[Also see ]

Many, like Graham Giblin, now regional security director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, had lived in the areas they cover. For a company that had had a "Peoria first" mentality, this was a big departure. "Our internal focus transitioned to a global focus," Giblin says.

Williams wrote a three-year operating plan detailing the revamped group's strategic vision and alignment with corporate objectives, roles and responsibilities. Williams' work at P&G gave him a deep and abiding love of precise process management, which served him well as he restructured the team.

"If you don't have your processes clearly defined in a well-written strategy or operating plan, you could end up chasing what other groups believe your priorities are, versus those issues that actually pose the greatest risk or threat to the enterprise," Williams says. "We articulated our plan to other staff groups, business leaders, and our executive management and the board, obtained agreement, and then set out to urgently execute the plan."

Not everyone made the transition. "Many of our colleagues wanted us to return back to what we did before--the global role was not one they were prepared for or found interest in," says Williams. There were also those who could not perform as the bar was raised. In all, the security function shed more than half its original group. Happily, many found other roles within the company.