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Case Studies - The Coaching Journey
Michael Adatto
Director, Managed Markets Marketing
Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America
Business Challenge
Michael Adatto was hired as a Director for Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America to pioneer a brand new department charged with strategic marketing responsibilities in the complex Managed Markets arena. He sought the support of Denny McGurer and McGurer & Associates to help him navigate the following challenges:
- Taking his personal leadership skills to the next level.
- Gaining an early awareness of the potential traps he might encounter.
- Acclimating to the company’s culture and quickly establishing himself as a key player in the corporate political environment.
- Building a specific actionable plan for transforming two functionally diverse groups into a high performing team; the flagship department within Takeda in terms of talent selection and development, teamwork and career longevity.
- Ultimately developing the team into a model of performance excellence in the pharmaceutical industry.
Mike’s Coaching Journey
Working one-on-one, Mike & Denny began the Journey with the end in mind. They crafted a clear easily articulated vision for the Managed Markets Marketing team. Then, they charted Mike’s personal Goal Producing Strategy (GPS) starting first with measurable goals he’d have to achieve in order to make his vision a reality and working backward to the skills he’d need to develop and the actions that would have to be taken along the way.
Early on Mike focused his efforts on getting the most talented professionals on board.
During this time, Denny:
- Took the initiative to learn about Takeda’s business, vision, and culture.
- Met with several senior executives with whom Mike had worked in the past to gain their perspective on Mike’s leadership experience and abilities.
- Focused much of his one-on-one coaching time helping Mike hone his ability to work well with Executives.
- Spent time with each new team member to learn about their past experiences and aspirations for their career at Takeda.
In no time at all, Denny was woven into the fabric of the team and the surrounding Takeda environment. He was “walking the halls” for Mike, giving him objective insights and providing honest yet well-tempered advice and direction.
McGurer & Associates provided Mike with a detailed assessment of his strengths and potential derailers from which a personal development plan was initiated. As part of this development plan, Denny orchestrated a series of in depth meetings between Mike and leading-edge management professionals and team building gurus. McGurer & Associates also provided Mike with the most current books and articles on leadership, marketing, and team building.
A crucial leg in the Journey was McGurer & Associates’ facilitation of the Blanchard Companies’ Team Chartering process with Mike and both functional groups. Mike noted that without the help of McGurer & Associates, he would have bypassed several crucial team building steps, and started with goal setting.
Business Outcomes
Working with McGurer & Associates, Mike Adatto and his team established a Charter or set of agreements clearly stating what the department wants to accomplish and how the Managed Markets Marketing team will work together to achieve those results.
Mike stated a two-fold business impact from his collaboration with McGurer & Associates. He says,
“First of all, we are able to tell the rest of the company clearly and consistently what it is we stand for. Our clarity of purpose keeps it simple for the company to work with us. Also, by following a structured team development process and with me having a seasoned personal advisor, we got together and up to speed quicker. We were able to execute on market opportunities much faster.”
Mike has been selected to attend the highly exclusive and renowned Insead Executive Development Program. He will be learning side by side with the global “best of the best” in three sessions taking place in Europe and Asia throughout 2007. We believe Mike earned this privilege on his own merits and achievements. However, he insists that some of the credit goes to what he accomplished through his journey with McGurer & Associates.
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