Next Ingo Gruetters Regional General Manager, Germany, London Business School Executive Education: Corporate Open Programme
accelerating personal development and broadening horizons 02 is one of the leading producers of paper-based packaging in the world, with around 41,000 employees in approximately 350 production sites across 32 countries and with sales revenues of 7.3 billion in 2012. The company is a highly integrated producer, with its packaging plants sourcing the major part of their raw materials from Smurfit Kappa s own paper mills. Its European Corrugated Division active in 21 countries, with 22,000 employees over more than 200 sites has been sending senior executives to s open programmes to develop their management skills since 2008.
BaCK Next The challenge 03 has its own internal General Management Programme for newly appointed GMs and an Advanced Management Programme for high-potential candidates. While these give its managers the basics, it wanted to extend and accelerate the personal development of handpicked individuals by offering them a more academic experience conducted by speakers who are world leaders in their fields of expertise. was chosen by as an executive education partner because of its reputation as one of the market leaders in this area. The diversity of its intake both geographically and in terms of market sector the importance it places on the financial side of general management and, of course, its location in one of the world s most vibrant cities were also key factors in the decision. Bill Fox, Head of HR for s Corrugated Division Europe, explains: We re largely a home-grown organisation. Many of our executives have grown up within the organisation, have a long length of service and have been promoted through the ranks to their position. So, first and foremost, the London Business School programmes really open up their minds to current thinking and broaden their horizons. Over and above that, everyone going on to one of the programmes will have one or two specific development needs and we work hard with the London Business School programme directors to identify those beforehand, so each candidate will always come away with some individual, unique learning points. First and foremost, the programmes really open up their minds to current thinking and broaden their horizons. Bill Fox Head of HR, Corrugated Division Europe,
The programmes 04 Senior Executive Programme (SEP) This four-week programme is for experienced senior leaders. Participants typically bring more than 15 years management expertise and have responsibility for transforming and determining the future direction of their organisations, managing complexity and inspiring the individuals with whom they work. Accelerated Development Programme (adp) Designed for those who have recently made, or are about to make, the transition from technical or functional specialist to a broader, more general management role. Participants typically have 10 15 years relevant management experience. ADP has a strong international flavour, with participants drawn from a diverse range of industries around the world. Over two, two-week modules it focuses on six competencies. Leadership, Strategy, Financial Management and Analysis, Change and Marketing, culminating in Strategic Decision Making. They may be currently three to five years into fairly senior roles as general managers when they come to London Business School to be challenged about where they are in their leadership journey, their style, the impact of that style, and to experience broader ideas and modern ways of thinking. Bill Fox Head of HR, Corrugated Division Europe,
BaCK Back Next Partnership with 05 Roberto Villaquiran, CEO of Smurfit Kappa s Corrugated Division Europe, was keen to develop the potential of two tiers of his management team: country CEOs and regional general managers. As someone who attended the SEP at the School in the late 90s, he had no difficulty in identifying that course as a valuable programme for the first group. It was fantastic, he recalls, and I wanted my managers to have the same opportunity. Roberto feels that SEP has three main pillars of learning that are of great value to his senior team: 1. It brings the participants up to date with trends in the world at large and the latest management thinking, whether it be in the realm of marketing, finance, innovation or some other area. 2. It gives executives the chance to learn from contemporaries in different countries and markets and thus enrich their business knowledge and gain confidence in their own abilities. 3. It gives them a greater insight into their strengths and weaknesses through the 360 assessments and the scrutiny of their peers. The candidates that sends on the SEP are heavy hitters, some of whom may have been a CEO for ten years or more, and Roberto believes that the hot-house atmosphere of the programme is a major plus. These guys are used to sitting at the front of every table when they go to a meeting but on the SEP they are one of perhaps 20 number ones and so they go back to ground zero, where no one is more or less important than anyone else, he says. Everyone is there for the same purpose and the whole dynamic of exchange and the approach to the case studies with the reasoning and contributing involved is something which I find is quite enriching. Meanwhile, senior executives who are slightly lower down the management ladder but are seen to have the potential to make it to the next level are selected for the ADP. This programme is for people who we have identified through our succession plan, as the CEOs of the future, says Bill Fox. They may be currently three to five years into fairly senior roles as general managers when they come to London Business School to be challenged about where they are in their leadership journey, their style, the impact of that style, and to experience broader ideas and modern ways of thinking. Roberto Villaquiran, CEO, Corrugated Division Europe,
Empowered managers 06 Around a dozen executives have taken part in the SEP and ADP programmes over the past five years and each one has emerged more mature and confident, says Roberto Villaquiran. He personally, in consultation with Bill Fox and others, makes decisions over who to send to the School as part of the annual performance appraisal process. Aware of the many calls there are on the time of a busy executive and the fact that four weeks is a significant incursion into his or her year, Roberto and Bill give the individual concerned a year to 18 months to fit it in to their schedule. Saverio Mayer, who, as CEO of Smurfit Kappa Italy as well as the Bag-in-Box Division, oversees a headcount of 2,000, took the SEP programme in 2010. I was initially unsure about being away from the office for such a long time but in the end it turned out to be a very valuable experience, he says. It wasn t so much a case of learning new things as reinforcing techniques and learnings that I already had. What was incredible about the course was the opportunity to meet people from a wide range of different sectors and countries all over the world. In my class alone, there were participants from Brazil, India etc, as well as Europe. The truth is that what is gained from the course can vary from person to person. Over the years I have sent different executives from on SEP at the School for different reasons because they were at different points of their product development, says Roberto. One lacked a certain amount of confidence because he didn t have a formal university education but he d had a phenomenal level of exposure to the business. While he could compare himself against the people in, the programme enabled him to measure himself against outsiders and see that his life experience in the business had made him very rich in many things. He realised he had nothing to fear and that gave him a boost. What was incredible about the course was the opportunity to meet people from a wide range of different sectors and countries all over the world. In my class alone, there were participants from Brazil, India etc, as well as Europe. Saverio Mayer CEO, Italy
