Frank from Tait Communications is speaking about orchestrating and managing collaborative strategy. Frank is based in Christchurch.

Key points:
– Tait creates radio solutions for sale around the world. About 90% of products are exported. Have staff around the world.
– Key steps – (1) aligning with strategy (the wider organization was moving from a products-focus to a solutions-focus), (2) set the objectives (overcoming geographical boundaries, sharing information, and finding expertise)
– Had to set the expectations about what was going to be delivered.
– Considerations: culture, content, policies, and processes.
– … Does “culture” really exist, or is it “just the way that we do things around here.”
– … Tait has people from over 40 countries. Read the book, “When Cultures Collide.” It was a useful read.
– … the kiwi way, “policies only a suggestion.”
– … everyone was concerned about how to work together on information (the content problem)
– Needed to think through the audiences, and get engagement from all of them. The senior managers agreed to the proposal for a new way of working together, albeit with some concerns. Also the Functional Team Leaders, a Governance Group, and everyone else.
– When the leaders saw what was happening inside the system, and how it was being used for business, they wanted access and to be involved.
– There is great power in migrating the material from the old intranet to the new collaboration site, and then to turn off the old system. But it also highlighted some requirements that hadn’t been captured earlier. Needed to respond quickly.