Bank collapse. Government bailouts. Mortgage crisis. Phrases like these dominated the headlines in 2008. And the Detroit area was hit especially hard. 

It was during this recession that I met Michael Brennan, CEO of United Way of Southeastern Michigan (UWSEM). We were introduced by a United Way board member and client of mine, Jeff Love, President of Baker College of Auburn Hills. Mike and I hit it off quickly and remain good friends to this day. 

Times were tough; the stock market had plunged. Retail was dead. The auto companies were in turmoil. Mike understood that if UWSEM was going to survive and thrive in the midst of economic downturn, he would have to be a catalyst for change — both for the organization and for the region.  

A Catalyst for Change

To his credit, Mike Brennan was very open to doing things in a different way, eager to learn and ready to absorb new ideas and paradigms.  

Brennan had advanced through the ranks of United Way, heading up various geographic regions before taking over UWSEM. When we met, his organization was not only hit by the financial meltdown like the rest of the country, but was looking at a longer-term decline in corporate and private donations.

Like many of my clients, Mike faced multiple challenges. He quickly grasped the benefits and value of two books by Verne Harnish, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits and Scaling Up. In short order, Mike executed multiple decisions that contributed significantly to the survival and success of UWSEM. In my opinion, his top three moves were: First, he completed a One Page Plan (OPP) with specific focus on a clear and compelling BHAG. Second, he limited the organization’s focus to 3 Key Thrusts and visually displayed progress against those key goals. Third, he created a physical environment that backed up the vision contained in his OPP, utilizing visual reinforcement of the organizational change taking place.

As Mike’s Gazelles coach, I worked with him and his leadership team on their OPP. We began with a two-day Annual Planning Session and continued with the Quarterly Rhythm. The UWSEM executives dialogued through potential priorities and agreed on one person who would be accountable for those. Most team members quickly adapted to this relatively simple process. But not all. Anyone uncomfortable with transparency and accountability was traded out. Mike let everyone know visually and verbally what was and was not working. That was the end of hiding behind well-intended initiatives that weren’t being executed.  

Taking the Next Steps

This led to his next big step forward. When Mike was recruited as CEO of UWSEM, he quickly saw they were working on far too many community initiatives and getting minimal traction on most. Utilizing the “Top 5” and “1 of 5” concepts from the Rockefeller Habits methodology, Mike focused the organization on 3 Key Thrusts: Basic Needs, Education, and Financial Stability.  

Next, he broke those down into 5 Key Initiatives: Healthy Kids, Early Education, Student Success, Economic Opportunity, and Stable Families. His team created metrics and dashboards to measure progress and improvement in each of those areas with corresponding agencies to support the goals. Agencies that did not support the 3 Key Thrusts were cut loose to find other sources of support.    

Mike’s next focus was to drive down costs and preserve cash. Although UWSEM was working out of a donated building, the facility was excessively large, spanned multiple floors, and was expensive to operate. Because of the downturn, the Detroit real estate market was severely depressed. Mike seized the opportunity to pick up one of the prime locations in downtown Detroit. It was an impressive space on just two floors, overlooking Campus Martius, the heart of the city’s rebirth.

Mike made a great call when he halted renovation, leaving elements of the prior bank building in a state of partial demolition. The result was a mix of contemporary and classic architecture in an open floor plan, creating a visual representation of what Detroit and UWSEM were transitioning through. Steelcase volunteered with the layout and furnishings. Today, the entire team works in closer proximity, utilizing less floor space and lowering their occupancy cost. 

Two more genius ideas were creating a Strategy Room and installing electronic dashboards. Mike hired a graphic artist to transform the OPP into drawings that depicted the Core Values, Purpose, BHAG, Strategic Pillars, and Key Initiatives. Now, when teams or donors meet, they’re literally surrounded by exciting and motivating expressions of what’s most important! 

Transforming an Organization

When Bill Ford Jr. toured the space, he marveled at how vibrant it is. Ford saw the 3 Key Thrusts prominently displayed for the organization to align against. He viewed the electronic screens rolling out key performance metrics. Finally, he walked into the Strategy Room and read their BHAG: To make Greater Detroit one of the top 5 places to live and work in America by 2030. 

At that point, Bill Ford Jr. shared with Mike that although Ford Motor Company had always been a loyal supporter of UWSEM, he had personally questioned the group’s value and ROI. He then said his visit changed all that, and from now on he was fully embracing and supporting their ambitious BHAG.

Mike’s fresh approach to transforming this old and somewhat tired organization attracted the attention of the community, the business world, and the United Way leadership. He was often invited to speak to other organizations. It was even rumored that he was being considered for the CEO role at the national level. 

But Mike wasn’t interested. Instead, he approached the Detroit board about a leave of absence to attend an invitation-only course on Design Thinking at Stanford University. The board gave Mike their support. For the next three months, he pursued this ground-breaking area of study, while expanding his network and mental horizon of possibilities and tools to lead in a future of exponential thinking.

The Birth of Civilla

My friend returned home a changed man, and immediately went to work introducing the UWSEM team to his new framework and learnings. Unfortunately, this major philosophic shift did not garner the same support as our earlier moves. At that point, Mike made the bold decision to become an entrepreneur and launch a new company birthed out of the Design Thinking philosophy called Civilla. 

Mike stewarded Civilla through the difficult startup phase to financial stability, and they continue to be recognized for their innovative design solutions. 

Consider their bold mission: “Civilla is a nonprofit design studio dedicated to changing the way our public-serving institutions work. We wake up every day with the goal of positively impacting one billion people through institutions that are more compassionate, more effective, and less expensive to operate.”

Learn more about Mike Brennan, Civilla, and Design Thinking at their exciting and visually purposeful website.