The Trip Nobody Saw

You have probably been in a room like this one. Maybe not in southern Africa. A boardroom in London, a meeting room in Mumbai, a kitchen table with a partner who was losing faith. Everything depends on the next five minutes, and you are the only person who can see what is going on under the conversation.

Mine was one of Motorola's most important customers, in southern Africa, and I was about to take over the relationship. It was fractious, with a lack of trust and communication on both sides.

Before my first meeting with them, I flew to the region without telling them. I met their competitors, their peers, their customers and our own local Motorola staff. I asked every one of them the same things about this customer: their reputation, their service, their prices, and the support they gave in their markets. Every answer came with its own bias. My job was to read through the clutter.