Fortune 100 Company: A Multi-Year Turnaround Effort Increases Revenue, Stock Value

A Fortune 100 food company’s reputation was tarnished.

Declining sales and revenues, the company’s lowest stock price since going public, and a lack of long-term strategy left employees, suppliers and clients confused and discouraged about the company’s direction and their role. Trust in leadership waned as a result.

Internal Communications struggled as well. Leaders viewed the function as tactical and reactionary, couldn’t see its value to the business, and the team was plagued by inconsistent service, performance, and high turnover.

The company called on The Grossman Group to engage the entire organization in a new, long-term strategic business plan. The multi-year effort drove action around the strategic plan and its biggest business priorities, including its:

• Strategy to optimize service and capacity;
• People strategy to increase retention and reduce turnover among employees, and improve the company image — and reality — as an employer; and
• Customer satisfaction efforts to improve speed and quality of customer follow-up to build brand loyalty

To combat Internal Communications’ challenges, The Grossman Group helped the team reinvent itself with a new mission, vision, and department structure, and a professional development program to elevate the team’s competencies and provide a lasting career path for individuals.

The Grossman Group’s work contributed to break-through results, including:

• A more than $6 billion increase in total revenues over five years.
• Steady increases in stock price value from its lowest point of around $10 to nearly six times that.
• Recognition by The New York Times for the company’s strategic approach to planning and system engagement to drive the company’s turnaround.
• 98 percent positive response among employees, with that percentage saying, I understand how my job impacts the overall business plan.
• An elevated perception of Internal Communications as trusted, strategic advisors to the business among leadership and across the business, with a consistent seat at the table. In fact, every Internal Communications team member has since been recognized for their work across business functions, including Supply Chain, IT, Marketing, HR, Customer Satisfaction, and Operations, and received discretionary bonuses in recognition of their efforts.