As my hunt for a (corporate) transformation algorithm goes on, I continue to put together my thoughts as they crystallise.
In this article, I look at three transformational truths too often ignored by leadership teams. You’ve done the customer journey maps. You’ve built your Net Promoter programme. You’ve got more personas than you can handle.
But somehow the Holy Grail of customer centricity remains out of reach. Leaders aren’t fully on board. Employees stay in their silos. Budgets don’t show genuine commitment. And somehow that digital transformation is more about technology than about the customer. It’s not that anyone means bad. Or that they don’t care. It’s just that despite everyone’s best efforts and intentions, the pieces of the puzzle don’t match. Whenever I encounter these situations, I challenge myself to look beyond the tools of the customer experience trade and consider the bigger picture. Typically, I do this with three questions which don’t provide magical answers, but usually progress the conversation. I’m sharing them here, as they may also have some value for you. There’s a dirty little secret in the land of corporate transformation.
While all of us in the trade talk a good game about mindset change, behavioural design and psychological safety, reality is that many change programmes aren’t really about transformation. As narrative design rockstar Christy Dena pointed out the other day, they’re about compliance. ... and what to focus on instead You may know that I'm hunting for a Transformation Algorithm
Its goal is to help us move beyond the >70% failure rate of corporate transformations and create transformative experiences for employees, customers and society. Ambitious? Moi? To get there, I’m walking around the problem. Looking at it from all perspectives (Japan style). So without claiming expertise in any domain, I’m blending systems thinking with neuroscience, behavioural psychology, philosophy and my background in experience design. There’s even a little math (I couldn't resist 🥸. It's a work in progress, but I'm getting there. Meanwhile, here are some more thoughts as I put together the puzzle. The article starts a bit gloomy, but it ends more upbeat… I promise. It's all work in progress, so don’t hold back on comments, compliments or corrections 🙂. These days it’s fashionable for every company to have a ‘higher purpose’.
It feels good to do the ‘right thing’. It also makes business sense. Companies with a clear, higher purpose have better financial performance. Employees in purpose-led organisations are more eager to get out of bed and work more. Shareholders and customers vote with their wallets for companies that aim for prosperity instead of profit. |
AuthorAlain Thys helps leaders in large organisations drive profit and growth through customer transformation. Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|
4/21/2022
0 Comments