It’s funny, as I gather my thoughts about corporate development, so much of it seems to center around the process of working internally – getting input from the appropriate people, making sure other teams are involved, and getting the deal approved. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels like the work of negotiating externally with sellers, buyers and potential partners is the easy part of the job!
As I work through my first few months here at a much smaller company, I’m reminded of how important it is to have healthy and productive internal relationships. Not formal command-and-control or even the dreaded “matrix management” – just go-to people at all levels of the organization who can get things done for you. Even with as relatively few HQ people as we have here, I’m having to replace the network I had built before – the brilliant accounting manager who always made sure I took care of working capital adjustments in the deal; the guy in engineering who could always dig up whatever obscure technical info I needed on a moment’s notice; the lawyers with the patience to deal with having an ex-lawyer as a client, and all the others. It takes time to find the right people, and even more time to build trust and camaraderie.
1 comment:
Just letting you know somone is out here reading.....I would imagine that Clearwire is quite a change from ATT Wireless...probably refreshingly so. It will be interesting to see how Clearwire does. From what I understand, it sounds like McCaw has assembled a very capable group of executives again. Like most business opportunities, I am sure in the end it will come down to execution. Good luck in your new venture.
Best,
Parkite
Post a Comment