Change Readiness Articles and Blog Posts

Change Culture by NOT Changing Culture

Admin Account — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 18:30:20 +0000

I was catching up on quite a bit of periodical reading recently. For me, this typically includes a wide range of sources ranging from HBR, CIO Magazine, Chronicles of Higher Education, Forbes, Fortune along with other interesting articles that pop up on LinkedIn.

I was surprised how there seems to be an abundance of articles about culture. Whether it was organizational or corporate culture, changing culture, assessing your culture – I could barely get through two or three articles before another culture-related article came up.

Now, I wish I could say that I am an expert in culture. I’m not. I am, however, an aficionado of culture. I love learning about an organization, usually about a prospective client, and getting the feeling that something really special is going on. Something intangible that seems to drive every person in the room forward. Maybe it is the buzz of a fast-growing startup or the energy around some recent transformation or breakthrough. But there is something in the air at these organizations, and it is more substantive than a “blinged out” office space or a cool logo.

The energy that is so hard to capture and define is similar to that you may experience when watching (or participating on) a sports team that surprises its fans with a come from behind win, especially, if it were one of your favorite underdog teams (Go Cubs!). Somehow, the teams have found a magical formula and pull off a victory when you least expect it.

Building on this, there are two scenarios that I am particularly intrigued by:

A team that goes from “worst to first” in just one short year, or
The team that is seemingly always at the top.

We all know that competition, both in and outside of the “business world” is hard. Market forces and economic cycles require more than just a change in plans and tactics. They require the DNA of an organization to change while balancing so many characteristics that will enable the organization to thrive during these volatile and competitive times.

So how do these “winning” organizations defy the odds?

As I was preparing to write this, I scoured quite a few sources of information and insight that I’ll share below to save you time. But, to get started, I will highlight the top factors that jumped out to me, pertaining to developing a winning culture. These may benefit you if you are looking to make a rapid turnaround or stay on top:

“But this time, without ever describing their efforts as ‘cultural change,’ top management began with a few interventions. These interventions led to small but significant behavioral changes that, in turn, revitalized Aetna’s culture while preserving and championing its strengths. And this point: Focus on a few critical shifts in behavior.“
Jon Katzenbach – Culture Change that Sticks

Often, we may hear about some initiative, originating out of a certain department and eyes roll and skepticism builds. However, the pragmatic focus on a few, small, but critical items that make a difference can begin to create momentum upon which larger change can be built on. Katzenbach’s perspective validates that we don’t need to take a “big bang” approach to culture change. In fact, perhaps “less” is “more”.

Know that valid self-analysis is crucial for improvement.
John Wooden – 8 Rules for Success

Few organizations really know, beyond, their financial performance, what their true operating performance or customer experience is like. Those that embed this self-analysis into their culture are rare and should be commended for investing in this area.

Critical “self-analysis” does not require bench-marking and can be very basic in nature. But starting with a solid baseline that defines, accurately and honestly, where the organization is – where it is thriving and where it is struggling – will serve as a natural and great platform to begin your improvement roadmap.

Turn the mundane into the sacred.
Coach Phil Jackson – 11 Principle’s for Mindful Leadership

At the risk of bringing culture “back to the basics”, think about some of the basic tasks we do all of the time:

Have a meeting
Serve customers
Have “everyday interactions” with employees
Transact business with vendors.

If these four items were primary inputs that one would use to define your organization’s culture, how would it be measured? Considering using these four areas within your span of responsibility to reinvent culture so that your organization becomes the organization you are proud of. Who knows – maybe it will rub off on other areas.

“Success is not all about talent. It’s about dependability, consistency, being coach-able and understanding what you need to do to improve.”
Bill Belichick, of the perennial favorite New England Patriots

When I get a chance to work with different organizations, I find it relatively easy to get a sense of how dependable, consistent and coachable an organization is, simply based on the senior leadership I interact with. If these three are absent, as you can predict, changing culture won’t happen. Change won’t happen. Great performance may happen, but likely only for a short term.

