This article originally appeared in Civil Service World on April 6, 2021.

When nine out of ten of organisational transformations fail to deliver, to be among the small number that succeed three things must be done right: framing the future, building the movement, and sustaining the momentum.

Through our work with HMG, including independent reviews of major departmental transformation programmes, and drawing on experiences with other governments and the private sector, we’ve identified what causes transformation to fail and what can make it work in the government.

Failure comes from a lack of alignment and convergence. This leaves the organisation without the conviction to see the transformation through. Rigorous programme management in itself cannot deliver transformational change, but our three steps will equip any transformation to manage the trade-offs or difficult decisions that will inevitably arise.

1. Frame the future

Change starts at the top, and leaders usually show strong commitment to change. However, this commitment is often not aligned between individual leaders. When any one is unwilling to let go of their personal vision to converge on a shared one, the transformation as a whole is in jeopardy. Instead, a common vision of the future must be agreed, and supported by the leadership’s conviction to see it through.

2. Build the movement

This is the ability to convert conviction into real change. It requires ongoing, effective leadership throughout.

Leaders need to take the whole organisation on the journey, building commitment, convergence, and conviction at every level. To achieve this, they must articulate the transformation in a way which explains it to team members in the context of their personal roles. This allows everyone to take ownership of delivering and driving the change while staying true to the core objectives. It also accelerates the speed at which change can happen.
 

The operating model – including governance, decision making, processes, and incentives – must be adjusted to support the rapid delivery of transformation goals. This can be particularly challenging in governmental departments, where the bureaucracy and complexity can feel insurmountable, but our clients have often been surprised by how much is in their control to change.

3. Sustain momentum

Leaders must take time to understand how the change is being delivered. This will allow them to identify and address any blockers to success, such as staff engagement.

To keep momentum, the organisation needs some changes to be visible early on in the process. A common pitfall is spending 18 months or so in a design phase, without delivering anything different on the ground. Teams are doomed to fail if they focus on planning, organisation, and processes instead of delivery. Instead, each step of the change programme should be set up to start small, deliver something – good or bad – quickly, then stop what doesn’t work and scale up what does.

Without leadership, new ways of working, and early experiences of success, the organization’s commitment, convergence, and conviction for change will be diluted, putting delivery at risk.
 

Start delivering your own change programme

There is a plethora of tools to support each of these stages: From immersive events to co-creation workshops to deploying agile methodologies. Often, the same tools are used in a successful programme as a failing one. The difference is the context, the purpose, and the order in which they are deployed. That’s why our three steps – framing the future, building the movement, and sustaining the momentum – should be at the core of your transformation.