GREAT SUCCESS STARTS WITH GREAT LEADERS

No matter what type of product or service your organization provides, good leadership and engaged employees make all the difference. We’ve helped turn around many businesses in many industries. Here are a few stories of organizations we have helped.

1.5 years after refocusing on mission and purpose for existing:

achieved

FINANCIAL STABILITY

grew donor support

100 %

increased lives impacted

100 %

established

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

VOLUNTEERS IN SERVICE TRANSFORMATION

We were asked to work with a non-profit organization that had just undergone a leadership change. The new leaders were working on plotting a new direction and asked us to provide them input and advice.

This was an organization that lost focus on their mission and purpose for being. They had decided to purchase and renovate an office building for their offices and this had diverted financial resources and focus and had bloated their fixed cost. They had not been listening to many of their stakeholders and supporters who did not support this purchase. As a result, their ministry suffered, and donations declined as a number of stakeholders no longer believed in what they were doing. Unfortunately, they were also in a position where, after extensive renovations, the building was not worth what they invested. The previous leader left the organization and the new leadership was overwhelmed by the enormity of the task and looking for advice on how to proceed.

We were able to come in and partner with the new leadership by asking a lot of questions to assess and more fully understand the current situation. With our coaching and mentorship support, the new leadership was able to develop and implement a strategy to get the organization back on track.

The vision and purpose for existing was solid and we encouraged a sharp refocus on fulfilling their vision and purpose. Leadership started meeting with many current and previous donors to apologize for the loss of focus and to draw a new picture of the future that included a refocus on the vision and purpose. The majority of donors were cautiously supportive of the new “future”, but wanted to see actions behind the words. The leaders and board were excited by what was possible, but very concerned about paying off the debt and getting back on stable footing.

While re-engaging with donors; leaders and board members made a decision to move out of the office building and into a space that one of their ministry partners offered. The building was listed and ultimately sold at a significant loss, but higher than anyone expected. A real answer to prayers. Leadership and the board worked with creditors and contractors to negotiate payment agreements letting them know that they fully intended to meet their obligations.

The results, with a continued focus on fulfilling the vision, were heartwarming and dramatic:
• Contractors (over time), wrote off payment obligations and many became ministry supporters.
• 1 year after the building sold, the bank wrote off their debt.
• 1 ½ years after selling the building the organization was debt free. This was something they thought would not be possible for many years.
• As the new picture became the new reality, support and donations began to increase.
• Program participation dramatically increased.
• Bridges were built between needs and providers.
• Lives were touched and connections were strengthened.
• Everyone began to have a lot more fun and success is regularly celebrated.

There are many stories of donors who said they would never give again who came back and are making significant and ongoing contributions. Outpourings of thanks from partners and stakeholders thanking the organization for the impact they are having on people’s lives. Story after story of lives being positively impacted and bridges being built.

We were able to establish a partnership, provide encouragement, and give them tools and advice they needed to establish and bring to life the picture of the future. God blessed their efforts and they put in the hard work to make it happen. We celebrated the successes with them time after time. We are proud of the work we do to develop and equip leaders to build and grow organizations through engagement of those we touch. And celebrating with them in their success.

After one and a half years WITH Lead Engage Agency

Became

Debt Free

Doubled

Donor Support

Doubled

Lives Impacted

Increased

Program Participation

Regularly

Celebrated Successes

AFTER TEN MONTHS WITH LEAD ENGAGE AGENCY

CUSTOMER DEMAND INCREASED BY

300%

ON-TIME DELIVERIES HELD ABOVE

90 %

PRODUCTION OUTPUT INCREASED

300%

Uniprop Portfolio Company located in Chicago, Il Suburb

Uniprop engaged us to turnaround one of their portfolio companies located in Chicago, Il suburb. This company produced high precision shafts and spool valves primarily for a major construction and mining equipment company. Uniprop had purchased this family owned company with a managing partner. Uniprop and the managing partner separated just before we were retained.

The company had just survived a significant economic downturn where they choose to lay off a number of key and long-term employees in order to reduce overhead and cost. This resulted in them being unprepared for an upturn in sales as the economy recovered. When we arrived, the company was hopelessly behind with on time delivery under 30%. They had no strategy, plan to recover, or idea how to meet the upcoming demand. They were significantly understaffed, unengaged, and feeling like the future was hopeless. Late deliveries were threatening to shut down their customers and customers had brought in supplier development resources to assist in getting deliveries back on track.

