Managing Change is all about Attitude

Here’s an interesting question…what is the number one reason why large ERP transformation projects fail?

Is it budget? Technology? Resources? Would it surprise you to learn that none of these materially affect the outcome? It surprised me, until I learned what the real culprit was and then thought…of course.?I’ve experienced it myself, we all have. It’s our behavior and attitude towards change. We’ve known this for decades, yet still get the same results. Employee resistance and management behaviors that don’t support the intended change accounts for a 70% failure rate. Think about that for a moment. More than two thirds of all large enterprise transformations fail, at some level, due to simple fear of change.

As noted in my last blog, IBM has recently kicked off one of the largest transformations in its storied history; a transformation that holds the promise of simplifying our processes, removing redundancies, creating efficiencies and driving innovation. There’s a lot at stake and getting it right is imperative. I wanted to take this opportunity to share with everyone, IBMers, partners, clients, and the public at large, my thoughts on how we intend to not just succeed but make this a truly transformational experience.

So, how do we get it right?

Put simply, by understanding that change happens at the level of the individual, not the organization. Change experienced by the organization is just a composite of the change adopted by the collective individuals within it.?Think of it. When new tech is installed, it’s the individual employee who must accept the change and use it, thereby delivering the intended value. It cannot be forced on them. This is why it’s so important to listen and listen with intent.

The entire field of change management is based on a simple proposition. Every level of an organization needs to understand what the goal is, create a plan based on feedback and then implement the changes through honest communication. The principle of listening to each other, understanding the end state, and communicating honestly holds true for any transformation, regardless of company size or industry.

We need to ask hard, but important questions. What do we need to change? Why is the change required? What will be the end state? What are the impacts of this change? And we need to listen, with an open mind, to the answers.?We need to provide support and training and measure the process to make sure we’re achieving the intended results.

Good leaders understand that if you want your message to have impact…be honest, be clear, be compelling. But they also understand that it all starts with listening. We at IBM understand that we’re in this together, that this undertaking is a pivotal moment in our history. It will materially affect not just our internal ecosystem, but everyone we touch including clients and partners.?We must get this right; we will get this right. And we will do it together.

1 John Kotter, “Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail”, Harvard Business Review, March-April 1995

2 McKinsey Partners Scott Keller and Bill Schaninger, “Beyond Performance 2.0: A Proven Approach to Leading Large-Scale Change”, John Wiley & Sons, July 2019