Introduction
Success in large-scale transformations happens when you have the right balance between strong technical skills and essential human factors such as leadership vision, adaptability, collaboration, and communication. Despite the widespread belief among technologists that technical expertise is the cornerstone of successful transformations, recent research highlights a different story.
John Kotter's seminal research revealed that approximately 70% of organisational transformations fail. Despite nearly three decades later, this failure rate remains alarmingly high. A recent study by the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School and EY, Humans at the Centre, delved into the reasons behind these failures, identifying common patterns and challenges.
The study, which interviewed over 1600 global technology leaders, found that it is often the human factors—strong leadership vision, adaptive leadership, and collaboration and open communication—that distinguish successful transformations from unsuccessful ones.
However, technology leaders frequently underestimate these elements. Many pay mere lip service to the importance of building environments where teams can collaborate effectively and perform at high levels. This oversight can undermine transformation efforts because these human factors are crucial in creating cohesive, high-performing teams that can navigate the complexities of organisational transformation.
Humans at the Centre of Transformations
A key finding was the critical importance of putting humans at the centre of transformation efforts. Six conditions of human behaviour were identified to differentiate successful versus non-successful transformation efforts were:
1. Purposeful vision: Communicating the ‘why’ that inspires a call to action based on the belief that the change is needed. Importantly, leaders inspire change even when the future is uncertain. Leaders are responsible for leading their people towards this envisioned future, instilling confidence and commitment in the face of ambiguity.
2. Adaptive Leadership: Leaders lean in with curiosity, checking in with their own assumptions and emphasising the collective effort required to solve complex problems in an uncertain or ambiguous environment. Note: this factor aligns with research by 6 Team Conditions that shows that teams are better than individuals at resolving adaptive problems.
3. Psychological Safety: Creating conditions where people can speak up, contrary views are not only welcomed but asked for and constructive debate and feedback thrive.
4. Making it real with technology: Investing in quick wins that demonstrate benefit and people that can develop shifts in mindsets and skills.
5. Disciplined Freedom: Creating autonomy for the organisation to experiment and execute.
6. Collaboration: Co-creating new ways of working that foster connection and creativity. The study suggests that there are turning points in large scale projects where leaders can intervene by leveraging an uplift on these six factors.
What is a Turning Point and Can We Predict It?
A turning point in a transformation is a critical moment when the project risks veering off course, requiring leaders to decide whether and how to intervene. This often occurs when leaders detect a risk, issue, or problem that threatens to derail progress. According to EY’s report, four out of five leaders agreed that the way they navigate a turning point—and the timing of their intervention—can significantly determine whether the overall transformation continues to stagnate or accelerates and improves outcomes.
The report underscores that transformation progress is rarely linear. Challenges can cause a project to stagnate, decline, or alternatively, regain momentum and advance. Similarly, the progress of teams involved in the transformation process is non-linear. Instead of moving sequentially through the stages of forming, storming, norming, and performing, teams often cycle through these stages unpredictably. They may shift between storming and performing from the start, dip into norming and forming, and return to storming, particularly as deadlines loom.
By placing humans at the centre of transformations, we can better grasp this fluctuating progress alongside the non-linear development of the teams involved. The research suggests that while transformations usually begin with enthusiasm, they inevitably hit challenging phases. This pattern aligns with Connie Gersick’s theory of punctuated equilibrium which suggests that teams experience cycles of inertia and action, with midpoints being especially critical for reassessing and improving processes.
For teams, a midpoint is the time between the start of a shared task and its key milestone or deadline. At the midpoint teams are most open to structural coaching and course corrections. This juncture is crucial, as it can significantly influence the overall success of the project.
Structural coaching is focused on establishing the conditions for the team to thrive and flourish, such as establishing a shared compelling purpose, clarifying inter-dependencies and shared accountabilities and leveraging diverse skills and talents. This differs from motivational coaching which is more appropriate at the beginning of a shared
task together.
Forecasting the undulating progress of the transformation program, whilst addressing risks at the midpoints for teams executing them, can help secure program success. Recognising these punctuated moments for teams as potential turning points allows leaders to anticipate and plan interventions, guiding the team through necessary changes effectively.
Navigating Turning Points at the Mid Points
Transformations that navigate turning points effectively are 1.9 times more likely to exceed their KPIs.
