Leadership Case Study

LEADERSHIP CASE PROBLEM A

Mike Todman Makes a Splash at Whirlpool

By the time the financial crisis hit, the brutal economy

forced its executive leadership team to stay

focused on a recently drafted strategic plan to turn

its business around. Michael A. Todman, president

of Whirlpool International, recalled the overarching

goal: “Let’s control the things we can. We had already

changed our business model, and we had to

make some really tough decisions.”

Senior management concentrated on three priorities:

aligning costs to meet the demands of the turbulent

business climate; managing cash for greater

liquidity; and maximizing market share by targeting

consumers in a more effective, efficient manner. As

a result, the company abandoned brand advertising,

shifting to promotional and point-of-sales methods.

“We spent our time talking directly to them so we

used more digital media,” Todman said.

To underscore the urgency, management also

ramped up internal communications. It was critical

to make and implement decisions at a faster pace

and, at the same time, secure employee buy-in. So

board members met once a month instead of six

times a year while managers spent more time meeting

with the rank and file. “Philosophically, our approach

is to be straight, be honest, tell people exactly

what is going on,” said Todman.

During the challenging financial period, Todman

focused on the North American market. He also

completed the integration of Maytag into the

Whirlpool product line. Todman focused on revamping

the product line by closing costly plants

and educating the entire staff on both companies

before introducing the new models. Todman oversees

brands in Europe, Latin America, and Asia

with duties that include management of global

information systems and global strategic initiatives,

including efficiency and innovation.

Jeff Fettig, Whirlpool Corp. CEDO and chairman,

said, “Mike has a number of strengths. First, he’s got

great expertise in being a global leader. He knows

how to operate effectively with different cultures

and different people. He also knows our operations

very well—our strengths and weaknesses, what we

can do and what we can’t do—so he’s instrumental

in helping us to set the right priorities and then

running disciplined operations to help us deliver

our expected results.”

Born and raised in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands,

Todman has been described as a robust man

with a gentle demeanor that’s not easily ruffled. His

colleagues describe him as consistent, engaging, and

extremely personable. A Whirlpool executive said

about Todman: “He’s able to analyze really complex

business problems and make the right decisions so

that the company can make money.”

Communication is an integral part of Todman’s

management style: dissecting trend information,

disseminating company goals and objectives, and

pushing employees to think more broadly, more

creatively, but as an interconnected unit that functions

across the globe. It’s a twenty-four-hour job,

he says of managing the various time zones

through phone calls and video conferencing. Todman

spends two weeks out of every month in the

marketplace visiting the team as well as customers.

“I understand how consumers are living and that

keeps you on the pulse.”

Todman has a bachelor’s degree in business

administration from Georgetown University. He

joined Whirlpool in 1993 in London as director of

finance, eventually running the customer service

business in Europe. For his leadership role in helping

bolster Whirlpool’s financial performance

through his strategic vision in accessing global

markets and ability to effectively drive innovation,

Todman was selected as the 2010 Black Enterprise

Corporate Executive of the Year.

Questions

1. In what way is Michael A. Todman exercising leadership?

2. Identify at least leadership roles Todman emphasizes as president of Whirlpool, International.

3. To what extent does it appear that Todman is showing a good balance between strategic thinking and focusing on people?

4. What advice might you offer Todman to be even more successful as the head of Whirlpool?