WHEN Andy Green was appointed CEO of BT Global Services, he soon decided that what was needed was an injection of faith.

With BT withdrawing from several world markets after the dot-com disaster, there was a serious image problem. What was needed was not only bigger and more profitable contracts but a sign that would encourage the market, the workforce and the City.

Quickly, Green realised that winning the global communications contract for Unilever, with whom BT had traditionally close relations, was just such a “beacon contract”.

Unilever, like many multinationals, was looking at ways of integrating its global IT and communications set-up. It was talking to French, German and American, as well as UK suppliers. When negotiations started, although BT was confident that it could make savings for Unilever, there was a problem. Unilever did not know what its costs were, which meant that BT’s estimates would be very rough and therefore a major risk. BT started to walk away.

It was then that Green made three crucial decisions. “I identified this as an account we had to win. It would be a major signal. We were given a six-week deadline and I put my best people and their teams in totally responsible positions and made them and myself available 24 hours a day.

“We were lucky we traditionally got on well with Unilever, but deals of this scale can founder on the weirdest sub- clause.

“I dedicated a whole team to Unilever to help them to find out what their costs really were — at certain levels companies feel that their communications are free. I also got the company to throw away its inhibitions about setting cost-cutting targets. We had a proven record, we had to put our money where our mouth was, we had to commit ourselves in advance.”

In November 2002 the deal was announced, pushing up the share prices of both BT and Unilever. And because of the deal, Green has opened offices in 28 worldwide locations and started to win a number of other key deals in Europe, Asia and North America. Whereas in the nine months before the Unilever deal, BT Global Services put on £2 billion, in the nine months after the deal, the tally was £7 billion. The Unilever deal itself was worth £1 billion over seven years.

Green says: “Up until that win our competitors could easily say that we were retrenching into the UK and were not up to any worldwide business. This deal not only makes both us and our partner money but, as I hoped, acts as a way of repositioning the BT Global brand. Now everyone is interested in what we have to say in this market.”

And the all-important bottom line figures are coming through as well. Within two years of taking over, Green has taken this division’s big loss to a small profit in the last quarter.

Green admits: “I was a high- profile manager associated with the old regime. There is no doubt that if I hadn’t delivered, my career would have suffered, as it should. We are paid well to take responsibility. The deal shows the importance of relationships and flexibility, but also the vital nature of speed in getting things done and taking decisions.”

And the result as Green says is, “we have turned what was a Cinderella division into the jewel in the crown”.

CV

Deal-maker: Andy Green

Born: 1955, Solihull, West Midlands

Education: King Edward’s School, Edgbaston; Leeds University.

Career history: After a graduate traineeship with Shell, Green moved into the sales and marketing division but he left after seven years when he felt the company was underestimating his management potential. After a successful period with Deloittes as a management consultant, Green moved over to join the account he opened, BT. He consciously decided not to do an MBA as he felt that real experience was more important.

After two years he almost left BT but on solving the unrepaired pay phone problem he became a made man. He employed merchandising teams to report on the state of phones, which speeded up the repair process. Other jobs followed until he became part of the senior management team.

In 2001 he was appointed CEO of BT Global Services which, at the time, was losing £800 million a year and was looking very vulnerable.

hugh.thompson@thetimes.co.uk

Times Recommends

• Inspirational leadership
• How to get a new job
• The reluctant CEO