Transforming an Energy giant's leadership culture

Client need

To continue competing and winning in a complex industry, a multinational energy corporation recognized the need to change its ways of working. To achieve sustainable success for its Australian branch, the organization needed to shift from a project-focused operation to a unified business culture.

To make this transformation a reality, the organization identified a need for aligned enterprise mindsets, enabling leaders to internalize the new strategy and develop new leadership behaviors.

Solution

In service of this need, BTS and the organization co-created an immersive, in-person simulation experience. The experience projected a customized business portrait 30 years into the future, designed to:

• Guide leaders on optimization strategies.
• Foster relationship-building.
• Encourage personal development.
• Portray realistic, on-the-job challenges while coaching solutions.

The project team developed the program over three phases to ensure maximum effect, turning themes and objectives gathered from stakeholder interviews and pilot-test feedback into tangible, experiential materials and activities including:

Scenario-based roleplaying

• Cohorts compiled of leaders from diverse backgrounds and skillsets were provided with case study scenarios reflective of their real-life roles, tasked with developing effective strategies against common restraints like time, budget, client profiles, and geopolitics.
• Through this activity, players learned decision-making through collaboration and healthy competition, balancing short- and long-term goals in a simulated environment encouraging trial-and-error.
• Each simulation round was followed by debrief sessions, allowing teams to reflect on how their individual and group strategies affect business operations—a vital component for sustainable growth.

Behavioral guides

• Leaders were provided with helpful resources for navigating the company’s operation transition, promoting enterprise thinking through industry surprises like timeline alterations, decision-making under pressure, and prioritizing quality over targets.
• A Leadership Q&A event was held to address concerns, provide clarity, and reinforce the company’s vision and values to empower and engage leaders mid-journey.

Coaching sessions

• Amidst team leadership building, coaches offered individual, personalized guidance for participants following each simulation round.
• Presented opportunities for performance and lesson reflection, as well as goal-planning and application back on the job.

Results

The program’s ROI was measured by performance data, behavioral assessments, and participant feedback, with an NPS score of 80, surveyed across 500 leaders from 15 cohorts.

Post-journey, participating leaders credited the simulation for:

• Strengthened decision-making skills.
• Broadened business fluency.
• Heightened knowledge and resilience of industry complexities.
• Overall enjoyment of collaborative, game-like medium.

Testimonials

“Excellent fundamentals about impact across value chain of decision making and clearer understanding of levers used by management.”

“An excellent course, this really cemented in my mind the value chain and the necessity to consider all elements of this together. Shining a light on the complexity of the business and the many drivers, metrics, and desired outcomes needed to be balanced or traded-off was very enlightening.”

“Great job on asking people to represent other parts of value chain. This put all of us in a more uncomfortable place and we had to rely on each other.”

“Really enjoyable course that had a great balance of simulation, discussion, and humor. Sessions were well set up and managed.”

“The simulation reinforces the value of cross functional collaboration, which, along with specific insights into other areas of the business, I will continue to promote within my team.”