--- title: 3 key questions to ask when you need to make Organisational Change happen description: Delivering effective organisational change is a pre-requisite for business success. Learn 3 key questions for business leaders to help set them up for this image: https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/3questionstoaskdeliverorgchange%20(800%20x%20400%20px)-png.png --- [![Changefirst_logo_Hubspot.png](https://blog.changefirst.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Logo/Changefirst_logo_Hubspot.png?width=174&height=61&name=Changefirst_logo_Hubspot.png "Changefirst_logo_Hubspot.png")](http://www.changefirst.com) [Contact us](https://changefirst.com/contact-us) [+44 (0) 1444 450777](tel:+44-0-1444-450777) [Solutions](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions) ### Solutions Change Management Solutions matched to your specific business needs. #### [![orgainizations](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/orgainizations.jpeg) For Organizations Engage more of your people in change with a cost effective and scalable solution that builds sustainable capability.](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/organisations) #### [![consulting-firms](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/consulting-firms.jpeg) For Consulting Teams Digitalize and differentiate your Change Management practice, quickly on-board new hires and create ‘sticky’ client relationships](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/consulting-firms) #### [![change professionals](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/change%20professionals.jpeg) For Change & Project Experts Deliver strategic projects, support Executives through continuous change and add new tools, skills and Certification to your playbook](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/change-and-project-professionals) #### [![technology companies](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/technology%20companies.jpeg) For Technology Companies Take advantage of the missing ingredient in your Adoption Services model. To drive higher adoption rates for clients and improve renewal rates](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/technology-companies) #### [![drive up adoption](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/drive%20up%20adoption.jpg) Drive up adoption Focus on engaging people in your technology roll-out projects. To drive successful adoption and deliver projected business outcomes](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/drive-up-adoption) #### [![deliver projects](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/deliver%20projects.jpg) Deliver projects more succcessfully Get business-critical projects delivered right, first time. By ensuring you have more change capability and higher engagement levels](https://www.changefirst.com/deliver-projects-more-successfully) #### [![build ECM capacility](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/build%20ECM%20capacility.jpg) Build ECM capability Change is no longer the ‘secret sauce’ of a few individuals in your organisation. So creating the capacity for business-critical changes is crucial](https://www.changefirst.com/build-ECM-capability) #### [![upskilling of teams](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/upskilling%20of%20teams.jpg) Quickly upskilling your teams Make change everyone’s business by getting consistent change skills, tools and support to distributed and remote teams](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/upskilling-of-teams) #### [![agile change management](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/agile%20change%20management.jpg) Develop an agile change culture Create an agile Change culture by fostering a mind-set that 'change is your business'. As part of an enterprise-wide approach](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/agile-change-management) #### [![credibility](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/credibility.jpg) Gain credibility and differentiate yourself Gain the credibility you need to deliver effective Change inside your organisation and differentiate yourself from the rest of the crowd](https://www.changefirst.com/gain-credibility-and-differentiate-yourself) [Products](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-products/roadmap-pro) ### Products This will be the products group #### [![roadmap pro](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/roadmap%20pro.jpeg) Roadmap Pro® - digital OCM platform Transform the way Change Management is planned and executed across your organization. With digital skills, methods and tools for faster, more sustainable business result](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-products/roadmap-pro) [Training](https://www.changefirst.com/training) ### Training Role-relevant training solutions for leaders, their teams and professionals to build rapid, sustainable change capabilities #### [![executive](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/executive.jpeg) Leaders, Heads of Business & Steering Teams Executive Bootcamps - learning for senior leaders tasked with sponsoring strategic change and building sustainable Organisational Change Capability](https://www.changefirst.com/training/executive) #### [![change agent](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/change%20agent.jpeg) Change, Project and Internal development professionals Robust, action focused training course and certification for CMOs, PMO and anyone helping leaders drive major business change](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-agent) #### [![local teams](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/local%20teams.jpeg) Line Managers, local teams, HRBPs & Communication Experts Workshops and learning development programs focused on compelling change