"Nobody Ever Disagrees" (A)

Abstract

The president of the Belgian consumer goods subsidiary of a large American conglomerate thought he had inherited a loyal, lean, efficient, and capable management team to help him accelerate the growth and profitability of the decades-old, moderately successful subsidiary. Yet after six months in his current position, not much had improved. Financial performance had not regressed—just not expanded or accelerated. Excerpt UVA-G-0641 Dec. 15, 2017 “Nobody Ever Disagrees” (A) Pierre Voisinet was perplexed. As president of the Belgian consumer goods subsidiary of a large American conglomerate, he thought he had inherited a loyal, lean, efficient, and capable management team to help him accelerate the growth and profitability of the decades-old, moderately successful subsidiary. Yet after six months in his current position, not much had improved. Financial performance had not regressed—just not expanded or accelerated. During that time, Pierre had championed several business growth initiatives—some had worked to a modest extent while others seemed to go nowhere. All in all, although no one could complain about the subsidiary's performance, it just was not stellar, and Pierre wanted it to be the proverbial “jewel in the crown” of its parent company. Pierre Voisinet If there was a prototypical fast-track executive, it was Pierre. He had top-notch credentials from an American school, and his family tree was well known and respected in Western Europe. He had taken his current position after a successful eight-year stint with one of the world's leading consulting firms. The business reputation that preceded him to the Belgian subsidiary was that he had good ideas, he delivered what he promised, he did not lack self-confidence, he worked hard, and he expected others to do the same. . . .