“Homeless and locked out” Marg Lange Change Agency saved a company director in lockdown
I would like to share this important case study of how impactful I and my Change Agency Team can be in times of COVID 19, helping a homeless managing director escaping domestic violence which resulted in a major change to her life. Names have been changed to protect her identity.
Executive Summary
Sarah is a Managing Director of a small manufacturing company she founded 20 years ago.
After reading a comment on the Facebook Post – Boosting Female Founders Initiative, I reached out to Sarah.
The comment she made in the Facebook post was ‘I’m not a startup but I sure could use some help’.
For eight of those years, the turnover of Sarah’s business was ¾ of a million dollars. Six employees undertaking major projects for government authorities, the success of the company relied on Sarah’s communication and administration skills as well as her management and input into all facets of the business.
The continuing development and growth of this micro-business (en-route to being a world leader) is now being marred by ongoing domestic violence.
Sarah’s plight worsened as the Corona Lockdown was announced which had left her stranded living and working out of her vehicle. Prior to lockdown she had been able to continue her business activities working in libraries and cafes and staying with various people but of course, Corona lockdown put a stop to that.
Intuitively I knew something was wrong and after speaking to Sarah on Messenger I made a call and discovered a lady very much in need of help.
I offered the services of my CAT Team returning hope and positivity to Sarah’s crumbling world.
Sarah is surviving on the “kindness of strangers” she says having been given access to an unfinished and unfurnished cabin to live and work from.
Upon hearing the cabin was not furnished, I reached out to my business contacts both in Victoria and interstate which made Sarah’s living and working environment more comfortable. Within hours of my calls for help generous donations arrived, not only practical items such as a new bed, a washing machine and dryer, floor rugs and a cutlery set but generous gifts of soaps and lotions, chocolates and even a huge TV!!!
Items of care from strangers co-ordinated by me, made a huge difference to Sarah’s recovery and the delivery of these items, donated by another generous man I sourced, was a highlight!
Gifts of make-up, decorations, wine, and hampers were delivered to my home from NSW Tasmania and within Victoria. Surprised and amazed with the response from my contacts, Sarah arrived at my place, teary-eyed to collect some of the items that had not been delivered.
Upon reading the heart-warming messages in cards from other business owners willing to provide her with necessities that she would have not been able to afford or obtain Sarah says “It wouldn’t have been possible without the help from Marg and the CAT team”.
After some weeks of recuperation and the ability to get on with her work success is starting to come her way. Sarah has been accepted onto a high-profile Incubator Program and says without Marg Lange help she would not have been able to put her business prospects forward.
Sarah’s Challenges Ongoing
Sarah’s work life is still constrained by her environment and her personal life has been obliterated.
Her email, phone numbers, Apple ID & Facebook: – every online activity has been taken over. Access to her company bank accounts was removed preventing her from continuing in her several roles at work. Work that she had done for twenty years. Personal bank accounts had even been closed. Her work and personal financial resources are in disarray. Overcoming the frustrations involved in IT and logins to all of her online activities had been compromised.
My challenge now is how to best get Sarah functioning in her business activities. How to best utilise my CAT team to make it happen?
Currently Sarah has the help of our CAT team accountant, cybersecurity specialist, debt collector and lawyer. All my team enthusiastically took up the challenge and have helped Sarah mentally saddle up and get back on the horse!
The main and overall goal for Sarah now is to re-establish herself as a strong, competent, and independent company director despite the COVID-19 pandemic and her intractable situation.
Our CAT team lawyer is assisting Sarah with the legal issue’s pro bono, and he is assisting her to overcome the challenges presented by her complex case. In addition to the lawyer, several my other team members have donated their time and expertise to assist Sarah.
Results and Future Plans
Sarah is recuperating and recovering from a traumatic period in her life and has used the past four months to recover and return to her former productive life as a businesswoman.
The CAT team is still working with Sarah on all things regarding networking, accounting, and legal requirements in implementing the next phase of the company’s growth whilst continuing to help her deal with a complex situation.
Additionally, through research and networking, I have introduced Sarah to another start-up venture involved in Industry 4.0 where Sarah is assured of re establishing herself in the business world.
“Success – thanks to your interventions. Without your input, I would not have had the capacity to apply for Startup Gippsland and been able to present my company for their consideration.
All those wonderful donations that you organised, allowed me to resume a living standard which allows me to do what I do. So my absolutely heartfelt thanks to you and your people who generously donated all those ‘nice things’ that enabled my mental health and strength to regain resilience.”
My network is the result of how I bring meaningful change not to only to business but the lives of people.
The Key Takeaways from this case study are:
- Value your network
- The power of connections makes BIG things happen
- The power of acting creates real change
- You can achieve results in a pandemic
- Positive and impactful change can provide great result by simply giving to those in need