We were able to come in and complete an assessment of the current situation, talking to the leaders, employees, and customers. Based on gathered information we partnered in creating a playbook to get back on time with deliveries. This playbook was reviewed and accepted by the customer. Playbook included:

• Working with customers to confirm requirements
• Developing a scheduling plan to be able to track orders and parts
• Changes in material ordering process
• Strategic outsourcing of some parts
• Work with suppliers to reduce lead times and establish rush order agreements
• Work on production process improvements
• Adequately staff to be able to meet current and future demand
• Celebrate achievement of milestones along the way

Steady progress was made in getting deliveries back on track, and after four months the backlog had been largely eliminated and percent on time had climbed to above 90%. However, in the first three months, production demand doubled and in the next three months it doubled again. The company struggled to keep up and percent on time dropped back to 50%. Solution ended up being further outsourcing of parts, further process improvements, and additional staff hiring. It also become clear that some personnel changes were necessary, and a purchasing and operations manager were hired.

After ten months things were stabilized:
• Customer on time deliveries were holding above 90%
• Customer demand had increased 300% and had stabilized
• Production Output had increased over 300%
• Achieved full staffing
• Hired long term leadership
• Maintained Quality
• Improved employee engagement
• Celebrated successes on a regular basis.

Everyone in the company understood the importance of Quality and On Time Delivery and became focused on what they needed to do to achieve these goals. Communication improved, housekeeping improved, flow of parts through the process improved, and we celebrated the achievement of goals.

After Ten Months with Lead Engage Agency

Achieved

Full Staffing

Hired

Long-Term Leadership

Improved

Employee Engagement

Created a System

Maintained Quality

Regularly

Celebrated Successes

AFTER FOUR MONTHS WITH LEAD ENGAGE AGENCY

INCREASED PRODUCTION BY

80%

PASSED

ASR AUDIT

FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL GOALS

EXCEEDED

Mid-West Operation of a UK Listed Company

We were retained by a UK listed company to serve as the interim senior executive leader for one of their sites located in the US Mid-West. They needed an interim leader while they completed the search for a permanent replacement. This facility was experiencing issues with missed customer deliveries and unsatisfied customers. They were understaffed by 20% in a very tight labor market, workforce (both hourly and salaried) were unengaged, and there was a general feeling of “no end in sight”, “let’s just survive the day”.

We were able to come in and assess the current situation by talking to, listening, and getting input from leaders, salaried personnel, and hourly employees. Partnering with leadership, we developed and implemented a playbook that included having some hard discussions with customers, setting clear goals, making expectations clear to everyone, and getting buy-in to the plan. The vast majority of the people reacted positively to the changes, but some did not, and some personnel changes did end up being necessary.

The results in four months were heartwarming and dramatic:
• Exceeded first quarter financial goals. (No one thought they could be achieved at the beginning of the quarter)
• Increased production by 80%
• Achieved full staffing
• Maintained quality
• Prepared the organization for ASR audit, which they passed with no majors and minors.
• Everyone had clear goals and knew what they needed to do to achieve the goals.
• Turnaround in employee engagement throughout the organization.
• Celebration of successes on a regular basis.

Three weeks after the project was completed, they held a Family Day (we had been planning this for a while) where employees could bring in family and show them where they worked and what they do. The day was a lot of fun and a great success with over 85% employee participation. This was a direct reflection of the change in employee engagement that happened in the organization in a very short period of time.

In partnership with plant leadership, we were able to give them a playbook for success. We provided tools, teaching, coaching, and mentoring to successfully implement the playbook. We encouraged and supported them in this journey and regularly celebrated successes. They embraced the changes and took responsibility for making it happen. Four months does not implement the long term change necessary to sustain but they did hire a leader who has the skills to carry this forward. Feedback from current company leaders has been that we had a dramatic and permanent impact on this organization.

After FOUR Months with Lead Engage Agency

Achieved

Full Staffing

Organization has

Clear Goals

Turned Around

Employee Engagement

Created a System

Maintained Quality

Regularly

Celebrated Successes

We started working with Ray in 2016. Ray has always been extremely diligent and has continually poured into us. His deep industry knowledge has proven time and time again to be a staple for us in the areas of Business Development and Manufacturing. I would like to personally recommend Ray to anyone needing an edge in business.

