing his proprietary product and market management system—including his marketing processes, tools, software, and methodologies—across its worldwide operations.
Chuck started by recommending the organization establish a Senior Vice President of Marketing and Product Management and a new organizational structure dedicated to implementing a new professional product management system. This included adopting his proprietary product and market management processes and methodologies. The goal was to improve the success of the company’s overall revenues and profits by focusing on more effective planning and management of the company’s individual product lines. Next, the company reorganized its Sales organization into five market-focused geographical divisions built around the client’s five international regions.
Finally, Chuck established the discipline of using cross-functional teams, with representatives from engineering, manufacturing, sales, marketing, and product management working together in the development of product and market plans for each of the company’s offerings. This was crucial, as it enabled the entire organization to work from a single playbook to successfully implement the product and market management approach. He not only provided training across the entire organization—along with how to use his accompanying software and tools--but he also coached multiple teams through the completion of numerous real-world marketing and strategic planning projects.
The results of this company-wide effort spearheaded by Chuck were significant. Several years after the implementation, the organization had risen from its ranking of seventh or eighth among its competitors to first or second in each of the key financial metrics reported among the top U.S. data processors.
In line with that improved performance, for three consecutive years at the height of the company’s success, the company’s CEO was voted the “Outstanding Corporate CEO” by his peers within that industry. The CEO gave much credit for the company’s success to the company’s decision to adopt this new product and market management system, and the processes, tools, and training that were integral components of that system.
