Transformation is a complex process that requires a great deal of effort and commitment from all levels of an organization. To ensure the success of a transformation, it is essential to have a strong governance structure in place, as well as adequate funding and the participation of people at all levels. Measuring the success of a transformation is done by assessing the objectives, schedule, and budget at launch. However, this does not guarantee long-term sustainability.
Our experience has shown that long-term success can only be achieved if there is a firm commitment from all levels of the organization. Poor governance structures are often the cause of failure in 3 out of 5 transformation projects, leading to project execution issues, extended deadlines, ambiguity in results, slow decision-making, and inadequate management oversight. The project manager leading the transformation must be adequately trained within the organization to ensure compliance with the governance structure. Companies that took 24 different actions were successful 78% of the time, compared to the success rate of 31% for all transformations. Funding initiatives are also a major challenge in strategic transformations.
Companies undergoing a transformation are often at a crossroads or do not believe they are reaching their full potential. Less than a third of respondents who had participated in a transformation in the past five years considered it a success in improving and maintaining those improvements.Performance transformations usually lead to money reaching the bottom line quickly, creating a self-financing model. Long-term success can lead to a fixed mindset, status quo biases, and complacency, making it difficult to define the need for change for stakeholders and investors. People must understand what these goals mean for their daily work and what they are expected to do differently; if they don't comprehend how they relate to transformation, their behaviors and the way they work will not change.
Crisis-driven and forecast-driven transformations are slightly more difficult to achieve than crisis-driven transformations. It is important to incorporate transformative disciplines into regular processes for higher success rates. Leaders must also pay close attention to redefining incentives that are in line with their vision of transformation.