Think about your organization’s dependability, consistency and coach-ability and that will tell you a lot about the culture and readiness for change.

Hopefully, this article resonated with you. Feel free to pass this on to friends and colleagues. And for more like this, check out our other articles here.

Lastly, if your organization happens to have any potential project needs, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us here.

References:

The post Change Culture by NOT Changing Culture appeared first on Transforming Solutions Inc..

Change Culture by NOT Changing Culture

Admin Account — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 23:21:54 +0000

Building on this, there are two scenarios that I am particularly intrigued by:

A team that goes from “worst to first” in just one short year, or
The team that is seemingly always at the top.

So how do these “winning” organizations defy the odds?

“But this time, without ever describing their efforts as ‘cultural change,’ top management began with a few interventions. These interventions led to small but significant behavioral changes that, in turn, revitalized Aetna’s culture while preserving and championing its strengths. And this point: Focus on a few critical shifts in behavior.“
Jon Katzenbach – Culture Change that Sticks

Know that valid self-analysis is crucial for improvement.
John Wooden – 8 Rules for Success

Turn the mundane into the sacred.
Coach Phil Jackson – 11 Principle’s for Mindful Leadership

At the risk of bringing culture “back to the basics”, think about some of the basic tasks we do all of the time:

Have a meeting
Serve customers
Have “everyday interactions” with employees
Transact business with vendors.

“Success is not all about talent. It’s about dependability, consistency, being coach-able and understanding what you need to do to improve.”
Bill Belichick, of the perennial favorite New England Patriots

Think about your organization’s dependability, consistency and coach-ability and that will tell you a lot about the culture and readiness for change.

Hopefully, this article resonated with you. Feel free to pass this on to friends and colleagues. And for more like this, check out our other articles here.

Lastly, if your organization happens to have any potential project needs, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us here.

References:

The post Change Culture by NOT Changing Culture appeared first on Transforming Solutions Inc..

How to Create Lasting Cultural Change Within Your Organization

Dan Feely — Thu, 27 May 2021 15:39:02 +0000

For decades, Transforming Solutions Inc. has helped organizations define how their people perform critical work via our process improvement projects. These processes could be in sales and marketing, such as taking an order, or in operations, in terms of how an order gets picked, packed, and shipped. We also have helped in many higher education processes from the student, alumni, and faculty-oriented processes. Since there are hundreds of variations of the process, defining how people perform critical processes is absolutely mission-critical.

A few years ago, I noticed something interesting with our clients who hired TSI to train them on process improvement and organizational change management skills and subsequently lead them in their own process improvement journey. Don’t tell anyone…but their culture actually began to change as a result of what they learned and started to apply in their own organizations.

This post is not about the work that we did. Not at all. It’s about the initiative that these teams took, the space that their leadership gave them, and the progress they made.

I discovered that by starting with more tactical needs like improving operating efficiency without any intentional ‘culture change’ initiative, culture change was happening. Starting with learning new skills, these organizations developed an individual and organizational sense of “self-awareness” and they paid attention to some interesting fundamentals of the process, such as:

Who is currently involved in getting the work done versus who actually needs to be?
What steps are being performed?
Are most of these steps manual or automated?
What do we do that adds little to no value to our organization?
How do our handoffs work?
Where do we fumble?
Where do we thrive?

These are all critical questions around process improvement. However, the culture shift that occurs through the program of process improvement is most notable. Individuals and teams learned useful tools that equipped them to look at their world, and in turn their organization, differently.

When employees are empowered to make a change, this can build momentum within the organization and begin to change its DNA. You move from an organization that is operated, to a degree, in the dark, to one that has cast a spotlight on key opportunities for improvement.

