CFO Studio Magazine with David Chambers, CFO, Jaguar Land Rover NA

EVENTS EXECUTIVE DINNER SERIES C FO Andreas Rothe was prepared to talk to a roomful of financial executives about a number of ways to revitalize a business that is struggling, but the discussion kept circling back to this one point: The people. “Finding the right people to steer the ship, especially one that is sinking, is paramount,” said Mr. Rothe, who currently works in the Matawan, NJ, office of Fragomen Worldwide, the world’s largest immigration services provider, but has played a key financial role in the successful turnarounds of three companies that were floundering. Mr. Rothe spoke on Achieving Best-in- Class Financial Performance with Limited Resources —Lessons fromTurnarounds, at a Middle Market Companies CFODinner, part of CFO Studio’s Executive Dinner Series, held recently at Blue Morel in Morristown, NJ. Mr. Rothe opened the dialogue with the words, “First who, then what,” quoting business author JimCollins, whose best-seller Good to Great advised corporate leaders, “Get the right people on the bus, then figure out where to go.” Mr. Rothe elaborated, saying, “Tomorrow you can decide what you’re doing with the people, even trying them out in different positions. Today, get them in the door.” He moved the discussion along by asking if this can be accomplished if “you’re driving an old, unattractive school bus.”The answer, several in the group said, is a yes: “There will always be people who are interested in a tough environment because they see it as an opportunity to make the biggest impact.” These individuals are firm believers in the saying, “You can only go up.” But this doesn’t mean, Mr. Rothe and others cautioned, that leaders of struggling companies should clean house in one fell swoop. Instead, “take small steps, attempt quick wins.” And, while acquiring the right people for managerial positions and some key functions is indeed possible, “you’re not going to find the right person to play every role.” That, he and others said, is where those in charge must work to retain existing staff when attempting to turn around a difficult business situation. “You need to accept and work with some of the people who are already there, or they will leave and you will have nothing.” And it is imperative that managers make every effort to be inspiring, to motivate their teams, and to celebrate the successes of both new and current hires, alike. Mr. Rothe then attempted to move the conversation toward a couple of other ways Behind a Turnaround THE RIGHT PEOPLE ARE THE KEY TOBRINGING A STRUGGLING BUSINESS BACK TO LIFE L. to R.: Ralf Hermkens and Bill Baldwin were among the CFOs who contributed to the discussion, “Lessons from Turnarounds” Andreas Rothe, CFO of Fragomen Worldwide, led the evening’s discussion 38 WWW.CFOSTUDIO.COM 3rd QUARTER 2016 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS