Anne Mulcahy – Xerox Case Study – What Is Mulcahy’s Vision for Xerox?
Hunter Vernon
MGT 5700
Anne Mulcahy Xerox Case
What is Mulcahy’s vision for Xerox?
In my opinion, Anne Mulcahy (the COO of Xerox Corporation) was put into a very difficult situation from the beginning. As the article says she was pretty much “drafted into the war”. She was forced with the task of turning things around for the company. Rumors had been going around that Xerox was going to have to file for bankruptcy. Stock prices had plummeted, the company basically had no cash on hand and was in a huge liquidity hole, they were in an ongoing investigation with the SEC, they were in billions of dollars of debt, and their market capitalization had dropped tremendously. Historically, Xerox had always been a pretty successful company up until the recent downturn. Their core focus was on their customers and having roots in the community. They had always invested heavily in R&D, and had been known as a “research scientist’s dream job”.
When Mulcahy took over as COO for Xerox in May of 2000, she had to create a vision for the company, including its employees as well as its customers, about what they wanted the company to become. In understanding the vision, the million dollar question Malcahy asked herself was “What will Xerox look like after it comes through this period of survival and turnaround?” Mulcahy’s vision for Xerox was to be a profitable, successful company based on positive communication, excellent customer focus, and intensive research & development. This vision was fueled by Mulcahy’s aggressive turnaround plan, which was driven by the resilience and optimism of her Xerox employees. She also used hard work and dedication to commit to her vision for Xerox. Although she may have not had a traditional vision statement, she outlined all of the things they hoped to accomplish as if they had already achieved them.
Examine the early steps in the change process (from Leading Change) evident in the case. To what extent does Mulcahy and the senior leadership team at Xerox effectively address each of these stages/steps?
The first step to leading change and transforming an organization is to establish a sense of urgency. This consists of examining market and competitive realities and identifying and discussing crises and major opportunities. The second step in the process is to form a powerful guiding coalition. I believe that Mulcahy addressed these two steps very effectively. She met personally with 100 top executives to see if they would stay with the company despite the challenges ahead. She confronted them and was upfront with them from the beginning. She let them know that this transformation “has got to be about the company”. By confronting these executives Mulcahy was able to appeal to their character and earn their