Empowered managers 07 Meanwhile, participants in the School s ADP also pay tribute to the liberating effects of the executive education it provided. Ingo Gruetters, as the Regional General Manager of a key region within Germany, is in charge of four plants with a combined turnover of almost 200 million euros. At the time he participated in the ADP in 2009, however, he was in the stressful position of juggling his responsibilities as the father of two young boys with transforming the fortunes of a group of newly acquired plants in southwest Germany two of which were Smurfit Kappa s lowest performers in Europe. It was most exciting for me to share my experience of lifestyle matters, he recalls. I would not say I was close to burning out, but I certainly felt there was a danger of it. By conferring with faculty members and his fellow students he learned the value of taking a step back from the minutiae of the business, rather than micromanaging, and how to exert control without demotivating the individuals concerned. I have a picture in my head now of a small boy trying to learn to ride a bicycle, he says. The father is standing beside the bicycle but letting the child ride the bicycle on his own. It s the picture I took with me. Let people do what they can do. Emmanuel Rougier, General Manager of Siemco, a key business within Smurfit Kappa France, who completed the course in January 2013, is particularly enthusiastic about the elements of the programme devoted to leadership and strategy. The format of ADP enables you to develop a trustful relationship, which gave me the opportunity to let the feedback impact my leadership style, he says. This was a true eye-opener and benefit to me. The members of the group still keep in touch through LinkedIn and via a monthly conference call of one or two hours, when we share developments and food for thought. He adds: When it came to strategy, the references to both small and mediumsized and big businesses for brand building or services development, enabled me to place into perspective my own company and challenges. The format of ADP enables you to develop a trustful relationship, which gave me the opportunity to let the feedback impact my leadership style. This was a true eye-opener and benefit to me. Emmanuel Rougier General Manager, Siemco Hélène Rey Professor of Economics, SEP,
Business impact 08 Senior executives who have been through SEP and ADP return to the workplace revitalised, with new tools to drive the business forward, says Bill Fox. I think it s impossible to say someone is delivering 20 per cent more profitability simply because they went on a London Business School programme, he says, but when you talk to those leaders and you see them in the workplace they have new ways of thinking and are clearly energised. They have had their minds opened to what is happening outside the immediate world of and our customer base. They ve had an injection, if you will, of modern management thinking. They ve had their leadership style deconstructed and then built up again, hopefully in a more effective fashion. We see them coming back with high energy levels, far more open to new ideas and as far more effective leaders. He adds: I m convinced that it has a positive impact and you don t have to take my word for it. You can look at the appraisals they receive, the feedback they get from the CEOs and also, in some ways more importantly, the results of their 360 processes, which involve feedback from their direct reports and their peers. We see an improvement in terms of leadership, communication and engagement in those executives post the programmes. And it s not just in the immediate aftermath. Because they re at the School for four weeks, the effect does not last for just six months and then disappear, it changes them on a permanent basis. Roberto agrees: They come back consistently as more mature and confident individuals and underneath their arm they bring with them a set of tools that they can use as they see fit in developing their regions and organisations further. There is a definite change of confidence. Some of them might push the marketing a little bit more and others might push a different area, but the individuals coming back are better individuals and better managers post the course than they were pre the course. And this new-found confidence can make for more decisive management. When you have confidence you re not looking behind or around you, you just say, Okay, this is where I want to go. Because they re at the School for four weeks, the effect does not last for just six months and then disappear, it changes them on a permanent basis. Bill Fox Head of HR, Corrugated Division Europe, Rob Goffee Professor of Organisational Behaviour, SEP,
A strong and committed partnership 09 Five years in to its partnership with, is as committed as ever to making SEP and adp key stepping stones in the learning and development of their senior executives. We are by no means a big, big customer of, says Bill Fox. Over the last five years we ve had 10 12 executives passing through its doors and we have a similar number in the pipeline but, despite being a relatively small customer, I feel we have a fantastic relationship with the School. Our dealings with the people here at the pre-course stage, during the programme, and when it comes to the follow-up are always totally professional. They do what they say they re going to do and they re fundamentally good people to deal with. Over and above that there seems to be a genuine interest and I mean a genuine interest in how our delegates perform post-programme. I frequently get calls saying, How is X, How is Y? Has it made a difference? Are you happy? There s a genuine commitment to customer care. It s a top business school in every respect, and thoroughly professional. Click here to listen to Bill Fox talking about his personal experience on the Human Resource Strategy in Transforming Organisations Programme. Click here to listen to Bill talking about Smurfit Kappa s use of the ADP and SEP programmes, how this fits with their L&D strategy and what the business impact has been. To learn more about how London Business School can help you deliver business impact through open programmes, please contact us by phone on +44 (0)20 7000 7390 or email us at execinfo@london.edu
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