The 4 E’s of the Teams That Get It

Through working with a variety of organizations, it is worth noting that the teams who embrace their new mindset and try to ‘move the needle’ on the culture scale, typically possess a combination of these four characteristics:

Energized – The process improvement pilot team members – some may be subject experts – who stand out simply radiate positivity. They learn with ‘fresh eyes’ and are willing to try, refine, and improve on new skills.
Empowered – This one is mostly the responsibility of senior leadership to allow the team to make changes absent of bureaucracy. In conjunction, the team needs to take that responsibility and do something useful with it. That does not mean that the process team has carte blanch authority, but they need some latitude to initiate change. How frustrating that must be for those in organizations who are given a chance to learn new skills but have no authority to make any changes.
Lack of Ego – Prima Donna ego’s kill culture change. The teams that I see thrive are typically diverse and absent of large egos that kill the culture. Process improvement team member selection is so critical, as they need both Attitude and Aptitude to be successful.
Engaged – This is no different than the person who ‘goes through the motions’ during their workouts and then gets frustrated they aren’t seeing any results; the engaged team, comprised of team members that challenge themselves and each other, is in a class by themselves.

The Quick Fix Mindset: Just Buy New Software

An alternative approach that we have also experienced is an interesting one. And, not surprisingly, it is an approach that we see far too often. The approach looks something like this – a group (a growing corporation, university or non-profit organization) has an aging technology platform and surrounding it, inefficient processes, and some degree of dysfunction in the organization structure. They aim to fix it by buying a new (and expensive) software product. Then, when it comes time to implement the new software product (an ERP, CRM, or other significant new enterprise application) the expectation is that this new shiny piece of software is a lever to transform their culture.

My software implementation friends – I feel your pain 🙂

This is an interesting approach. I’m sure it has worked somewhere along the line, but it is akin to purchasing that shiny new piece of workout equipment, thinking that it is going to turn you into a workout enthusiast.

This is exactly where tools and techniques pertaining to organizational change management collide with the needs and levers for culture change. Just like the workout equipment metaphor once you are clear on “your why” – doing some mental and emotional preparatory work – you will make gains.

How You Can Initiate Culture Change

Does your team or organization have any “bright spots” or isolated examples of wins that we can use to build some culture change momentum on?
What tensions and blind spots does your organization have that prevent it from moving to the culture that will allow it to thrive?
When you think about the key characteristics that are part of your organization’s DNA, consider which ones you want to build on and which you hope to move away from.
How can you illustrate the impact that those organizational ‘toxins’ have on your organization?

If you are a corporate or higher education practitioner (sorry consultant friends), consider attending our upcoming webinar on utilizing process improvement for cultural change within your organization.

Do you have other things that you and your organization consider when looking at characteristics and culture? We would love to hear them! Let us know what has worked or failed within your organization in the comments below.

For other related articles on culture, check out these posts on TSI Insights:

Why Culture Change is so Elusive (and What You Can Do)

Change Culture by Not Changing Culture

How Does a Culture of Change Turn Resistance into Growth?

The post How to Create Lasting Cultural Change Within Your Organization appeared first on Transforming Solutions Inc..

Why Culture Change is so Elusive (and What You Can Do)

Dan Feely — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 13:00:00 +0000

Nearly every executive that I get a chance to have candid discussions with admits that she or he wishes they could simply wave a magic wand and automatically change the culture (or some aspect of it) for at least some part of their organization. Culture is consistently the most elusive dimension of change that – if and when we establish the culture we need – will be a force multiplier. This multiplier accelerates the progress that brings strategy to life, breaks through blockers that thwart organizational change, and ultimately manifests the direction the organization is wanting to go.

In 2019, when writing about culture, I was surprised to learn that there is an abundance of articles about culture. Whether it was organizational or corporate culture, changing culture, assessing your culture, I could barely get through two or three articles before another culture-related article came up.

Today, there is no shortage of pandemic articles -some talking about moving back to working on-site and some talking about a hybrid workplace.

