Transformation Happens One Person at a Time

Why understanding the individual side of change may be the most important part of transformation

When organisations talk about transformation, the conversation often revolves around strategies, operating models, systems, structures and project plans.

Yet organisations themselves do not change. People do. One decision, one behaviour, one conversation and one habit at a time.

Over the years, I have noticed that many transformation initiatives struggle not because the strategy is wrong or the project is poorly managed.

They struggle because the human side of change is treated as an afterthought.

We spend considerable energy building the business case, designing the future organisation and planning the implementation, but far less understanding what happens inside individuals when they are asked to let go of something familiar and move towards something uncertain.

Because while a transformation may begin as an organisational decision, it is ultimately experienced as a personal journey.

Long before we adopt a new process, embrace a new structure or change the way we work, we are often asking ourselves a much more personal question:

"Why should I change at all?"

The Individual Case for Change

Most organisations create a case for change.

They explain:

• why the current situation is no longer sustainable

• what opportunities lie ahead

• what risks exist if nothing changes

  
  

And all of this is important.

The challenge is that organisational reasons do not automatically become personal reasons.

Each of us evaluates change through our own lens.

Consciously or unconsciously, we start weighing questions such as:

• What do I gain?

• What might I lose?

• How difficult will this be?

• Will I still be successful?

• Is the effort worth it?

• Can I actually do this?

  
  

In other words, we build our own internal case for change.

And unless that personal equation makes sense, movement is unlikely to happen.

This is one reason why two people can receive exactly the same communication and react completely differently. One sees opportunity. Another sees disruption. One focuses on what can be gained. Another focuses on what may be lost.

The change itself may be identical.

The individual case for change is not.

People do not change because the organisation has a compelling business case. They change when this case becomes personal.

Change Requires More Than a Vision

One of the models I often return to is the Beckhard and Harris Change Formula.

At its heart lies a surprisingly human idea.

For change to gain momentum, three conditions need to exist simultaneously.

• First, there must be some level of tension with the current reality:

  This does not necessarily mean frustration or crisis. It simply means that remaining where we are no longer feels like the best option.

• Second, the future must feel attractive: People need to believe that something better exists on the other side of the effort.

• Third, they need confidence that getting there is actually possible.

  
  

I often simplify this into three questions:

"Why should I leave? Why should I go there? Why should I believe we can get there?"

If any one of those questions remains unanswered, change tends to stall.

What I find particularly interesting is that organisations usually invest significant energy in the second question. They spend time describing the future state, the strategy, the vision and the expected benefits.

Yet many transformations struggle because people are still wrestling with the first and third.

They are not yet ready to leave the current reality behind.

Or they do not believe the proposed future is achievable.

Letting Go Is Often Harder Than Moving Forward

One of the most overlooked aspects of change is that it requires not only adoption but also release.

Before we can embrace something new, we often need to let go of something old.

It can be:

• a process.

• a habit.

• our perceived expertise.

• a feeling of certainty.

• an identity that has served us well for many years.

  
  

This is why resistance is not always a sign of opposition.

Quite often it is a sign of attachment.

People are not necessarily fighting the future.

They may simply be struggling to leave something behind.

As William Bridges famously suggested, every beginning starts with an ending.

And endings deserve more attention than they often receive.

Resistance is not always opposition to the future. Sometimes it is attachment to the past.

Change Also Requires Energy

Even when people understand the need for change.

Even when they support the vision.

Even when they genuinely want the transformation to succeed.

They still need the capacity to move.

This is a point that is often underestimated.

Most organisations are not asking people to stop their day job and focus entirely on transformation. They are asking them to continue delivering results while simultaneously learning, adapting, experimenting and changing.

The question therefore is not only:

• Do people want to change?

But also:

• Do they have the energy to change?

  
  

Transformation competes for attention, emotional bandwidth, time and cognitive capacity.

Without sufficient space to learn and adapt, even highly motivated individuals can struggle.

The question is not only whether people want to change. It is whether they have the capacity to change while continuing to deliver.

What Happens Inside Us When Change Arrives?

When change arrives, we often imagine that our response will be rational.

We assume that once we understand the business case, we will evaluate the facts and decide whether the proposal makes sense.

In reality, something much more complex tends to happen.

I often observe three conversations taking place inside us simultaneously:

• One that is emotional.

