Moving to a new country and role

The Challenge

During 2013, I was transitioning from a regional strategic marketing role as Brand Director for Europe & Africa to an operational role as Business Development Director for Russia & CIS. On top of the challenges related to the role transition, I had to move to Moscow and become the only expat among 150+ colleagues, with limited authority, since most of them were reporting to my peers. Being new in the local organization, I had to adapt to a different corporate culture, overcome language barriers, and align local business practices with regional and global expectations. While carving out my role. I also had to negotiate responsibilities, priorities and deliverables with the leadership team.

 

The Objective

The objective was to gain the trust of the local team, deliver on business targets, and achieve my own personal goals.

The Outcome

Within a year, I had achieved all of my objectives: I managed a major brand re-launch, in record time and on budget; coordinated a major strategy review; and developed project management and project portfolio capability for the entire organisation.

The Client’s Experience

The coaching process gave me a deeper understanding of the systemic and relational aspects of successful leadership. With Kostis’ support, I was able to

  1. Identify and map all the stakeholders I had to manage and influence, understand their different priorities, needs and styles. This systemic “mapping” helped me to visualize and familiarize myself with the complexities of the situation.
  2. Become more aware of my leadership style and the impact it could have on my peers and the wider organisation.
  3. Use this understanding to develop effective working relationships with individuals within Russia, and also with senior regional and global stakeholders, who had an interest in Russia as a key market.

Following each session, there was always improved clarity, understanding and structure in my mind regarding the challenges I was facing, as well as a feeling of confidence and excitement to take action. I am now much more appreciative of myself and of my achievements.

Having experienced many coaches, mentors, and organisational development professionals in my 20+ years as a blue chip executive, I can confidently say that Kostis is the ‘go to guy’ if you are in transition. With his calm and caring approach, he will help you achieve much needed clarity in a very demanding, confusing and emotionally challenging situation.