The Practice of Change

Leading change is hard. Maybe it’s not even possible. More like being a steward, or a gardener. You don’t have to be the boss to participate effectively in the change you want to see - to improve the practice of changing. I like the word, ‘transformation’ because it connotes ‘taking what there is’ and ‘making it something else, hopefully better.’ The practice of change or transformation has to meet the reality of what exists now and consider how to prepare it for what is to come, and how active a participant in bringing about that future it will be.

All of the content presented in this series is in support of a model of change practice - which I call IOTA - that I have developed based on my experience. Succeeding, failing and sometimes just observing.

Sources and frameworks will be presented in an order that mostly follows the quadrant structure of the model moving from the bottom left clockwise.

The practice of transformation is not a linear journey; it is a balancing act between the internal logic of the organisation (”Inside-Out”) and the external reality of the environment and people (”Outside-In”) as well as the theory of what you intend to do and the reality of the action you (can) take.

1. Learning (How to Learn)

This quadrant addresses Learning & Thinking - how the organisation perceives reality. If the top half of the model is about intent, this quadrant is about the feedback loop from reality. It explains why transformations fail: not because of poor strategy, but because the organisation is psychologically incapable of admitting error or perceiving complexity.

“Is it safe to tell the truth?” and “Are we solving the right problem?”

2. Deciding (How to get clarity on what to do and what to build)

Before an organisation can build effectively, it must understand what it is trying to achieve. Obviously this is heavily dependent on how it is able to learn from its experience. This quadrant is the domain of Specification - moving from vague intent to precise agreement based on what has been learnt.

“What is our purpose?” and “Do we speak the same language?”

3. Building (How to Build)

Once clarity is achieved, the focus shifts to execution. This quadrant focuses on Building - the mechanics of delivering value efficiently. It is concerned with removing friction, visualising work, and ensuring that the build process is a predictable engine of delivery rather than a chaotic art form.

“How do we minimise waste?” and “What is the constraint?”

4. Leading (How to guide action and iteration)

The final quadrant turns theory into Influence. Leadership here is not about command and control, but about navigating the messy human and political dynamics of change. It is about designing structures and interventions that mobilize people toward the new state.

“How do we mobilise people?” and “How do we structure for flow?”

5. Spinning the process (a phrase borrowed from the late great Richard Normann)

These steps are not a linear sequence. They are 4 lenses through which to view every action - from the small interactions we have day to day to the very large initiatives we lead. How to get from the very large to the very small (and the small interactions really matter the most) is one of the topics we will discuss.

Prompt your Organisation

Finally, I refuse to let this remain an academic exercise. W. Edwards Deming taught that “experience by itself teaches nothing.” Therefore, every article concludes with an Organisational Prompt - an action or experiment you can run immediately. These prompts are designed to pierce the veil of “Work-as-Imagined” and reveal the reality of your system, allowing you to move beyond passive reading and start probing your environment to see what actually works.

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