Lecturer, Senior Certified Associate of the Adizes Institute, Ukraine office. Managing partner of the expert training company “Team Expert”. Business trainer and coach.
As an experienced teacher, I believe that the best way to encourage students to think is to ask a question to the audience. Especially when students are serious business people. Moreover when it comes to terms that are so well-known that it seems awkward to assume that people put different meanings into these words.
One of those words is “Transformation”.
…There is a lecture for a business audience. I invite managers gathered in the hall to explain what the transformation of the company is and what is the difference between transformation and change. After a short pause, several volunteers are ready to give their answer. They remember the optimization of business processes, digitalization, the development of corporate culture, and changes in the business model and structure. With each new answer, the level of complexity of the meanings included in the term “transformation” increases, and all answers are correct in their own way, there is nothing to spare. A few minutes later, a summary emerges as follows: the transformation of an organization implies its transition from one state to another, to a qualitatively new level of maturity and ability to interact with a changing environment, respond to new opportunities. And in the process of this transition there are many changes that need to be managed. And these changes concern the self-identification of the company, and culture, and structure, and strategy, and business processes, and, of course, complex digital solutions.
To determine the “as is” state, it is useful to conduct an organizational diagnostic involving key people, managers and, possibly, specialists. To determine the target state “what we want”, it is worth considering the stage of the company’s life cycle, the level of ambition, existing and emerging trends, both at the macro level and at the industry scale. And transformation is a path that determines what exactly and in what sequence managers and employees must do in order to make the transition to a new quality (as is – want – should).
Fortunately, hypotheses about the optimal sequence for implementing the necessary organizational changes have already been tested by the experience of hundreds of organizations of various sizes in many countries. The Adizes Institute uses a regulated approach for this and determines the optimal sequence in the Organizational Transformation Program. But because these are complex transformations, and they involve many stakeholders, I make sure to speak to the leaders in the audience about the goals of such a program, along with the obvious. Conversations on this topic, however, continue during informal communication during the break. Almost everyone has their own difficult sometimes painful experience when changes came hard and not as planned.
What are the goals of the organizational transformation program?
Solve problems identified during organizational diagnostics. What is verbalized and reached our awareness – becomes manageable. To quote Dr. Adizes: “The purpose of managing, educating, governing – any form of organizational leadership – is to solve today’s problems and prepare for tomorrow’s.”
Make the transition to the next healthy stage of the life cycle while maintaining the right balance of flexibility and control. Relying on the theory of the corporate lifecycles (according to Adizes) makes it easier for management to reach agreement on the desired perspective.
To form a healthy organizational culture built on the principles of mutual respect and trust. This approach allows you to better use the intellectual potential of the company and focus energy in the chosen direction.
Provide professional and personal growth for managers. “Joint activities unite,” the economic-minded character of a well-known children’s fairy tale claimed. And I will add that the joint activities of leaders contribute to their mutual learning and, as a result, managerial maturity.
And with these goals in mind, it becomes easier to perceive the logic of the organizational transformation process, because it is designed to provide a number of reforms, pulling through the predictable inertia of the internal environment, correcting existing organizational habits.
I will outline this sequence briefly, leaving space for explanations and transcripts in future publications.
- Conduct organizational diagnostics.
- Involve employees in solving operational problems, thereby exercising organizational delegation.
- Create a change management system.
- Define and refine the top-level strategy, our organizational “want”.
- Illustrate strategic intentions by the organizational structure.
- Track money by checking and refining the created model.
- In the case of a large organization – cascade efforts.
- Maximize productivity in the face of a changed structure.
- Specify the further way, distributing strategic resources.
- Institutionalize the implemented approaches to working with changes.
- Reinforce the new reality by clarifying and improving approaches to rewards.
The path of organizational transformation is quite hard, and the progress is rarely linear, but understanding the general logic of events helps to navigate the path as efficiently as possible, even if the motive was just one thing of – the need to improve corporate culture, digitalize or optimize processes etc.
And what is important – by transforming the organization, the leader transforms himself. This is just a part of the prize fund in this difficult game. And it is definitely worth fighting for such quality transition.
Author of the article: Victoria Kucherchuk
Lecturer, Senior Certified Associate of the Adizes Institute, Ukraine office. Managing partner of the expert training company “Team Expert”. Business trainer and coach.