communication, sponsor behaviour, assessing people risks, data driven planning and effective engagement.](https://www.changefirst.com/training/manager-and-local-teams) #### [![on demand individual](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/on%20demand%20individual.jpeg) Employees, large groups & accidental/new change agents Learning ‘on-demand’ to introduce key change management methods and development coaching to build help individual resilience.](https://www.changefirst.com/training/on-demand-individual) #### [![change projects introductory](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/change%20projects%20introductory.jpg) Project and Programme Managers (Introductory) Learn a structed approach to people-change processes, activities and measures designed to improve project success](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-projects-introductory) #### [![change projects intermediate](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/change%20projects%20intermediate.jpg) Project and Programme Managers (Intermediate) Initiate local change initiatives right, first time and in a people - centred way](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-projects-intermediate) #### [![train the trainer](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/train%20the%20trainer.jpg) Train-the-Trainer Build an internal community of Change Experts and create agility in your internal Change Training](https://www.changefirst.com/training/train-the-trainer) #### [![](https://res.cloudinary.com/changefirst-media/uploads/Content_Licencing_Menu_Sized_TP_84ed8849b6.jpg) Content licensing Licence our proven Change Management materials and establish a standardised approach to delivering change across your organisation](https://www.changefirst.com/training/content-licensing) #### [![certification](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/certification.jpg) Certification Recognise your investment in Change Management training and development with individual and organisational level Certification](https://www.changefirst.com/training/certification) #### [![coaching and consulting](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/coaching%20and%20consulting.jpg) Application Coaching and Consulting We provide 6 week to 6 month partner packages that enable us to partner with you to accelerate your change success](https://www.changefirst.com/training/application-coaching-and-consulting) [Methodologies](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies) ### Methodologies This will be the methodologies page group #### [![pci](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/pci.jpeg) PCI® - People - Centred Implementation Changefirst’s research-based, highly practical, results-oriented methodology, for planning and executing the people-side of change, to achieve sustainable organisational results](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies/pci) #### [![pai](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/pai.jpeg) PAI – Personal Adaptability Inventory PCI® People-Centred Implementation Changefirst’s proprietary psychometric, with development system, help leaders and their teams develop resilience and adaptability for change](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies/pai) [Resources](https://www.changefirst.com/resources) ### Resources All the resources you need to help build your Change Management capability. #### [![resources](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/resources.jpeg) Whitepapers Download our latest Change Management whitepapers.](https://www.changefirst.com/resources) #### [![videos](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/videos.jpeg) Videos Watch our latest Change Management videos.](https://www.changefirst.com/resources#videos) #### [![blog](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/blog.jpeg) Blogs Read our latest Change Management blogs.](https://blog.changefirst.com/) [About us](https://www.changefirst.com/about-us) [Contact](https://www.changefirst.com/contact-us) Solutions [For Organizations](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/organisations) [For Consulting Teams](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/consulting-firms) [For Change & Project Experts](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/change-and-project-professionals) [For Technology Companies](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/technology-companies) [Drive up adoption](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/drive-up-adoption) [Deliver projects more succcessfully](https://www.changefirst.com/deliver-projects-more-successfully) [Build ECM capability](https://www.changefirst.com/build-ECM-capability) [Quickly upskilling your teams](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/upskilling-of-teams) [Develop an agile change culture](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/agile-change-management) Products [Roadmap Pro® - digital OCM platform](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-products/roadmap-pro) Training [Leaders, Heads of Business & Steering Teams](https://www.changefirst.com/training/executive) [Change, Project and Internal development professionals](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-agent) [Line Managers, local teams, HRBPs & Communication Experts](https://www.changefirst.com/training/manager-and-local-teams) [Employees, large groups & accidental/new change agents](https://www.changefirst.com/training/on-demand-individual) [Project and Programme Managers (Introductory)](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-projects-introductory) [Project and Programme Managers (Intermediate)](https://www.changefirst.com/training/change-projects-intermediate) [Train-the-Trainer](https://www.changefirst.com/training/train-the-trainer) [Content