• One that is social.

• One that is rational.

  
  

And while they overlap, each shapes the way we experience change.

The Emotional Conversation: Am I Safe?

Before we analyse the project plan, many of us instinctively ask a more fundamental question:

"Am I safe?"

Not physically safe, but psychologically safe.

• Will I still be successful?

• Will I still know what I am doing?

• Will I be able to cope?

• Will I still be valued?

  
  

This is why change can trigger reactions that seem disproportionate to the actual event.

A new reporting line, a new leader or a new system may appear straightforward on paper, yet underneath they may challenge our confidence, certainty or sense of control.

When this part of us becomes activated, we often seek reassurance before we seek information. We look for signs that we will still be successful, that support will be available and that we will not be left behind.

This is why communication alone is not always enough.

Sometimes we are not asking for more facts.

Sometimes we are asking for confidence that we will be okay.

The Social Conversation: Where Do I Belong?

Change rarely happens in isolation.

We experience it as members of teams, functions, communities and organisations.

As a result, another question often emerges:

"What does this mean for my place in the group?"

This can be rooted in different aspects of uncertainty:

• Will my expertise still matter?

• Will my status change?

• Who will gain influence?

• Who might lose it?

• Will I still belong?

  
  

Humans are deeply social creatures. We pay attention to the reactions of others. We observe influential colleagues. We listen to informal conversations. We look to our managers for cues about how seriously to take the change.

In many transformations, we look sideways before we look forwards.

This is why stakeholder management matters.

This is why guiding coalitions matter.

And this is why middle managers often become the face of transformation.

They help answer a question that is rarely spoken out loud:

"If I move, will I be moving alone?"

The Rational Conversation: Does This Make Sense?

Once we feel sufficiently safe and socially grounded, our analytical side becomes more active.

Now the questions become:

• Why is this necessary?

• What problem are we solving?

• What are the risks?

• What are the benefits?

• What is the plan?

• How will success be measured?

  
  

This is the part of change management that organisations tend to know best. Business cases, project plans, risk assessments and implementation roadmaps all help people understand the logic of the transformation.

But logic alone rarely creates movement.

Facts are important.

Yet facts tend to be far more persuasive once emotional concerns have been acknowledged and social dynamics have been understood.

Behind most resistance sits one of three questions: Am I safe? Where do I belong? Does this make sense?

Transformation Happens One Person at a Time

Perhaps this is why transformation is often slower, messier and more emotional than organisations expect.

Because beneath every project plan sits a collection of individuals, each trying to answer their own version of the change equation.

• Do I understand why?

• Do I believe in the future?

• Can I succeed?

• Am I ready to let go?

• Do I have the energy to move?

  
  

When enough people can answer those questions positively, transformation begins to gather momentum.

Not because a project has been launched.

Not because a communication has been sent.

But because individuals have started to move.

Transformation is rarely won or lost in steering committees, project plans or communication campaigns.

It is won or lost in thousands of individual moments where people decide whether they understand the change, believe in the future and feel capable of making the journey.

Organisations do not change because a new strategy has been announced. They change when enough individuals decide that the new way is worth adopting.

A Moment to Reflect

Think about a change that you are currently experiencing, either professionally or personally.

Perhaps it is a new role, a new team, a transformation programme, a different way of working or a decision that has been waiting for your attention.

As you think about it, consider:

• Have I built my own personal case for change?

• What might I need to let go of before I can fully move forward?

• Do I genuinely believe the future state is achievable?

• Do I currently have the energy and capacity required to make the transition?

• Which conversation is strongest for me right now: emotional, social or rational?

  
  

Sometimes progress does not come from pushing harder.

Sometimes it comes from understanding what is making movement difficult in the first place.

And perhaps that is one of the most useful questions we can ask ourselves during any transformation:

What is the real reason I am finding this change difficult?

The answer may tell us far more than another project plan ever could.

References

Beckhard, R. and Harris, R.T. (1987) Organizational Transitions: Managing Complex Change. 2nd ed. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Bridges, W. (2009) Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change. 3rd ed. Philadelphia: Da Capo Press.

Hiatt, J. (2006) ADKAR: A Model for Change in Business, Government and Our Community. Loveland, CO: Prosci.

Kotter, J.P. (1996) Leading Change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.