As the second largest pharmaceutical company in the world, this organization is not only an industry leader but also a household name in scientific and drug discovery. Their corporate rallying cry speaks to the organization’s mission—to save lives. Boasting a product spectrum with brand names, the organization provides solutions and relief to millions of customers each year. But the world of new drug discovery is a lengthy and expensive process. A single prescription drug can take more than 30 years of research to bring to fruition. It is no wonder then that effective teaming and collaboration on projects is seen as mission critical.

While the initial client-Blanchard^® partnership dates back 10 years, this organization began partnering with Blanchard several years ago to improve the working mechanics of it scientific teams. The goal—to match scientific excellence with increased collaboration, innovation, and team skills and to get team leaders from good to great.

Specifically, the organization wanted to develop their teams and scientific leaders to positively impact team functioning in order to decrease the cycle time for drug development.

The solution was an 18-month process with several phases, including upfront assessment and data gathering to identify performance gaps and commitment to the teaming process, training via just-in-time delivery with content customized to the team’s specific gaps and posttraining study to gauge improvements and results. Specific Blanchard programs utilized included Building High Performing Teams^®, Teaming Virtually, and Situational Frontline Leadership, as well as several team and leadership assessments. Individual coaching was also employed to boost the behavioral changes they desired.

Coaching was a powerful key to the challenge they faced. As one recipient put it, “The coaching process has been the most significant learning activity of my career because it allowed me to understand my strengths and weaknesses as a team lead and where I was hindering and helping myself and my team. When you change your behavior, it opens up a whole world of possibilities.”

To date, more that 600 leaders, project managers, and team members have participated directly in training workshops, intact team interventions/meetings, and coaching. In addition, more than 800 direct reports, peers, and team members have been involved indirectly by providing feedback through quantitative assessments. And more than 20 intact teams have participated in the Team Development Process.

The organization feels that Blanchard’s processes have built momentum, and that energy continues to grow. They’ve seen people become more and more connected because of the processes and the shared experience. Colleagues collaborate now on projects rather than working individually or in silos, which speeds time to market, reduces costs, and increases revenue.

And the metrics speak for themselves. In an independent study conducted by a third party, 65% of trainees felt that they learned new and valuable skills they could apply to their jobs, and a third to half felt that they were achieving positive results with their new teaming skills.

In addition, pre- and postassessment ratings indicate a 7% to 10% improvement in productivity, recognition, flexibility, and morale. But perhaps most important are the metrics on productivity. Over time, the organization has realized a 50% increase in productivity since the inception of the program and a 50% reduction in project completion times—all without increasing staff.

The firm feels these results would not have been possible without the attention to the teaming process that allowed them to change the behavioral side of the equation. Through the teams process, people learned to share equipment and workloads, to assist each other on projects and tasks, and to leverage the power of their team members in a highly effective way that has led to significant results while allowing them to power forward to continue to save lives.