In conjunction with these, I want to take the chance to share a few thoughts about the reinvention of culture during a time when we are reinventing everything else.

How do we Define Culture?

To start off, I was curious how our friends at Merriam-Webster define culture.

Merriam-Webster defines culture as:

a: the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group also: the characteristic features of everyday existence (such as diversions or a way of life) shared by people in a place or time

b: the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization (e.g., a corporate culture focused on the bottom line)

How do we Experience Culture?

When I read these two definitions, I think about how entire cultures or subcultures may emphasize excellence in a certain sport, academic area, music or art. The subject they choose to emphasize is viewed as important throughout that society, becoming expected and celebrated.

I’m also reminded of our clients: some we have worked with that had an amazing culture and others I have worked for (or been exposed to) that have left an impression as they have developed or pursued a differentiated culture.

In the mid-’80s, I played football for Coach Bill Mallory. Coach Mallory came from a legacy of coaches that were referred to as the “Cradle of Coaches”, having a reputation of being successful, with a hard-nosed, no-nonsense style of coaching. Coach Mallory, without question, established a culture for our team. The culture that he, and his coaching staff set, consistently played on the message “you all may not be the most talented, but you will never get beat because you were unprepared enough or not tough enough”. In very old school fashion, we worked out hard, practiced even harder, had very physical scrimmages, watched countless hours of film, and then did it all over again. On the field you didn’t take a play off, played through pain, and did things you didn’t think were possible.

His message was reinforced during every practice, film session, and strength and conditioning workout. That year our team was fortunate to have won our conference championship. We were invited to one of eleven bowl games (unlike the countless number that exists today). As a ‘reward’ for this, we had “two-a-day” live contact practices to prepare for the bowl game, mostly indoor at the basketball stadium. I vividly remember a time when, before we flew to California for our bowl game, we had a ‘light workout’ that involved a three-mile run before taking the bus to the airport. Coach Mallory ran every inch of that with us.

This was our culture. We believed it because we lived it, and it worked. We were prepared, we worked harder than the competition, and we developed a tenacity and resilience that gave us a competitive advantage. That was our brand and it paid off.

After graduation, I accepted an offer and started my career at the largest of the ‘Big Four’ consulting firms. Their culture to clients emphasized privacy and confidentiality as was illustrated by the firm’s logo. But internally, on a day-to-day basis, it was a culture of “work hard and then work some more”. Unfortunately, even though I worked with awesome co-workers, managers, and partners, there was no balance. It did not take long to see really talented individuals leave and well-balanced, intelligent consultants develop a sharp edge that diminished the effectiveness of our team’s performance.

A Culture Defined by Groupon Speed

After starting TSI, we had the opportunity to consult with a company who, at that time, was touted as the fastest growing company in history: Groupon. We, seemingly overnight, needed to select a new ERP system that would be the global ERP, ultimately enabling the company to file an IPO in a very short time frame.

With the senior leaders, TSI collaborated to develop the mantra of ‘Groupon Speed’ and, as related to this project, developed a sense of results-orientation with the notion of good now is better than perfect later. TSI defined Groupon’s forward-looking requirements, a short list of software vendors, and selected a new ERP in a very short timeframe. We talked about this mantra of ‘Groupon Speed’ in nearly every meeting when we felt things were getting bogged down.

Shortly after the previous developments, our talented project team helped implement NetSuite ERP in five countries in six weeks and twenty-six countries in three months. ‘Groupon speed’ was our culture. We talked about it, but more importantly, we lived it and used it as a tool to make decisions, quickly and accurately.

Four Things to Consider

After reflecting on my experiences within multiple groups, I have developed four questions to consider when thinking about culture and culture change within your organization.