Ryan Mason

Luxe Brands

"I have known and followed Ray since he was a student of mine at the University of Michigan. He had an outstanding career at General Motors and in other positions following GM. I would characterize Ray as a coach leader. His focus was always on the team and not himself. As I saw in his student days, Ray is very intelligent and not just from a theoretical basis but also as a 'hands on' person. He is a classic 'systems thinker' who always keeps the big picture in view as he works on details. Another attribute of Ray is entrepreneurial approach to life. He is always looking for better ways to do things; to fill gaps that need filling. Ray is true communicator. He has connected with me often throughout his professional life which is quite unusual for engineers who tend to be quite introverted. "

DAVE COLE

Chair, AutoHarvest
Chair Emeritus, Center for Auto Research
Chair, Building America’s Tomorrow

"Ray Koopman has the skills that are needed for effective leadership coaching - competence, vision, encouragement and accountability. I reached out to Ray for leadership and business coaching during a time that I became Executive Director for a non-profit organization that was in a financial crisis. Ray asked good questions, listened, assessed the organizational structure and finances and assisted with putting together a long-term plan for future success. A strength I see in Ray is his steady, dependable support and ability to reassess and redirect as needed during the process of restoration. Ray was instrumental in my journey as a leader during the most difficult financial time in the history of the organization. I would recommend Ray as a mentor and coach to anyone who is ready to face the hard work of becoming a more effective, successful leader. "

BERNITA TUINENGA

Executive Director
Volunteers In Service, Grand Rapids Michigan

Ray Koopman was engaged by Uniprop to manage a portfolio company located in the suburbs of Chicago, IL. The company was a CNC machine shop that produce various component parts for customers like Caterpillar and Boeing. Uniprop purchased the company from the family that had owned it for decades, along with a managing partner that was clearly not qualified to operate the business; in need of help, Uniprop hired Ray Koopman.

Mr. Koopman assumed full-time management responsibility and was instrumental in the restructuring of the company. He implemented new work flow procedures, he evaluated talent at all levels, and he interfaced with key customers to explain the transition. He totally changed the “culture” and focused the company on quality and on-time delivery. The results were impressive and Uniprop benefitted from the success. I personally want to endorse Ray Koopman for his integrity, business acumen.

ROGER ZLOTOFF

President, Uniprop

When I was facing a difficult situation in a manufacturing environment and was unable to attend to it myself, I wanted to bring in a trusted leader who could get the facility back on track until a full-time site leader could be hired. The first name that came to my mind was Ray Koopman.

When Ray came into our facility in the US Midwest, he quickly assessed the situation and the team and developed a map of the gaps in both. He engaged the workforce through personal conversations, team building, games and extensive shop floor presence. He recognized the need for the team to understand what “winning” looked like on a daily basis and, together with the team, he set daily success targets and tracking. He coached the team and celebrated their successes, and he also worked with them when they missed their goals to understand what was needed to turn the performance around. He significantly enhanced the visualization on the shop floor so anyone walking through the plant could see the progress.

While Ray brought forth extensive operational knowledge, he also needed to work closely with the commercial team to adjust the expectations of the customers, prioritize production, and ensure that we were improving customer responsiveness in a systematic way. In a very short time, he assessed the current situation with the customers and was able to realign the production priorities with the customer needs – finding a balance between raw material stock, cash management, on time delivery while ensuring product quality was uncompromised. The work that Ray did was done with a top focus on safety and respect for the team – critical values in the organization.
Ray’s work with us ended when a full-time site leader was hired, but his impact continues. The team continues to talk about the things that Ray put in place that began the turnaround – and the results in the subsequent 10 months have continued to build on the targets set by Ray and the team during his tenure.

HOLLY HULSE

President, Thermal Products Division at Morgan Advanced Materials

A SMALL CHANGE IN YOU CAN PRODUCE
BIG CHANGES FOR EVERYONE ELSE

The success or failure of your organization depends on it.

GET STARTED TODAY

GREAT SUCCESS STARTS WITH GREAT LEADERS

After one and a half years WITH Lead Engage Agency

After Ten Months with Lead Engage Agency

After FOUR Months with Lead Engage Agency

A SMALL CHANGE IN YOU CAN PRODUCE BIG CHANGES FOR EVERYONE ELSE

A SMALL CHANGE IN YOU CAN PRODUCE
BIG CHANGES FOR EVERYONE ELSE