Client stories of executive team development

Executive leadership teams are being asked to hold more than ever before. Pace, complexity and uncertainty have become constants, while expectations around performance, culture and role modelling continue to grow.

In this context, we believe the role of executive teams, how they function, and the style of leadership expected is changing, sometimes in subtle ways, other times overt change is required.

At WDI, our work with executive teams starts with the human realities of leadership. We create space for teams to slow down enough to think effectively together, so they can build trust that allows challenge, difference and accountability to sit side by side.

We pay close attention to how leadership behaviours ripple into the wider organisation. The client stories that follow illustrate how teams have engaged with this work in practice, across moments of growth, transformation, inclusion and service.

Case study 1: Better service outcomes through leadership behaviours

WDI provided practical, well thought out support in helping us achieve the behaviour change at the heart of delivering the Client Commitment. We really learned through their balance of support and challenge to try different ways of leading.
Nicola Parton, Managing Director, Swiss Re

We partnered with the Claims leadership team to support cultural change focused on inspiration and service excellence. Leaders worked on how they enabled teams to treat the customer as an individual, focusing on specific requirements rather than relying solely on policy and process. As a result of our work together, their next year’s Net Promoter Scores shifted to above company average and the team was rated No 1 for customer service in their industry awards.

Case study 2: Enabling team transformation

The approach WDI took helped me and my leadership team have the confidence to reflect and make significant changes in how we lead at the most important time ever in our history. The changes have rippled throughout the organisation, setting us up to create and embrace the opportunities opening up to us.
Beth Carruthers, CEO, MAXIMUS People Services

We worked with the executive team of a global resourcing organisation during a period of leadership change and growth. Through highly experiential workshops, interspersed with one to one and team coaching, the team focused on how they were leading together. The work refocused their energy and mindset on shared values, clarified their mission and supported more joined up ways of working. This alignment enabled the team to move forward with confidence as they entered a new market and developed innovative responses to their commercial opportunity.

Case study 3: Creating accountability when leading global change

I really trust WDI to help my team engage with and make progress in some areas that may not come easily to them. Our global transformation programme has been accelerated, and the positive shift in team dynamics has helped us achieve our business results.
Mark Wylie, Global Head of Client Policy Servicing, Global Customer Operations, AIG

AIG’s Global Operations team was leading a strategic global transformation involving off shoring, process standardisation and organisation redesign. Progress was slow due to local country resistance. We partnered with the leadership team to shift their focus from individual siloes to collective accountability, shared purpose and joined up ways of working. As the leadership team strengthened how they worked together, they achieved a significant improvement in delivery of the transformation goals and metrics.

Case study 4: Inclusion through executive leadership engagement

For GKN Aerospace to succeed we need to build high performing teams, to reach out and welcome the widest possible audience, to attract, retain and grow the best talent globally across our business. Taking positive action on diversity and inclusion is hugely important in helping make us truly World Class. Working with WDI has really accelerated our ability to live our vision, through their expertise and support, we have taken significant steps forward on our inclusion journey.
Gavin Wesson, CEO, Special Products Group, GKN Aerospace

Over a 12 month partnership, we worked with GKN Aerospace to review culture across the business with a focus on inclusion. From the shop floor to the CEO, we partnered with leaders to create their inclusion culture and strategy. Executive leadership engagement was central to the work, ensuring inclusion was shaped through everyday leadership practice. This approach supported sustained progress and helped embed inclusion as part of how the organisation operates.