Success Story: Medical Device Company ev3 Achieves “Breakthrough” HR Excellence

Challenge

In a medical device company like ev3, which produces technologies and solutions for treating vascular and neurovascular diseases, product tolerances are measured to the micron. Quality is the company’s lifeblood – hence, ev3’s tagline: “Giving life to endovascular excellence.” So when Greg Morrison, senior vice president of human resources for ev3, sought to achieve “breakthrough” improvements in HR – even though the department was already high-performing – colleagues readily understood his motivation. The HR function at ev3 is responsible for attracting, developing, and retaining the human assets that provide a sustained competitive advantage, as well as managing the systems and resources (e.g., human capital skills, employee commitment, culture, etc.) that impact organizational performance. Morrison believed that HR needed to have a clearer mission and direction, performance indicators for its functions, and become more consultative and strategic to achieve greater credibility with its business customers. However, potential gaps existed between the skills and capabilities of current HR employees and the requirements needed by the organization.

Solution

ev3 hired MDA Leadership Consulting to assess its “current state,” design and facilitate a strategic planning process and align HR service delivery with this direction. The goal was not only to create “breakthrough” advancements, but also enable HR leaders to implement the plan themselves, longer-term. Under MDA’s guidance, HR began by inclusively gathering information about its function from department leaders, company officers, and a select group of top-tier employees (representing the company’s functional areas) – the latter through a customer satisfaction survey. MDA’s discovery process revealed what many knew anecdotally: HR was well-regarded, but not perceived as a business unit “partner.” While overall satisfaction with HR’s service quality was 85 percent, this was not “breakthrough performance,” Morrison said.

In response, MDA advised HR to pursue multiple potentially breakthrough changes. For starters, the HR Team began by delineating “vital” functions versus those merely “useful,” and streamlining the latter. Similarly, HR roles changed. Whereas business units were previously served by two HR professionals – one for development; the other for HR functions – HR combined these roles into one to create a single point of contact to provide greater business connectivity. Even the “face” of HR changed: the department created an “HR Hub,” equipped to respond swiftly to all 1,200 employees worldwide for any HR-related inquiry. Finally, to create a culture of excellence, HR implemented a seven-part development program – on topics such as accountability, teamwork and talent management – and rolled it out to the company’s top performers.

Results

ev3 succeeded in creating a “breakthrough” HR function: the department’s “Hub” is now the nexus of all HR inquiries and HR staff members have truly become partners with the company’s business units. Morrison credited the commitment and willingness of the HR team to change and the input of MDA’s consultants to achieve the department’s goals. “(MDA) made us very comfortable with the changes we implemented,” he said. “And they held us accountable in ways and areas we needed to be held accountable."

Stacy Enxing Seng, executive vice president and president of ev3’s Peripheral Vascular Division, noted how at many companies, HR is perceived as simply a service provider, but how that’s not the case at ev3. “Our Human Resources partners are an equal and vested member (of our division),” she said. “In particular, I depend on my HR executive to provide not only the operational tools necessary to ensure a high-performance organization, but I find him to be my own personal leadership collaborator, providing ongoing coaching and ensuring I am setting the right leadership tone and tempo for the business.” Morrison is thrilled with these results. “Her use of our department and her trust in our counsel is priceless.”