At the risk of stating the obvious, culture change cannot simply be lip service. It must come from an authoritative source, and it must be put in practice consistently. Do you have this consistent implementation of culture change within your organization?
The organization must know what ‘price’ it is willing to pay to achieve that culture. In all the examples I shared, there were times when there was a clash of cultures. The new and the old way, or the desired culture and the preference of one or more individuals were not aligned. As your organization evolves its culture, how will you address the conflict that invariably will arise?
Before things get tough (and when going through culture change they ALWAYS do), it is important to be laser focused on the end results that you are striving for. Monitor to the culture and be self-aware in the event you are getting unintended consequences (note one or two of the examples I shared). When things get tough, you will need to decide whether you need to tweak your approach, or double down and stick to the desired, new culture standards you have set. You will need to fight today’s ‘cancel culture’. Realize that to be successful, you must allow the new culture to have time to grow roots and overtake distracting subcultures that seek to drag it down. Does your organization have the ‘stick-to-it-ness’ to withstand resistance?
As the organization grows, you will need to be intentional and hire to the new culture. In conjunction with this, you need to find a new home for individuals who are unwilling to embrace the new culture. As one executive used to say “you are either on are bus, or under it”. Harsh, but the organization lived it. While the passion shouldn’t be aggressive, how will you keep the right people on the new culture bus and allow the wrong people to get off?

Do you have other things that you and your organization consider? We would love to hear them! Let us know what has worked or failed within your organization in the comments below.

For other related articles on culture, check out these posts on TSI Insights:

Change Culture by Not Changing Culture

How Does a Culture of Change Turn Resistance into Growth?

The post Why Culture Change is so Elusive (and What You Can Do) appeared first on Transforming Solutions Inc..

TSI Insights – All About Customer Experience and Change Readiness

Dan Feely — Fri, 20 Jan 2017 15:38:03 +0000

Trending Customer Experience (CX) Articles

Recently, there have been some amazing articles highlighting the value of taking a fresh look at what YOUR customers experience when working with your company and what bottom line value that a great CX can mean for an organization.

See the short list below for a few of our recent favorites:

TSI’s Founder and Managing Partner, Dan Feely, recently published a CX focused article titled: Why a Positively Memorable Customer Experience (CX) Matters
Late last month, Forbes published an insightful article involving 2017 trends in customer experience and service, titled: Millennial Customers Will Dominate In 2017. Is Your Customer Service Experience Ready For Them?
Another great article focused on customer experience, with excellent info from Forbes contributor Shep Hyken, titled: Ten Customer Service And Customer Experience Trends For 2017

New, Improved (and discounted) Customer Experience (CX) Training

As we have been announcing our CX training workshop (that we are completely excited about), rather than splitting this up across 2 days, we have consolidated this to one full day and have discounted the price for this.

If you (or someone at your organization) is wondering “what is all the buzz about CX?,” or you feel like you need to learn how to take a fresh look at your organization and how you can differentiate your company by defining an amazing customer experience, THIS IS FOR YOU.

The workshop will be held at Tech Nexus, which is located at 20 N. Upper Wacker Dr. in Chicago, IL in Suite 1200, in Conference Rooms C & D.

Click Here to visit our Eventbrite page, and sign up to guarantee your attendance at this great event.

Specific event details can be found in TSI’s latest blog, as well as on our Customer Experience Training page. If you have any further questions, you can reach Dan directly at dfeely@transforming.com or (847) 705-0960 x202.

2017 Change Readiness – Free Survey

With new programs and change initiatives getting launched, perhaps it is time to see how ready your team or organization is to change.

Although change is part of the process to any one of TSI’s projects, effective change management requires understanding your organization’s needs and resources to meet your business objectives.

TSI’s Free Change Readiness Assessment is one of our most popular links. You can use it (and share the results amongst your team) to see how ready you really are to make organizational changes stick.

Click here to take our Change Readiness Assessment. You can also schedule an appointment to discuss your results, or business needs with one of TSI’s expert consultants, by e-mailing us at tsi@transforming.com.

The post TSI Insights – All About Customer Experience and Change Readiness appeared first on Transforming Solutions Inc..