Gene_One_Leadership_Change_Strategy

Gene One Leadership Change Strategy Gene One is a private owned biotech company established in 1996. Gene One entered the market with a new gene technology that wiped out disease in tomatoes and potatoes. This new technology has a great effect on farmers and consumers, farmers will not need to use pesticides during plants grow, and consumers will be pleased by having homegrown organic products. After this groundbreaking gene technology, Gene One grew from $2 million to $400 million. But like most companies, Gene One needs to go public to ensure its continuous growth. An IPO is necessary to obtain the necessary capital to realize the projected growth of Gene One. The IPO will be offered within 36 months. To achieve this, the top executive leader team with the assistance of an external consultant will develop and implement a compliant plan to offer the IPO meeting regulatory guidelines. As well, a strategic plan will be developed and implemented to build Gene One’s brand image through internal and external communication vehicles laying foundation for Gene One’s projected growth. In order for Gene One effectively transform the corporation from a privately owned company to a publicly traded company; management should focus on developing a leadership style that will provide the employees with security they need to perform well, as well open their eyes to the amazing opportunities that an IPO has to offer. After going through Gene One scenario, my team found out that the existing leadership style need to be changed to ensure the success of Gene One during this transition period. There are some challenges for Gene One addressing the lack of the required experience and leadership skills of the top leadership team regarding IPO, ineffective communication system that is currently used among leadership team, and lack of motivation of team members. The major issue here is the need for culture transformation of Gene One from small startup company to a public organization that is focused on profit and growth. To achieve this transformation the leadership team needs to make a drastic change in the core values of the company. The Gene One staff is more geared into applied research, not making profit. This understanding needs to be changed, through addressing the goals and benefits for Gene One and individuals as well. The company has a number of issues that need to be resolved. The primary issue is the lack of leadership within the organizations. In order for Gene One to realize the growth potential it must have the right leadership in the organization in order for the IPO process to have a smooth transition. But if the organization lacks that leadership it would make the implementation process extremely difficult. In order for the company to be effective, the leadership of the organization must be aware of what is needed to be done. "An effective leader does not have to be a leader in the sense that the term is now most commonly used; asking what has to be done and taking the question seriously is crucial for managerial success." (Drucker, 2004) Another crucial issue is the need to change the culture of the organization. First the company needs to layout to all the employees the benefits of making contributions to the community and profits for the organization. In order to facilitate this change the company must make the employees feel as if they have some say so in this transitional process because the employees are the back bone of the company. In the Gene One scenario, the top leadership team is not working together; actually some team members started doubting the capabilities of other members and suggesting changing them. This water cooler talk that holds team back needs to stop. Strong team relationships should be building to be ready for the upcoming tasks and responsibilities. Team members need to feel appreciated and connected to other team members, this will create a strong team ready to fulfill the tremendous duties of the next phase. To overcome the lack of needed experience personnel changes may need to be made in order to transition effectively to an IPO. The faulty group dynamics need to be recognized and repaired. If terminating certain employees is necessary for effective team building to occur, then it needs to be done. Right now Gene One does not have effective teams in place. There is conflict between members, and this stems into resentment. This does and will continue to hinder the company’s progress. At this critical time in their business life, an effective team must be in place. So much value is placed on the original five members. True, the company would not be where it is today without them. But if the existence of any employee will hinder the progress of the company or cause problem, it is better to get rid of him or her. Hiring consultants with IPO experience would help and assure a smooth and mistake free transition for Gene One. In an email to the senior leadership team, CEO Don Ruiz stated that they had no experience with an IPO. Hiring consultants will ensure compliance with SEC guidelines and provide knowledge to senior management about what should be expected throughout the process. They will also be able to assist with the hiring and appointing of board members who can carry Gene One successfully into the future as a leader in its field. Furthermore, retaining knowledgeable leaders and employees in extremely important to facilitate growth and product innovation. Retaining t Chief Technology Officer (Teri Robertson) is one example of a necessary step to ensure the company’s future success. If it wasn’t for Teri Robertson, the company would not be in a position to expand in such a way, and many researchers are there simply because she is. In order to achieve the growth over time that Gene One seeks, new and old talent must be used to create fresh ideas on a regular basis. One way to accomplish this employee retention is to foster a communication network that is highly centralized in that the organization’s members communicate with a high number of other members on a regular basis. To enhance communication I suggest establishing a number of committees, one for each level to address the primary issues and needed changes of each level. This type of communication shows commitment to all parties. The information gathered from these committees will help the management in taking better and wiser decisions. End-State Vision Gene One has realized the need to become a public company. This need to go public will yield tremendous success for Gene One. This will not go without some challenges; however, with the company recognizing the need to establish new set of goals and strategies reflecting today’s realities along with keeping open communication between the Board of Directors, CEO and all levels of Leadership. This will give clear and concise communication between the stakeholders, board members and the leadership team. The company will have to establish specific sets of values reflecting the realities that emphasize technical and research and development edge and growth. The company should evaluate what kind of success does it plan on obtaining, what kind of long-term investment is needed to reach the 40% growth target and with the anticipated expansion and growth. This should begin as soon as the company realizes the need to take the company public. Conclusion Gene One, the up and coming leader in the biotechnology industry caught in the dilemma of going public and possibly disrupting the chemistry that brought the company from a $2 million company to a $400 million company in eight years. The company wants to become the major player in the biotechnology industry by continuing to be in the fore front in the research and development as well as the ground breaking innovation that lead them to this point. In the decision making process the company did not involve all the stakeholders’ value. The company did not consult with the associates to gauge the potential fallout and concerns that may possible arise for the company’s decision to go public, therefore, causing communication barriers which are personal barrier such as how people interpret and process information, also the level of trust between people and the inability for other to listen with understanding. Gene One will have to incorporate strategies, focus group and internal committees that would have the interest of all stakeholders involved. This will give the company a accurate account of what decision are needed to accommodate all parties and positively move the company in the right direction toward growth. Leadership plays a major role in the success of any business. Effective communication, honesty, integrity, and transparency are extremely important traits for any successful leader. A good leader should give his or her employees the sense of worthiness, as well try to find different ways to improve the morale of his or her team. An excellent leader should understand that different phases or periods could need different leadership style to make it work. References Drucker, Peter F. "What makes an Effective Executive." The Harvard review, June 2004. Gene One Scenario. (2006). 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