licensing](https://www.changefirst.com/training/content-licensing) [Certification](https://www.changefirst.com/training/certification) [Application Coaching and Consulting](https://www.changefirst.com/training/application-coaching-and-consulting) Methodologies [PCI® - People - Centred Implementation](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies/pci) [PAI – Personal Adaptability Inventory PCI®](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies/pai) Resources [Whitepapers](https://www.changefirst.com/resources) [Videos](https://www.changefirst.com/resources#videos) [Blogs](https://blog.changefirst.com/) [About us](https://www.changefirst.com/about-us) [Contact](https://www.changefirst.com/contact-us) # [Welcome to the Changefirst Blog](https://blog.changefirst.com) # 3 key questions to ask when you need to make Organisational Change happen Posted by [Audra Proctor](https://blog.changefirst.com/author/audra-proctor) It is a given that organisations are living in a world full of increasing levels of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. ![](https://blog.changefirst.com/hs-fs/hubfs/3questionstoaskdeliverorgchange%20(800%20x%20400%20px)-png.png?width=800&height=400&name=3questionstoaskdeliverorgchange%20(800%20x%20400%20px)-png.png) Not only are they being impacted by a wide array of pressures - from rapidly changing demographics and customer tastes to increasing levels of competition as new entrants and business ideas are spun up overnight – but rapid digital transformation means they are having to reinvent themselves continually and adapt their business processes, effectively on the fly. And all this comes with ever increasing calls to do it in a sustainable way. In the food and beverage sector for example, [big and previously dominant brands like Mondelez, Kraft Heinz and Kellog have lost sales and ground in their sector](https://www.slaytonsearch.com/2017/11/big-food-brands-next-generation-natural-foods/) as packaged foods have become less popular and replaced by more natural products. It is a pattern that has happened across a wide range of sectors and there are two key truths for business leaders who are impacted: 1. organisations cannot risk the negative impacts of not executing their business critical changes as tastes change and new, more nimble competition moves into their space 2. it continues to be difficult for organisations to capture the full value from their Change activities against this backdrop So why do organisations find it so difficult to deliver on their change agenda? We think there may be a number of causes for that including: - it could be that these organisations simply are not pursuing the right strategy to ensure their short and long term success - or it could be that their business is in rapid decline and they are unable to muster sufficient resources and the organisational will to turn things around - it could even be that they simply lack the ability to harness digital capability and process efficiencies that can drive real business change ### **Getting employees to embrace change is key** However, we would contend that the core reason for organisations failing to execute, and realise benefits from, their strategies is the difficulty in getting employees to embrace the never-ending list of new Change initiatives that impact them.  Which is where effective [organisational Change Management](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-solutions/organisations) becomes essential – helping people to adopt new behaviours and accept (and take ownership of) Change. Instead of resisting it.   The harsh reality is that successful Project implementations rarely come from purely technical Project plans that do not take into account the people related dynamics of Change. And the qualitative impacts of poorly managed Change is likely to be seen and felt by many across the organisation. Effective Change Management not only increases the likelihood of achieving Project objectives but it also feeds through into increased return on investment (ROI), and our own research shows that it [can return $6.50 for every $1 spent on large projects](https://info.changefirst.com/the-roi-for-change-management-the-impact-on-project-performance-and-results).     [![A book with a picture of a person holding a tablet Description automatically generated](https://blog.changefirst.com/hs-fs/hubfs/undefined-Oct-10-2024-07-40-27-7550-PM.png?width=400&height=286&name=undefined-Oct-10-2024-07-40-27-7550-PM.png)](https://info.changefirst.com/the-roi-for-change-management-the-impact-on-project-performance-and-results)   The issue for Leaders is how best to set the organisation up [to make Change happen](https://blog.changefirst.com/saying-no-during-major-organizational-change-actually-makes-things-happen) and there are 3 key questions they typically need to answer:   1. How do you **develop Change capability that is flexible enough** to align with what are increasingly agile approaches inside the organisation?  2. Should you rely on external consultants and interim managers, or should you **seek to build internal capability**?  3. Should you **build capability focused on supporting a specific project delivery**, or the specific needs of different roles in change?  ###  Agility is critical in today’s environment   Agility is top of the agenda for leaders in organisations right now.   According to McKinsey, agile transformations can [improve employee engagement by as much as 20-30%](https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/enterprise-agility-buzz-or-business-impact) and that feeds through into improvements in organisational efficiency of 30% - and reductions in time to market of around 40%.   So the potential business benefits are there. Although, according to research by Cap Gemini, only [20% of organisations have truly established agile ways of working](https://www.capgemini.com/insights/research-library/business-agility/) across their organisations.   