Summary of Why you failed when you tried to change things in your organization - Anders Wengelin

Summary of "Why you failed when you tried to change things in your organization" by Anders Wengelin

This presentation focuses on why organizational change efforts often fail and introduces a fresh perspective centered on Organizational Renewal rather than traditional Change Management. Anders Wengelin emphasizes that most organizational work involves changing behaviors, whether by managers, project leaders, or individual contributors. The talk critiques classical Change Management approaches that assume a perfect solution exists upfront and that change is simply about convincing others to adopt it.

Main Financial/Business Strategies and Trends:

Shift from Change Management to Renewal: Instead of seeing change as a linear path from a defined current state to a future state, change and strategy are seen as evolving processes that feed each other.
Focus on Behavior Change: Change efforts are fundamentally about changing people’s behaviors in the organization.
Adoption and Diffusion Model: Successful change depends on two core concepts:
- Adoption: Identifying what new behaviors or solutions will actually stick and be used by people.
- Diffusion: Enabling those successful behaviors to spread organically across the organization.

Key Methodology: Adoption Framework

Adoption is broken down into three essential components (the "three thirds") that are often overlooked in change initiatives:

Problem-Solution Fit
- Does the new solution fit the individual's situation and solve their problem?
- People assess if the change is worth their limited bandwidth and if it appeals to them subjectively (comfort zone vs. new idea).
- Solutions that try to please everyone tend to be cumbersome and ineffective.
- Avoid: Designing solutions that try to satisfy all needs and everyone’s preferences.
Identity
- Do people see themselves as the kind of person who would adopt this change?
- Social norms and role schemas strongly influence whether people feel comfortable adopting new behaviors.
- Breaking norms can lead to subtle social rejection or resistance.
- Managers often face more complex normative pressures than individual contributors, making them more cautious.
- Avoid: Expecting managers to immediately champion change without building safety and proof over time.
Barriers
- Do people have the opportunity, skills, tools, and organizational support to adopt the new behavior?
- Barriers include both "hard" factors (processes, tools, training, performance measures) and "soft" factors (culture, social reinforcement, fear of being isolated as "The Village Idiot").
- Understanding the context deeply is crucial—knowing individual and team goals, resources, and constraints beyond formal structures.
- Avoid: Pursuing "moonshot" solutions that try to overhaul everything at once, which creates rigid barriers and reduces chances of success.

Step-by-Step Guide to Applying the Adoption Approach:

Step 1: Understand Context
Investigate how work actually happens on the ground, including informal interactions and individual goals.
Avoid relying solely on formal documents or manager’s perspectives.
Step 2: Design for Context
Extract desired behaviors from the solution rather than imposing a rigid solution.
Design interventions that fit the specific context and people involved.
Step 3: Experiment and Iterate
Break change initiatives into small, manageable experiments.
Observe reactions carefully—not just whether the change "worked," but how attitudes and behaviors shifted.
Use feedback to refine and adapt the approach continuously.

Quick-Start Tips:

Start small by talking with team members about problems and possible changes.
Focus on behaviors rather than tools or processes initially.
Begin by removing barriers that hinder desired behaviors, e.g., temporarily relaxing rules.

Additional Insights:

Resistance or "naysayers" may have valid concerns related to one of the three components rather than simply opposing change.
Change efforts should be tailored to specific contexts; what works in one team or department may not work elsewhere.
Multiple exposures to the idea through small, evidence-backed steps are more effective than nagging or top-down mandates.

Presenter:

Anders Wengelin, SenseMake (company specializing in strategy implementation and Organizational Renewal)

This summary captures the core ideas, strategic insights, and practical methodology Anders Wengelin shared about why organizational change often fails and how to improve the chances of successful behavior adoption in organizations.