UGM strategy design / strategy facilitation Case Studies
Meeting the specific needs of clients means that UGM embarks on a wide array of assignments. Our Case Studies represent a small cross-section of our portfolio of experience, providing brief insights into how we have helped many clients. Contact us to learn about the numerous other projects we've worked on over 30 years in business.
Taking a new strategic direction in Australia
Our client, the Australian operation of a global corporation, asked us to help them develop a new strategy for their business. While current business performance was solid, it was recognised that strategic opportunities in their highly innovative, competitive marketplace were possibly being overlooked. Over two days, we used the UGM 'engaged facilitation approach' (where we challenge and critique thinking, rather than simply gathering people's ideas) to press the team to think innovatively about the future market and the type of business they would need to prosper in the changed, future environment. At the end of the strategy process, which aso took the team through a customised set of strategy tools to support strategic analysis and decision making, the team decided that operations needed to be restructured going forward. This represented a quantum leap in thinking and also a major strategic change, to which all parties readily subscribed. Prior to the strategy workshop, even mentioning a change in structure would have been met with hostile rejection. The team left the strategy workshop united and with absolute clarity about what business they were in, what drove their value, and which strategies they would be pursuing to reinvigorate their pitch to market both in the present and in the future.
Where to next? Plotting a strategy for a start-up software business
Having operated for a few years as a small software start-up business, our client had reached a major cross-roads. Like many small businesses, there were many challenges, each leading the business in a different direction. Significantly, it was not at all clear to the owners what all the options were, or what impact each would have on business success. Conducting a thorough scan of the current and future business environment, both internally and externally, was a key priority. Up until that point, the business had not invested this amount of time or energy into conducting a detailed strategic analysis. On completing the scan, priorities for maximising value became crystal clear. Specific plans for transitioning the business for sale were also developed. The business subsequently implemented the generated action plans according to their priority. The end result was successful sale of the business, exactly as had been planned in the strategy session some 15 months earlier.
Supporting Strategic Mental Health Reform for 16 Asian Countries
In August 2009, 45 senior representatives from the mental health sectors in sixteen Asian countries met in Melbourne, as part of the Asia Australia Mental Health Project. Their goal was to translate the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework into a strategic plan for mental health reform across Asia. UGM was asked to design and facilitate a dynamic and engaging strategic thinking process that would support this large and very diverse group to arrive at a two year action plan. WHO officials from London and Oslo also attended the event as observers, as they were keen to learn from what happened in Melbourne. The first step for UGM was thorough research and preparation. This helped us to design a highly customised process aimed at achieving two goals: support strategic thinking and planning on the day; and provide a robust yet straightforward process that those present could own then roll out in their own countries over the next eight months. The day began with a structured brainstorm, known as 'World Café'. This brought data and innovative ideas to the surface. Then delegates worked systematically through a suite of UGM thinking tools to create their strategic plan. Since August, delegates have successfully begun to implement the UGM process across Asia, building stakeholder engagement for their change agenda.
Assoc Prof Chee Ng, Director of Melbourne University's International Psychiatric Unit and WHO Director for the Asia Pacific, described the strategic planning day as follows: "I found that the preparation for the conference was fully consultative resulting in a context-specific approach to achieve the key deliverables. While having an enjoyable learning experience at the conference, the audience (40 plus participants) was engaged in lively dialogue, cross-fertilisation of ideas and collective brainstorming that could not be achieved by either one party or organisation alone. The most surprising outcome has been the ease of replication of the facilitated group work process in different countries. I have subsequently observed this in Japan, Thailand and Vietnam, which demonstrates the cultural transferability of the techniques and tools. So there has certainly been a ripple effect that UGM has created."
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