NITO wasn't a company in trouble – it had loyal customers, strong financials, and a seemingly bright future. However, as CTO, I felt a sense of unease. Disruptive forces were emerging, and I knew we needed to adapt. My initial goal was to build new revenue streams through innovative products and new markets.

The first opportunity came through a customer RFP. We were confident – we had the best product, a strong track record, and loyal customers. However, we lost the bid. Why? We were simply too expensive. Our custom hardware, while powerful, wasn't scalable or cost-effective, especially for smaller customers.

Our initial response was technological. We developed a new, cost-effective hardware platform. This was a technical marvel, but a market failure. Existing customers had no need to replace their systems, and smaller, cost-conscious telecoms weren't a significant market segment.
This was a wake-up call. Cool technology is not an answer, if it does not align with market needs.

We involved the entire company in an innovation drive, focusing on customer needs and future market trends. While initial participation was slow, we ultimately identified a promising direction. We presented this vision to our customers, including our biggest client.

Unbeknownst to us, our largest customer was developing their own future roadmap. The discussions that we had helped to align our visions and when they came out with an RFP, it closely mirrored this shared approach. This alignment, combined with our low-cost platform, positioned us to win the bid. The revenue from this win was transformative, providing a 25% increase in the first year.

While this was a success, we knew it wasn't the end of the journey. This product still targeted the same threatened market. We needed true diversification.

This initial success fueled a cultural shift within NITO. Employees became more engaged in innovation, and we established an innovation council and process. This led to the development of a new product that perfectly fit the needs of an entirely different market segment. This product line is now a major revenue generator for the company.

This experience, as well as other major transformations I led, drove me to develop The TRIUMPH Framework, a 7-step system to drive organizational transformation – a blueprint for leaders looking to make a lasting impact and to deal with the ever-changing business landscape.

TRIUMPH stands for:
T –Think and get to the root cause. The technology upgrade by itself failed because it didn’t address our core issue: legacy products. New technology didn’t make the products innovative.
R – Recognize the stakeholders and form alliances - I formed alliances with my CEO, board, and customers.
I –Ideate a plan.
U –Unwavering communication - with my team and customers.
M – Mobilize grassroots support. without the input of my team and the deviation of the innovation champions, we wouldn't have developed the new directions and pivoted to an innovative and promising future.
P- Put the plan into action.
H – Hone your plan as you go. We continued to modify plans until we got to the winning strategy.

My intention was never to gain a promotion. I just wanted to save 120 jobs. It all started over a decade ago when I was a Director of Engineering at a Fortune 500 company, let's call it MICOR. Sounds fancy, right? Not exactly. The company was slashing underperforming divisions, and layoffs were rampant. Our division was still chugging along with good revenue, but I had a sinking feeling our customers were getting restless.
They loved our product quality and on-time delivery, but speed to market was a different story. It took us a whopping 12-18 months to get anything new out the door. Any new feature request just pushed the date further down the road. Needless to say, our customers weren't thrilled with our snail-paced innovation.
Here's the thing: losing my job and those of my 120 team members wasn't an option. We had to adapt, and fast. It was personal, sure, but it was also a major business problem hiding in plain sight. No one else seemed to care – we were still making money while other divisions were hemorrhaging cash.
My boss? He had bigger fish to fry as long as he didn't have to get involved. So, if I wanted this fixed, it was on me.
Looking back, those two realizations – recognizing the problem and deciding to lead the solution – were the first steps on my path to the C-suite. It wasn't some grand master plan, though. It felt overwhelming and out of reach. But hey, I had no choice.
The solution? Agile development. We'd crank out releases every six months and get prototypes into customers' hands early for feedback. Simple, right? Wrong. The challenge wasn't figuring it out; it was getting everyone on board.
See, I didn't control the whole show. My team was just the development side. System engineering, product management, project management – they all reported to different folks. Even my boss didn't have full control – sales belonged to another VP entirely.
So, how do I convince everyone else to follow my crazy idea?
Here's the breakdown:
My team: They were used to doing things a certain way for years, and change is scary. No pressure, right? I didn't force anything. Instead, we brainstormed ways to work faster and smarter, all while facing layoffs. It wasn't easy – I probably drilled "work smarter" into their heads one too many times.
Other teams: since I had 0 control over other teams, I had to do create alliances with my peers and convince them to go ahead with my plan. Product was ecstatic that someone in engineering was finally listening to the customer. Others? Not so much. It took a lot of convincing and negotiation to get them on board. One group, in particular, pushed back hard, demanding more resources. We didn't have any to spare!
This is where things got interesting (and eventually led me to the C-suite, though promotion wasn't on my mind at the time – survival was!)
I built storing alliances with product management and project management. These groups held the purse strings and during budget planning were able to divert resources my way so I could take over some of the work of the group that didn't want to help with our plan. But here's the thing: it wasn't about building my empire. My goal was a healthy business. When other groups needed resources more, I advocated for them, putting the company first, even if it meant my own team sometimes got the short end of the stick.
That's how I earned the trust of others. They saw I wasn't playing favorites, just trying to save the ship. Over time they would come with requests to me because they trusted me to support them. And gaining the trust of your peers, managers, and employees – that's another key ingredient for leadership success.
Spoiler alert: we saved the business. We hit our goal of two high-quality releases a year, boosted efficiency, and delivered more value with each update. We built strong relationships with customers and consistently exceeded their expectations. While other businesses went belly up, ours thrived.
I didn't set out to transform the company, but I did. And by doing this I transformed my own career trajectory. There were no promotion opportunities at this point, and I wasn't expecting any. But hey, sometimes good things happen – when our business got acquired by another company, I landed a VP role, and eventually, the CTO position.
So, that's my story. The story of how survival mode turned into a passion for turnarounds and leading change. It's about seeing a problem, taking ownership, and building trust to make things happen.