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Marie-Jose VelenturfGlobal Head CoE Talent & Leadership
Living the M&A experience: Leadership challenges in
times of turbulence
2Let our journey begin…
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Introduction & Context
Who am I and why am I here?
PART I
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I Introduction & Context
II Our ABN AMRO Story
III Our changing world – Takeover battle in action
IV Leadership Challenges in Turbulent Times
V Navigating through rough waters
VI The Tsunami Ahead
Our Storyline
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The ABN AMRO Story & Context
Who are we, and what do we do?
PART II
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An Overview of ABN AMRO …
Who am I?
Dutch based bank with heritage stretching back to 1824
Over 3,000 branches, 60 countries, 100k FTE’s
Serving over 20 million customers worldwide
Net profit attributable to shareholders 2006: EUR 4.715 bn
Total assets (as per 31 December 2006): EUR 987 bn
Group capital (at end 2006): EUR 45.1 billion
We are active in four principal customer segments: Personal Banking, Private Banking, Business and Commercial and Corporate and Institutional.
Global headquarters in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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… our HR vision ….
Who am I?
We set the standard for HR in Financial Services by demonstrating top performance through
unleashing human potential
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….and our HR strategy
Culture
Performance Mgtand Reward
Leadership and Talent
HR2TOMServices HR capability
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Our changing world – The Takeover Battle in action
What happened & how did it impact our organisation?
PART III
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A flavour of the headlines…Starting with an initial bid & exclusive period with UK based Barclays
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… followed by a rival bid from a consortium of banks led by RBS with allies Fortis & Santander bank
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… and the timeline
Who is happy now?
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• When would it end?
• What destination would we end up in?
• What should we be doing when we can no longer steer?
• Who would be the new captain/s?
• Would we be the same boat, a bigger boat or a divided boat?
• How should we manage the stormy waters?
• What should we do with our crews on deck – how do we keep them on board, motivated, and what can we tell them?
So, what did this really mean for us?
We were in the middle of an unpredicted storm…
The only thing we knew for certain was what we didn’t know –
and that our boat was riding the deep waves of uncertainty
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What challenges would you expect this turbulence and uncertainty to bring to the
leaders of our boat?
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Leadership challenges in times of turbulent change
What was the theory; & how did it live up in
practice?
PART IV
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Leadership challenges in turbulent times?
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What does CEO Forum Group say we should expect as leadership challenges in
turbulent times?
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What might we face?
Spectrum of challenges facing top managers in crisis situations…
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Self-Assurance Corporate Purpose
Personal Responsibility Well developed team spirit
Active shaping & moulding Ability to learn quickly
Consistency in delegation Upward Management
vs to question everything
to seek success with resolution
to give meaning & direction
to break down goals
to ensure necessary continuity
to let others perform their duties
to utilise new developments
to influence conditions for success
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So, how did we experience this ‘Spectrum of
challenges’ in practice ?
We asked five of our top leaders to share some of their thoughts with us…
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Theory v Practice 1
Self-Assurance
Corporate Purpose
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Theory v Practice 2
Personal Responsibility
Well developed team spirit
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Theory v Practice 3
Consistency in delegation
Upward Management
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Theory v Practice 4
Active shaping & moulding
Ability to learn quickly
Active Shaping & Moulding
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Navigating through rough waters
What interventions have we made and what lessons
have we learned on the way?
PART V
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Navigating through rough waters…
Key Strengths Analysis & Talent Inventory
Rapid Client Engagement & Retention
Line Management Toolkits & Training
Customised Leadership Development Offerings
Stabilisation Packages
Key & critical people inventory
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The Tsunami Ahead
What is on the horizon, & what are the questions on
our mind?
PART VI
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Key questions in our mind
How to secure the psychological contract of the matrix
How to manage the accountability for business continuity
How to keep our leaders on board
How to build trust in and commitment to the new leaders
How to manage the different waves of change
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What light have we discovered on our turbulent journey?
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Looking ahead…
“I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my
sails to always reach my
destination”
- Jimmy Dean
Q&A