Relocating a team out of war
Economic sanctions, a war and two months to relocate a design team.
When sanctions cut off payment to my Russia-based Design team, I was forced to find a way to keep paying them or to lose them altogether. After ruling out workarounds, I - alongside C-suite and other senior leaders - made the call to relocate the entire team to Turkey, including a colleague with a wife and children to consider.
Moving fast
I worked with the CPO, CTO and department heads to move fast, and the relocation was complete within two months. Through it I set a small number of clear deliverables so the team stayed focused, kept them close to the purpose of the work so morale held, and gave people the flexibility they needed to find flats and adjust to a new country. Once they'd landed, I increased check-ins to support the cultural transition.
Outcome
All designers stayed and everything was shipped on schedule. The experience was tough on a lot of people and was the most humbling experience of my career to date.