This article is part of our AIM Methodology series.
Enterprise-wide change is not new — but the stacking of big changes one on top of another is driving change fatigue and organizational stress across industries.
This eBook outlines five practical steps to take control of enterprise-wide change so your organization can improve results from the significant investment it’s making in big change initiatives.
In this article
- What makes enterprise-wide change a “Big Change”
- The 10 predictable barriers you can prepare for
- The five steps to implement enterprise-wide change at speed
- Step 1: Implement change (not just install it)
- Step 2: Define success — and translate it for every Target group
- Step 3: Overcome a silo culture
- Step 4: Ensure Sponsors demonstrate commitment
- Step 5: Reinforce behaviors for sustained adoption
- A disciplined approach to big change — AIM
- Talk to us
- Download the eBook
What makes enterprise-wide change a “Big Change”
The eBook describes three types of change: Minor, 1st Order, and 2nd Order (transformational). Enterprise-wide change is transformational by nature — it breaks existing Frames of Reference and asks people to do different things, in different ways.
Since enterprise-wide change is 2nd Order change, it comes with maximum disruption and resistance. It also cannot be done incrementally, cannot be made completely safe, cannot be “undone,” and comes with predictable barriers.
If you can predict the resistance, you can prepare for it
One of the most useful ideas in the eBook is that while barriers are difficult, they are often predictable. The 10 most common barriers to enterprise-wide change include:
- Lack of clear scope/definition
- Too many other changes competing for resources
- Poor implementation history
- No aligned, sustained leadership support
- Major employee resistance
- Weak motivation and non-aligned reinforcement
- Risk-averse cultures
- Poor communication
- Unclear and/or undisciplined governance structure
- Multiple approaches to implementation that reinforce a silo mentality
The five steps to implement enterprise-wide change at speed
Once you understand the predictable barriers, the eBook recommends five steps to prepare for the change and manage resistance — so enterprise-wide change can be implemented at speed:
- Understand what it means to truly implement change
- Define what successful change looks like
- Take recommended steps to overcome a silo culture
- Gain demonstrated commitment to specific actions from multiple Sponsors
- Put reinforcements in place for sustained behavior change
Step 1: Implement change (not just install it)
Organizations can be very good at installing change (systems are up, new processes are communicated, new leaders are in place), but still fall short of true implementation and ROI. Installation is important — but it is not enough.
To achieve full benefit realization, implementation must meet both business and human objectives.
What successful implementation looks like
The eBook defines five measures of implementation success:
- On time
- On budget
- Meets the technical objectives
- Meets the business objectives
- Meets the human objectives
To measure the human elements, define specific behaviors now vs. after the change — by Target group — then measure behaviors near-term and reinforce them immediately.
Step 2: Define success — and translate it for every Target group
Even a detailed charter isn’t enough if Sponsors and Targets can’t describe what success looks like. The eBook recommends creating a simple, compelling elevator speech (the Business Case for Action) that answers:
- What is changing?
- Why is it changing?
- What happens if we are not successful?
Leaders must repeat and use this definition consistently. Then adapt it for every work group impacted — translating into their Frame of Reference and identifying the future-state behaviors required for each Target group.
Step 3: Overcome a silo culture
Enterprise-wide change often spans multiple business organizations operating as independent power structures. Sponsors frequently view their silo as “special and unique,” and push for separate solutions — which undermines unified change and reduces enterprise-wide benefits.
Core point: the way you implement must model your desired outcomes. Multiple approaches to implementing a “unified” solution reinforces silo culture — a singular approach is needed.
Three requirements for overcoming a silo culture include:
- Decisions cannot be made by executives who put silo needs above program success — leaders must be reinforced together for whole-program success.
- Leaders must agree on strategic priorities and strategic intent (desired outcomes).
- Leaders must acknowledge and reinforce inter-dependencies between silos.
Step 4: Ensure Sponsors demonstrate commitment
Many changes fail when Change Agents focus on making Targets enthusiastic instead of securing active Sponsorship. Sponsors control the pace of implementation — and speed is a competitive advantage.
Sponsorship is defined by both position and demonstrated actions. Every manager with impacted direct reports must Express, Model, and Reinforce commitment to the change.
The eBook also emphasizes that a level-by-level cascade of demonstrated Sponsorship is the single most important factor in successful enterprise-wide change.
How to secure Sponsors
- Identify what’s in it for them (personally and for their organization).
- Anticipate resistance, including resistance from Sponsors.
- Cascade Sponsorship through the organization — a network, not a single Sponsor.
Step 5: Reinforce behaviors for sustained adoption
Reinforcement drives the behaviors needed for implementation success. Once you define behaviors by Target group, outline reinforcements for each group tied to the enterprise-wide change.
When it’s easier for people to shift to the new ways of working, sustained adoption is more likely.
Implement change at speed: a disciplined approach to big change
Enterprise-wide change can be excruciatingly complex. Achieving full adoption and sustained change calls for a disciplined approach — especially when organizational silos, risk-averse cultures, and multiple Sponsors are involved.
Support options (as described in the eBook)
- Change management consulting through planning and implementation
- Skill development so Change Agents and Sponsors are prepared for roles and responsibilities
- Access to AIM methodology (strategies, tactics, tools) to achieve full implementation
AIM is a practical, business-driven structured framework that helps you target and apply finite resources for maximum impact in the shortest amount of time — providing the same level of rigor to the human elements of change that organizations apply to operational and financial areas of the business.
Want to improve your enterprise-wide change outcomes?
If your organization is managing stacked big changes and feeling the effects of change fatigue, we can help you implement enterprise-wide change with a disciplined approach that increases adoption, speeds value realization, and reduces silo-driven friction.