Organisations that lack agility, and the ability to adapt to Change, can suffer more than ever before from:   - **more adaptable competitors** entering and dominating their market space  - business performance deteriorating rapidly (and when deterioration occurs recovery is tougher than ever before)  - the **engagement** of employees becoming **increasingly difficult** over time  -  the **term ‘change fatigue’** becoming part of regular dialogue inside the organisation  As Organisations increasingly adopt agile approaches, Change Management has to follow suit.   Listen below as Changefirst CEO, Audra Proctor as explains [why agile organisations need agile Change Management](https://blog.changefirst.com/video-why-agile-organizations-need-agile-change-management) to help support the delivery of Change at the volume, speed and accuracy required just now.   ### Leaders recognise the benefits of building internal Change capability  It is also clear that Leaders are aware of the value of creating Change Capability internally in their Organisation.   When we asked more than 2000 Change leaders what they believed was the most effective way to help their organization implement change in the current environment. The vast majority – **86%** – said that **internal teams were the best way to implement Change.**  This type of in-house approach has a number of benefits including:   - Leaders are able to **assess and manage the overall demand** for Change and match that to available capacity  - Internal change agents **harness continuous learning** on Change projects to improve future implementations  - The ability to deliver effective Change becomes **a core competency of the organisation** – not an outsourced service  - People at all levels in the business become **actively involved in the change process**  - Change Management is **built into the culture of the organisation**  It is against this backdrop that Changefirst believes that Organisations should be reassessing their reliance on external consultancies and interims to drive major business Change. ### The importance of making Change everyone’s business  If an organisation is to become truly agile – and able to transform effectively through the organisational lifecycles shown below. Delivering Change at the volume, speed and accuracy required to ensure that it doesn’t go into decline – it is clear that it needs more than a small number of project or OD specialists trained in Change Management.   ![](https://blog.changefirst.com/hs-fs/hubfs/undefined-Oct-10-2024-07-35-47-8965-PM.png?width=671&height=415&name=undefined-Oct-10-2024-07-35-47-8965-PM.png) For us, the bedrock of this type of agility is about adopting an [Enterprise Change Management approach](https://www.changefirst.com/business-issues/build-ecm-capability) and making Change everyone’s business. It takes the building of Change Management capabilities across the entire organization, ensuring that key processes are effectively applied to all projects and business critical changes.   This means adopting Change Management throughout the organisation, deploying [a single Change Management methodology](https://www.changefirst.com/methodologies/pci) on major projects, delivering [role relevant Change Management training](https://www.changefirst.com/training) at all levels and giving people the [Change Management tools](https://www.changefirst.com/change-management-products) they need to play an active role in the organisational Change process.   ### Need to learn more?  Download a complimentary copy of Chapter 1 of our book [Enterprise Change Management – How to prepare your organisation for continuous Change](https://info.changefirst.com/free-download-enterprise-change-management-book-chapter-1).    ![Audra Proctor](https://blog.changefirst.com/hubfs/Audra200x200.png) Posted by [Audra Proctor](https://blog.changefirst.com/author/audra-proctor) Audra is Managing Director at Changefirst and has over 30 years' experience of enabling organisations leaders and their teams to deliver complex Organisational Change. She leads an amazing, diverse team of highly experienced multi-industry Change Practitioners, Consultants, Coaches, Trainers, Technology Experts and trusted Strategic Partners to help organisations to deliver more effective Change through their people. Audra is a regular speaker at events focusing on Change and Transformation globally on a number of key themes including Agile Change Management and the use of digital in Change and Transformation. Find me on: [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/audraproctor/) Tags: [change management](https://blog.changefirst.com/topic/change-management), [organizational change](https://blog.changefirst.com/topic/organizational-change), [successful change management](https://blog.changefirst.com/topic/successful-change-management), [change leaders](https://blog.changefirst.com/topic/change-leaders) - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) ### Leave a comment Search Blog ### Keep me updated ### Recent Posts ### SHARE THE BLOG ### Posts by Tag [![](https://changefirst.com/images/Icons/Social_LI.svg)](https://uk.linkedin.com/company/changefirst) [![](https://changefirst.com/images/Icons/Social_TW.svg)](https://twitter.com/Changefirst) [![](https://changefirst.com/images/Icons/Social_VM.svg)](https://vimeo.com/changefirst) [![](https://changefirst.com/images/Icons/Social_FB.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/Changefirst-129807110363683/) [Website T&Cs](https://info.changefirst.com/website-tcs)    |     [Security Policy](https://info.changefirst.com/security-statement)    |     [Privacy Policy](https://info.changefirst.com/privacy-policy)    |     [Cookie Policy](https://info.changefirst.com/cookie-policy)