Names, companies, and specific details have been modified for illustrative purposes. The principles and solutions described are based on real business experiences by Profit Objective.
Mark Thompson stared at his computer screen, overwhelmed by the hundreds of unread emails flooding his inbox. As the founder and CEO of TechForward Solutions, he had watched his company grow from a small startup to a 200-person organization in just three years. But something wasn’t right.
“I don’t understand why everyone is going in different directions,” he muttered, scrolling through conflicting update reports from his leadership team. The rapid growth that had once been a source of pride was now causing unprecedented challenges.
The Growth Trap
In the early days, managing through emails and spreadsheets seemed efficient. Thompson could keep track of everything, respond quickly, and maintain control. But as the company expanded and he built out his leadership team, these informal systems became a liability.
Each department head had developed their own way of tracking projects and priorities. Marketing was using one project management tool, while Engineering maintained elaborate spreadsheets. Sales kept everything in their CRM, and Operations relied heavily on email threads. The result? Information silos, duplicated efforts, and misaligned priorities.
“We had five different versions of the truth,” Thompson later recalled. “Each leader was working hard, but they were all rowing in different directions.”
The Breaking Point
The wake-up call came during a quarterly review meeting. When Thompson asked each department head about their top priorities, he realized that none of their initiatives aligned with each other—or with the company’s overall strategy. Worse still, several teams were working on similar projects without any coordination.
“It was like watching five different companies operating under one roof,” Thompson said. “That’s when I knew we needed help.”
Enter Profit Objective
Thompson reached out to Profit Objective, a management consulting firm specializing in organizational alignment. Their first step was to implement their proprietary Big 3™ framework—a system for identifying and communicating the three most critical objectives that would drive the company forward.
The process wasn’t easy. It required Thompson and his leadership team to step back from their day-to-day operations and answer fundamental questions about their business:
- What truly matters for our long-term success?
- How do our various initiatives support these goals?
- What should we stop doing to focus on what’s important?
The Big 3™ Transformation
Working with Profit Objective, TechForward developed their Big 3™ objectives:
- Enhance Customer Experience across all touchpoints
- Streamline Internal Operations through process standardization
- Drive Innovation in core product offerings
More importantly, they mapped every major initiative and task back to these objectives. If a project didn’t clearly support one of the Big 3™, it was either modified or eliminated.
The company moved away from managing through emails and spreadsheets, implementing a unified project management system that gave everyone visibility into how their work contributed to the larger goals.
The Results
Within six months, the transformation was evident. Teams that had once operated in isolation were now collaborating effectively. Weekly leadership meetings focused on progress toward the Big 3™ objectives rather than departmental updates.
“The change in our organization has been remarkable,” Thompson reflected. “We’re not just more efficient—we’re finally all working toward the same goals.”
One year after implementing the Big 3™ framework, TechForward reported:
- 40% increase in customer satisfaction scores
- 25% reduction in project delivery time
- 35% improvement in employee engagement
- 50% growth in revenue with only a 15% increase in operational costs
The Lessons
Thompson’s story highlights a common challenge in fast-growing companies: the systems and processes that work in the early stages can become major obstacles to success as the organization scales.
The key lessons from TechForward’s transformation:
- Clear strategic objectives are essential for organizational alignment
- Informal communication systems don’t scale
- Every initiative should directly support core business objectives
- Visibility and transparency are crucial for cross-functional collaboration
“Success isn’t just about growing quickly,” Thompson now advises other entrepreneurs. “It’s about growing smart, staying aligned, and ensuring everyone in your organization knows exactly how their work contributes to the bigger picture.”
Today, TechForward continues to use the Big 3™ framework to maintain alignment as they expand into new markets. Their story serves as a powerful reminder that sometimes the biggest barrier to success isn’t the market, the competition, or even resources—it’s the ability to get everyone moving in the same direction.