The majority of change initiatives fail! How do you ensure yours is not one of them?

The majority of transformations fail! At least according to Gartner , Mckinsey , and Forbes .

I find it interesting that they can put so exact percentages on something so diffused as project failure, but it does resonate with my own experience. While I have been fortunate enough to lead or be a part of multiple initiatives that have been considered successful, the number of initiatives I consider to be failures is higher. This also seems to be the general experience of people I have talked to that also work with change. So irrelevant of the exact rate of failure, I do believe that it is at least higher than 50%. Something I find is really sad, given the money, time and effort wasted on it.

But why? Its not like change (transformation is just a fancy word for change) is a new phenomena. We have been dealing with change for as long as there have been people. The primary quote about change comes from a Greek philosopher from over 2500 years ago (yes, that is 500 years before Christ), "The only constant is change". So why are we still so bad at it?

In my previous post complaining about our lack of ability to manage change , I blamed it primarily on our inability to effectively communicate, proposing EDGY as a means to deal with it. In this post I want to go a little deeper, proposing four distinct causes for us being so bad at change and a practical tool and method to address them.

I, and probably you also, could write up multiple reasons for why initiatives I have been involved in failed. But if I dig a little deeper I find most of them have at least one of these four as an underlying cause.

• We think we take a holistic perspective when we plan and prioritize. Even though we rarely really step outside of our own silos.

• We think we are clear when we communicate. Even though we primarily use words, diagrams, and models specific to our own specialisation or discipline.

• We think that we work in a structured and consistent manner when we collaborate. Even though we basically reinvent our Way of Working for every initiative we initiate.

• We think that we establish a shared understanding of our problems, solutions, and intended goals. Even though we rarely actually test it.

Now you may say that these are not a problem in initiatives you work in and that you have effective tools and methods to ensure they are not a problem, and possibly you do. But I'm sorry if I sceptical. Don't misunderstand me, there are tools and methods out there to address them. but they are generally not very well aligned and rather complicated to work with effectively, especially in groups. My experience is that when we succeed, we don't do it by effectively addressing these challenges, but rather by working around them, relying on exceptionally smart and driven people to drive the initiative towards its goals. That is at least my experience, and it is a true privilege to have had the chance to work with these people. So what am I proposing as an alternative?

While EDGY is a great tool to address them, it by itself can be a little difficult to apply. After all it is primarily a language model and not a structure tool or a methodology. We need something a little more structured and easy to apply. Something that you can apply even though the people you are working with don't know EDGY. Something that you can apply on any initiative in a structured and consistent way. Which is why we developed the Enterprise Scan .

Now, before I overhype it, the Enterprise Scan is not a silver bullet that will solve the four challenges. But, it is a tool that can substantially improve your ability to address them. The Enterprise Scan enables you, and all you are working with, to

• Establish a holistic perspective to the initiative you are working with
• Realise when we are unclear in our communication, further enabling us to seek ways to address it
• Work consistently between initiatives as well as through the lifetime of each initiative, using the same tool and the same terms, simplifying collaboration
• Test our shared understanding in a structured and consistent way, ensuring that all perspectives come up and shared with the whole group for more comprehensive and holistic understanding.

I truly think EDGY is the future, and I truly think with the Enterprise Scan you have a tool unlike anything you have had before. That together they can truly revolutionise how you work with change and transformation. Maybe it will not guarantee success. But I'm absolutely certain that if you use the Scan in your initiative you will be able to drastically increase the likelihood of it.

Like everything else we at the Intersection Group publish, the Enterprise Scan is free to download and use. You find all the guides, examples, and resources to get started at https://www.enterprise.design/wiki/Enterprise_Scan . And if you need assistance with getting started then contact me at [email protected] .