4 December 2024
Ditte Enevoldsen, Client Director
It’s easy to write about transformations that go wrong when 70% of transformations fail.[1] It is therefore more interesting to unfold what it takes to succeed with strategic transformation.
According to McKinsey,[2] the answer is simple;
However, it is rarely the simple answers that solve the complex problems. If it were that simple, there probably wouldn’t be such a large number of failed transformations.
To achieve real, long-lasting change, leaders and change leaders need to dig deeper than fortune cookie tips.
The transformation must be lifted by the individual in the organization, because organizations consist of individuals.
Of course, an attractive, meaningful vision must be drawn, and a match must be established between competencies, deliverables and requirements. This has been estimated years ago by experts in strategy, Gary Hamel, and change experts John Kotter.
But real strategic transformation is a social process. It is an iterative process with many smaller initiatives that together provide deep and long-term change.
Organizations are made up of people. Thus, organizational transformations are real social changes. Therefore, for transformations to succeed, the individual must be at the centre until a critical mass has been achieved.
Metrics for successful transformation must be linked to the individual participation:
Key Performance Indicators in the Process of Transformation:
100% of top management must be on board before the transformation can be initiated.
70% of the rest of the management must be on board for the transformation to continue.
25% of the organization’s population must be on board to achieve critical mass.[3]
Always do your groundwork so that the direction is clear and the barriers the organization must overcome are known; Vision and impact/fit/gap analysis. But then get to the real work:
