Chapter 7. FORGING GLOBAL CONNECTIONS

Christie Dowling, Betsy Smith Redfern, and Victor Gulas

During a change effort, wouldn't it be convenient if executives could simply rearrange the organizational chart, map out required new work processes, send out a memo, and call it a day? Of course, all leaders realize that large-scale change is a highly complex undertaking, but many nevertheless rely on an overly simplified and orderly view of their organizations, particularly during times of change. What they may not pay enough attention to is the basic fact that no change in organization or operation can happen without changes in relationships. And changes in the way people collaborate and interact depend, in turn, on trust.

Our company, MWH, is considered a leader in wet infrastructure—water, hydropower, and environmental engineering—and manages thousands of projects each year, providing services to a wide array of institutions worldwide. In 2003, a group of employees at MWH was charged with creating a global Information Technology (IT) organization within the company. Our job was to take what had been a confused blend of geographically and functionally organized units with sites in the United States, Europe, and Asia and transform it into a global department that would deliver superior, standardized service to internal and external customers—and at much lower cost. This new global IT organization, called iNet, had to be set up and functional within six months (by January 2004), and we were worried. We felt the key to the successful development of a new global department, which comprised 185 people in 27 offices in 11 countries, would be collaboration. But we had a sense that many of the people who would now be expected to work together seamlessly had never even exchanged e-mails, let alone met in person.

Our efforts to develop, build, and strengthen trusted relationships across the enterprise began with an organizational network analysis (ONA), which helped us design targeted interventions to build cohesive teams, develop leaders' ability to lead virtually, and connect professionals across functions and locations.