Detecting turning points at the mid-points for teams involves monitoring not just lag indicators like KPIs, but also leading indicators or key behavioural indicators (KBIs). These indicators provide early warning signs by tracking human dynamics, offering a more comprehensive view of a project's trajectory. In addition to these, it's crucial to consider external factors such as macro-economic conditions, geopolitical events, climate change, and health crises, all of which can impact transformation efforts.
Operating model issues, such as incompatible technology, non-standardised processes, and insufficient capabilities, often also impede progress. By paying attention to lead indicators, leaders can better anticipate and respond to potential turning points, ensuring a more adaptive and responsive transformation process.
Leadership Strategies for Effective Transformations
Research by Hackman and Wageman emphasises that team success is attributable to six conditions. These are root causes of the behavioural symptoms that can arise from poor team effectiveness, such as lack of alignment, conflict and poor goal achievement. Leaders can focus on creating the right conditions for teams to thrive to ensure effective and sustainable transformations.
Key strategies for building effective teams include establishing clear boundaries, defining compelling purposes, selecting the right team members, creating sound structures, providing supportive contexts, and offering continuous team coaching. These conditions can be designed in at the beginning of the transformation project and tracked during mid-points. They can also be used to frame team resets at any time during the transformation’s progress.
Key strategies for team effectiveness include:
Inter-dependencies and Compelling Purposes: Effective teams shares accountabilities and understanding of key inter-dependencies. They are well-defined and stable, working on interdependent tasks that are clear, significant, and meaningful. This clarity helps team members understand their roles and responsibilities, fostering a sense of shared accountability for achieving the team's goals.
Diverse Skills and Optimal Size: Teams benefit from a diverse mix of skills and perspectives, which enhances problem-solving and innovation. An optimal team size, typically between six to eight members, ensures efficient communication and collaboration.
Establishing Behavioural Norms: Norms that align with the team's purpose further strengthens their ability to work together effectively. Optimising team norms and work practices promote collaboration and remove barriers to high performance.
Supportive Context: Providing the right information, materials, and incentives is crucial for team success. Leaders play a key role in navigating organisational dynamics, ensuring the team has access to necessary resources and recognition.
Team Coaching: Ongoing team coaching helps teams refine their processes and develop both individual and collective capabilities, contributing to sustained high performance.
Case Studies and Real-World Examples
Successful transformation projects across various industries underscore the importance of human centered approaches and effective leadership. By studying both successful and failed transformations, valuable insights into best practices and common pitfalls can be gained.
Recently, I assisted a transformation team for a large Local Government Council tasked with executing a significant digital transformation program within a limited timeframe. The team was newly formed and faced the challenge of achieving high performance from the outset. The Manager asked me to help them build a strong, cohesive team that could "hit the ground running."
To address this, I used the 6 Team Conditions framework to design a two-day team launch workshop. This workshop quickly established the team’s purpose, norms, ways of working, and operating rhythm. By the end of the workshop, the team was notably more unified and confident. The team felt they had "come together"; as a cohesive unit in just two days. They believed they had the resources, structures, and processes in place to sustain high performance.
Following the workshop, the team implemented the newly agreed-upon ways of working and conducted six weekly facilitated check-ins. These check-ins were tailored to the team's needs, ensuring that their progress remained aligned with the goals of the transformation program.
Conclusion
While technical factors such as technology and processes are important, it is the human factors that truly differentiate successful transformations from unsuccessful ones. Prioritising human factors, fostering strong teams, and practising adaptive and collaborative leadership are key to navigating the complexities of digital transformation and achieving program success.
FAQs
1. What is a turning point in transformation projects?
- A turning point is a critical moment when leaders detect risks that could derail the progress of a transformation project, requiring timely intervention to steer the project back on track.
2. Why do many transformation projects fail?
- Many transformation projects fail due to a lack of human-centred design, inadequate leadership, and failure to address both technical and human systems dynamics effectively.
3. How can leaders improve their sensing and sense-making abilities?
- Leaders can improve these abilities by shifting their focus from lag indicators to leading indicators and prioritising early detection of human factor issues.
4. What are some key strategies for building strong teams?
- Key strategies include forming real teams with clear boundaries, defining compelling purposes, ensuring diversity of skills, establishing sound ways of working, providing supportive contexts, and offering continuous coaching.
5. What role do human factors play in successful transformations?
- Human factors are crucial in successful transformations as they involve designing processes that prioritise people, fostering strong and collaborative teams, and practising adaptive leadership to navigate challenges effectively.