The Real Challenge Behind Successful Business Transformation

After speaking with CFOs, CIOs and Transformation Directors, I’ve become increasingly convinced of one thing: organisations often underestimate the scale of change required to turn a major transformation programme into a successful business outcome.

Whether the programme involves new technology, operating model changes, process improvement or a combination of all three, the biggest risks are often found well before implementation begins.

In my experience, some of the most common are:

• Lack of leadership alignment
  If the leadership team isn’t aligned on what the transformation is trying to achieve, decisions become slower, priorities compete and momentum quickly starts to disappear.
• Treating transformation as a technology project
  Technology may be the enabler, but successful transformation is ultimately about changing how a business operates. Keeping ownership within IT alone can make it much harder to achieve lasting business change.
• Poor data readiness
  New technology can’t compensate for poor-quality data. If organisations haven’t addressed data ownership, governance and quality early enough, problems tend to follow them into the new environment.
• Carrying legacy processes into a new platform
  There’s a temptation to recreate what already exists rather than challenge whether those processes still make sense. Transformation creates an opportunity to rethink how work gets done, not simply replicate the past with new technology.
• Underestimating the people and change agenda
  New systems and processes only deliver value when people understand them, adopt them and have the confidence to work differently.

One transformation sponsor recently summed it up perfectly:

“The technology wasn’t the challenge. Aligning people, processes and decision-making was.”

It’s a point that comes up time and again.

The organisations that tend to get the most from major transformation programmes are those that start preparing for change before the programme itself begins. That means being honest about organisational readiness, establishing clear governance, aligning leadership and understanding where the business may struggle with the transition.

At Broster Buchanan, we’re increasingly being engaged at this earlier stage, helping organisations assess their readiness, strengthen transformation governance and build the leadership capability required to deliver meaningful change.

It’s also why we’re excited to be partnering with Blaze on D365 programmes. Blaze’s focus on AI-enabled delivery intelligence, programme visibility and risk management complements our expertise in transformation leadership, capability and organisational change. Together, the focus is on helping organisations identify and address delivery risks earlier, while keeping the wider business transformation firmly in view.

The strongest transformation programmes don’t start with technology. They start with a clear understanding of the business outcome, the organisation’s readiness to change and the leadership required to make it happen.

Because ultimately, a new platform doesn’t transform a business on its own. People, processes and leadership do.

If you could go back to the start of your last major transformation programme and change one thing, what would it be?

I’d be interested to hear the lessons learned from those who’ve been through the journey.

Contact us today

Kevin Moran
Chief Revenue Officer

Kevin works with private equity backed and high-growth businesses across the UK, advising on leadership, transformation, and the commercial impact of senior hiring decisions.