Background:

OBMI is a thriving architectural firm designing high-end resorts globally. In 2019, increased demand was coinciding with the long-term senior team’s exit from the company and a strong set of young professionals were on board.

Our work with OBMI started in November 2019 and is ongoing.

Challenge:

The future leaders of the firm were strong professionals, but not as experienced as leaders and managers.  OBMI had run well at a smaller scale with four owners, but now needed a larger leadership team and the business infrastructure to support it.

Client needed:

1. Professional development of next generation leaders
   • Building management and leadership skills that would normally take place over a decade needed to be compressed into 3-5 years.
2. The successful transfer of responsibilities
   • Growth from existing and new clients required a strong second level of leaders tackling projects and building business infrastructure.
3. A highly cohesive next-gen team
   • The team of senior leaders had been in place for many years and worked very well together.  They wanted that same cohesiveness for the next generation.

How We Helped:

1. More clarity on each leader’s goals and objectives
   • With many new leaders moving into roles of increasing responsibility, each needed clarity on specific projects and goals. We implemented the One Page Business Plan system in August of 2020, with a one-page plan for each of 12 leaders, all cascading down from the company strategic plan, and facilitated their monthly plan review meetings.
2. Leadership coaching and a monthly professional development program for next gen leaders
   • Starting November 2020, the new leaders joined cohort meetings monthly to learn management and leadership techniques as a team.  They also receive individualized coaching from Mastering Midsized coaches to tailor their learning to their specific areas of interest.
3. Team cohesiveness training
   • We taught the team a common language and methodology to increase the cohesiveness of their team, facilitating a three-day offsite and weaving it into ongoing professional development.

Our work has focused on these Growth Drivers:

• Developing Talent
• Leading with Teams
• Planning and Managing to Plan

Results:

The level of engagement by the next-gen leadership team has risen, as has personal commitment to goals that have been agreed to in the plan.  The first next-gen leader has been admitted to the board. They’ve opened a Dubai office with 15 designers and successfully merged in a Dallas Texas design firm of 8.

“The building of a new team amidst strong expansion took some real commitment, and the Mastering Midsized team has moved the needle forward.  Megan’s role in getting top architects with heavy workloads to develop business and leadership skills has been masterful. The One Page planning process has taken root, and overwhelmingly the emerging leader team and their colleagues believe that the company has changed in a positive way.”
-Mike Wilson, President, OBMI