Realigning engineering innovation with customer needs to regain market leadership.
A specialist subsea ROV manufacturer was slipping behind competitors. Their vehicles were engineering marvels — but not commercial successes. Customers complained the systems lacked the power, endurance and practical features they needed. Engineers maintained rigid loyalty to legacy designs, and redesign cycles took years, not months.
A widening gap formed between what customers wanted and what the company was building.
Revenue was dipping. Repeat business fell sharply. Morale in engineering and sales was strained. The business needed decisive, technically credible leadership to break the deadlock.
Several systemic issues had emerged:
Engineering fixed on legacy design philosophy
Customer needs misunderstood or deprioritised
Improvement cycles measured in years
Over-engineering leading to excessive cost and limited competitiveness
Commercial and engineering teams seen as adversaries
Talent demotivated by slow progress
Market opportunities being lost rapidly
The company needed a redesign — but had neither time nor budget for a ground-up reinvention.
By bringing engineers, sales teams and customers together, we uncovered critical insights: the ROVs lacked the power, thrust configuration and operational flexibility that real-world users required.
I facilitated cross-functional workshops that removed emotional attachment to legacy designs and united people behind a shared objective: build what customers actually need.
Using systems engineering methods, we reconfigured the mechanical, electrical and hydrodynamic elements to deliver:
All achieved with minimal re-engineering cost.
By changing the mindset from "perfect" to "fit for purpose", the team rediscovered the excitement of rapid innovation.
Sales teams regained confidence and had a compelling story to take to market immediately.
Entire product range redesigned in days, not years
A complete transformation achieved with rapid, focused systems engineering.
Improved performance with minimal new investment
Proving you don't need a blank slate to innovate.
New and repeat business captured quickly
Customers welcomed the changes and placed orders that had previously been blocked.
Engineering and commercial teams aligned
Years of internal friction were replaced by shared purpose.
Strategic advantage regained
The company regained its competitive position in a fast-moving market.
This case shows how the right leadership can unlock capability already present within an organisation — and deliver change at extraordinary speed.
If you need to unlock hidden value in your engineering, product or technical teams, let's discuss how systems thinking and cross-functional alignment can accelerate innovation.