“Managing daily operation of an international business is one thing. Coping with the deluge of business improvement directives coming out of Corporate Head Office is another thing entirely. With TLIR advice and support; I could manage and improve the business.”
John Cameron, President, Avaya Communications (Canada)
“Never in the history of corporate transformation have so many projects delivered so little, so late, so poorly, at so much cost and with so much aggravation. Now for the bad news...”
Introduction, Sun Tzu and the Art of Corporate Transformation J. Bolden ISKCCM Prato, Italy
Thought Leadership
“Every day I live through the very issues that John speaks to and deals with, as do tens of thousands of executives who read Ziff Davis publications (CIO, Darwin, Baseline). John shines a light on aspects of business improvement that no business leader can afford to ignore.”
Mike Vizard, Senior Vice President & Editorial Director, Enterprise Group – Ziff Davis Media
“Clarity of Vision about who has to change what, when and how is an essential precursor for Success. Clarity means no one should be surprised by what transpires as transformation moves forward. Let me ask this... Has anyone been surprised recently...?”
“Bringing TLIR in for a couple of days each month to provide oversight and guidance during a $425 million project proved to be a wise move on my part. TLIR helped me to keep the project on track, head off extremely serious issues that could have cost millions to fix and acted as a confidential sounding board whenever I was in two minds about what to do.”
Lorraine Smith-Latrice, EVP & CIO, TSB
"Sun Tzu and the Art of..."
“I knew there was a brand new and very significant market opportunity out there but I could only exploit it if a leading edge, nationwide business environment was created in record time. John and his team helped me to assess what could be done, how it should be handled and what to watch for along the road. In short order; my objectives were realized, with minimal risk and significant return on investment.”
Wilf Liebert, Chairman & CEO, Purolator Corp
“Asking questions about who is going to do what to whom, where, when, why, at what cost, with what intended result and with what impact to the organization and other projects is good management. Relying solely upon answers from those who stand to gain or lose the most is not necessarily wise management…”
Tutorial Extract - Quislings Multiply Like Lemmings - J. Bolden, ECITM, Paris France
“How TLIR surveys the corporate transformation landscape, foresees where bumps and potholes lie ahead and recommends measures to prevent these turning into mountains and/or chasms is remarkable. TLIR's reputation for moving fast, running lean and delivering extreme value is well earned.”
“Listening to John draw parallels between Oracle’s pursuit and conquest of PeopleSoft to Caesar’s triumph over Vercingetorix was fascinating; made all the more entertaining when John recounted his military service in West Berlin during the latter stages of the Cold War, guarding Rudolf Hess in Spandau Prison!”
Kevin Turner, EVP, BT Holdings
“Those who can seamlessly bridge opposing viewpoints, achieve consensus and be a successful catalyst, mentor and driving force for the common good of both project(s) and the organization are very, very rare. John is one such individual”
Holger Kluge, President, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
“Most business improvement projects are managed according to yesterday’s thinking. Archaic project management techniques and mindsets - linear - singular - insular - all but guarantee business improvement projects will fail to meet expectations. Let me explain…”
Keynote Extract – Archaic, Linear Thinking - J. Bolden, IICM, New Orleans USA
"Who Hired Pandora...?"
“The Sum of All Change is a minefield of potential issues and problems for management. It is also the source of significant opportunities to cut costs, save time, improve quality, reduce organization vs. project conflict and enhance reputations. Here's why...”
“I sat at the back of the room, listening and watching as John explained his findings about what is typically overlooked, ignored or taken for granted whenever change is on the agenda. The looks on the faces of my people, coupled with their furious note taking told me all I needed to know.” Serge Gallany, SVP, ABN Amro
Founder Profile
John Bolden, founder of TLIR Consulting Group, is globally renowned for helping organizations assure exceptional corporate transformation / business improvement envisioning, planning and execution.In complex public and corporate sector settings; John’s leadership, acumen and expertise in managing the mechanics, dynamics, optics and politics of business improvement has helped clients ensure real, sustainable results across the spectrum of business, process and technology re-engineering.
Post Acquisition Integration; Global, Single Instance Systems and Processes (ERP, CRM, PRM); Re-Engineering Entire Businesses; Assessing and Implementing New and Evolving Information Technologies – RFID, Smart Card, Wireless Connectivity, BPE/BPR Simulation, BI/KM, GIS, Virtual Call Centres, Affinity/Loyalty Reward Programs, Web based Informational / Transactional Interchanges; Business Outsourcing and Shared Services are just some of the initiatives where John has helped businesses improve what they do and how they do it.
John possesses the rare capability of being equally comfortable imparting strategic transformation advice and guidance as a subject matter contributor, working as part of a team or task force, leading constrained resource pools or directing international teams working on global projects. John’s background encompasses leadership of teams of up to 1,500 technology and process re-engineering people (internal staff, contractors, vendors – both local and international), internal user communities up to 35,000 and external constituent communities in excess of 200 million worldwide. John aligns and interlocks with all levels of the organization in pursuit of objectives. He is very astute and conscious of the conflicting pressures of strategic and tactical initiatives upon organization and individual. John is an exceptional catalyst for change, his ability to align multiple constituents to the common goal and propel momentum toward objectives is highly effective and non-confrontational.
In addition to direct client engagements, John conducts ongoing research into the factors that lead to cost overruns, delays, quality issues, organization vs. project conflict, vendor litigation, unacceptable ROI, frustrated stakeholders, tarnished reputations and worse. His identification of the key elements that contribute to failure and what can be done about them is recognized as innovative, practical and value laden. John’s articles are widely published and his presentations have engaged business, government and academia leaders at conferences worldwide.
Education, Professional Development & Affiliations
Distinguished Scholar - Council of Business Advisors, Lehrman (New York)
Visiting Instructor - Britannia College, Executive Training Centre
Member, Panel of Experts - Society for the Leadership of Change
Fellow - International Project Management Society
Fellow - International Institute of Change Management
Champion, Master Black Belt - International Society of Six Sigma Professionals
University of Massachusetts (Boston) – Advanced Mediation and Negotiation
Kellogg Graduate School of Management, North Western University (Chicago) – EMS
London School of Technology (UK) – MSc Graduate Program – Compiler Logic
London School of Technology (UK) – BSc Mathematics
Imperial War College – International Studies
Allied Kommandatura (West Berlin) – Political Science
Royal Military Academy (UK) - Commissioned Officer
“One trusts that someone, somewhere, has full and complete vision of everything that is going on, project wise, across the organization. Let me ask YOU! Who would that be…?”
To find out just how quickly and effectively TLIR could help you achieve your business improvement objectives; please call or e-mail to arrange a strictly private, no-obligation telephone conversation. We look forward to speaking with you soon.
