SSMC: Restructuring a Marketing Department
Client Details
Name: Southeastern Surveying & Mapping Corporation
Location: Headquartered in Florida
Size: 100-150 employees
Ownership: Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
Services: Serving and mapping, subsurface utility engineering (SUE) and geographic information systems (GIS)
Client Industries: Construction, GIS, FDOT, local and state agencies, k-12, higher education, water management districts, utilities, architect and engineer, attorney and legal
Markets: U.S.A.
Introduction
SSMC grew its marketing department internally from founding, adding professionals to its homegrown team as needed. While this method worked initially when the firm was small, as the company grew to over 150 employees, more structure and strategy was required within the department.
SSMC contracted FortisOBM to manage the transition after a key employee left, ultimately bringing calm, structure, and strategy to the department. After a year of partnership, this marketing department now runs on established systems and processes, clearly defined roles based on personnel skills and strengths, and a comprehensive strategy to guide individual and departmental efforts.
Challenge 1: Lack of Departmental Leadership and Organization
The departure of a key staff member, who implemented the marketing department’s first systems and workflows, created a gap in leadership and direction. The department had never developed an onboarding program for new marketers and lacked performance metrics for clear evaluation of team progress.
Solution: FortisOBM stepped into the gap to assess the situation, evaluate the department’s needs, identify each team member’s skills and value, and troubleshoot breakdowns within the department’s workflows. Ultimately, FortisOBM coached SSMC to establish reliable systems, standard operating procedures, and roles to support efficient marketing efforts.
Outcome: Once performance metrics were established and systems developed as a team, the department functioned more smoothly and in harmony. Each employee knew their role. High-performing employees were promoted. Because all systems were developed by the team, there was strong buy-in and employee ownership across the department. Team dynamics improved as FortisOBM guided tough but necessary conversations and decisions about day-to-day marketing operations. Ultimately, the marketing department began to run as a cohesive unit, moving from tumult and frustration to calm, smooth efficiency.
Challenge 2: Lack of Marketing Strategy and Professional Development
From its inception, the department had been run with a top-down approach, where employees completed whichever tasks needed attention in the moment without a comprehensive plan or regard for individual skill. This left room for improvement in results and employee satisfaction.
Solution: FortisOBM trained and led marketing staff to develop a marketing strategy as well as a clear plan to utilize employee skills and strengths in its execution. With FortisOBM’s guidance, SSMC developed a set of foundational skills every SSMC marketer would need for success. FortisOBM conducted numerous trainings to fill skill gaps and increase the professional development resources of the department, including how to:
Build a SWOT analysis
Create project management plans
Manage a project from start to finish
Manage team time and workload
Schedule marketing tasks for a smooth timeline
Structure and run effective kickoff calls
Use InDesign with best practices
Design proposal templates
Manage a team with soft skills like delegating, boundary-setting, creating structure, having open dialogue with team members, handling mishaps with grace, etc.
Outcome: With support, the department caught a vision for what they could accomplish by capitalizing on each team member’s strengths. Areas of frustration and chaos were reframed not just as opportunities for growth but opportunities for thriving, and as new skills and structures were introduced, the team indeed grew into a thriving department. Now, the department has a clear plan for new hires, and existing employees know which skills to develop to grow professionally and excel at SSMC.
How FortisOBM Supports SSMC
FortisOBM assists with compliance review for preparation, strategy, and team development, resulting in more project wins and a team committed to the company brand and culture.
Marketing Department Coaching
Strategic Planning
Proposal Strategy
How Could FortisOBM Help You?
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Client Testimonials
“Melinda is very organized and has successfully led our team through a transition in leadership. Her industry knowledge has allowed us to streamline our deliverable process and increased our win ration.” – Scott Fink, Business Development Manager
“FortisOBM has helped our team refine our internal presence so we continue to gain the respect of our internal partners. She has helped us accomplish this by offering insight and edits to our content, suggesting changes to the way we communicate, and by helping us be concise in what we are asking our internal partners for. Melinda is a strong voice in this industry with many years of experience. She is a trusted voice for our team.” – Liz Roark, Regional Marketing Manager
“FortisOBM has been providing assistance and another perspective on proposal writing processing and approaches. We/I value her insight!” - Heather Krick, Marketing Coordinator
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We develop plans for our clients to win and exceed expectations in doing so.
Our combined thirty years of industry experience coupled with professional accolades in the marketing and communications industry makes us confident in our ability to deliver on promises.
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