Avoiding the 88% Trap: Setting Your Transformations for Success
According to Bain & Company, a staggering 88% of business transformations fail to achieve their original ambitions. That’s an unbelievable amount, considering the amount of time, resources, and energy poured into these transformations. With so much at stake, how can you bridge the gap between ambitious plans and disappointing outcomes? A good place to start is realizing that transformations are not one-time events, but longer journeys requiring clear direction and sustained effort.
A fitness example will resonate with many of us: have you ever embarked on a fitness journey, only to see that journey fizzle out prematurely? Maybe you’ve had a goal to run a marathon in an ambitious time – you’ve bought a nice pair of running shoes and paid your race registration, but without a solid training plan, and mechanisms to keep you accountable to it, progress stalls, and motivation dwindles. Next thing you know, it’s race weekend and you’re nowhere near your target time, or maybe you didn’t even show up to the race at all.
This is what happens with 88% of transformations. Leaders get excited about the possibilities a transformation brings, but fail to translate that excitement properly into a practical roadmap and see its execution through to success. Let’s break down some key elements missing from many failed transformations:
- Clear Strategy: Transformations need a north star that everyone can understand and rally behind. This “strategy on a page” should outline the company’s ambition and the key initiatives for achieving it.
- Actionable Initiatives: Initiatives need to be defined in detail so that teams can bring them to life. Initiative charters are crucial here. These documents define scope, deliverables, timelines, and assigned team members, to help bring the direction teams need for execution.
- Accountability and Progress Tracking: Regularly tracking initiative progress against defined charters keeps motivation high and helps teams maneuver around roadblocks. Without governance and accountability, teams lose focus, and execution wanes.
By implementing these key elements, teams can avoid the 88% trap and successfully achieve their ambitions. Tools like stratsuma empower businesses to navigate their transformation journeys with confidence and achieve lasting success. Learn more about how stratsuma can help you navigate your transformation journey today.