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Hi all,

I have a potential internal "big jump" opportunity which is what actually drove me to do some research and find Manager Tools - a treasure. I am trying to cram so to speak and ingest as much as possible quickly.

I work for an American Supply Chain company that is A. Currently going through a Merger and B. Looking to use this time to restructure the Sector I work in (Automotive Sector of our company). I am currently a the leader for this Sector in China, but the head of the AP Integration team (also my boss) has asked me to put together a proposal for an Asia Pacific organization, and what role I would play both in integration and going forward.

The basic areas I am looking to propose are:

1. Business Development
1a. Customer Solution Design
2. Implementation
3. Customer Performance Management
4. Account Management

The challenges are Asia is such a large region with definate "hot spots" in China and India. Also a challenge is our organization had this role almost two years ago regionally but it failed.

So not only am I trying to come up with a convincing strategy/org chart that is in the best interest of the company, but also tell me boss role I would play in it, what resources I would need to succeed. Also, I will be talking to my boss about a new compensation package to go along with this new responsibility. Lots of stuff here!

Great opportunity, I am have the best background to do this for the company, but it will still have to be "sold" at very high levels.

I will appreciate any input on either the organization, or internal approach.

Thanks - Marc

jhack's picture

Sounds exciting! Congratulations.

There are a lot of details missing here (and I doubt you could fill them all in). A few questions you might ask yourself:

What is the strategy of the new combined firm? Specifically, what are the goals for the AP region (costs, revenue, market share, growth rates, etc)?

How does the role and organization beneath it contribute towards those goals (the "sub-goals)?

What are the current processes in place? What processes would be needed to fulfill those sub-goals? What people / org structure would support those processes?

Finally, what are the gaps/overlaps between where the org is now and where it needs to be to fulfill those sub goals?

One other thought: I'm not quite yet done with "The World is Flat" but I highly recommend you read that book. Very highly recommend.

John

schopp42's picture

Thanks for the feedback. I think you hit a key point, and this is knowing which questions to ask myself.

I am currently learning more about some of the personnel in the company we are merging with. I made a high level proposal on how I think the AP org should look in two years, and a step by step approach to get there.

I have read "The World Is Flat" and it is a great book! In fact, it seems like I'm living in the middle of it sometimes here in China. Such a vibrant environment.

Mark's picture
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Sorry this took me so long.

This is not anything that can be either asked or answered fully or truthfully here.

I can tell you just a couple of things that won't change no matter the details:

1. Strategy comes first - what is your customer value proposition, and what's the best way to satisfy it?
2. What people do you have/need to implement it?
3. What costs does the strategy incur, and can you afford it?

Good luck!

Mark