MY CREDO. Change is inevitable, and plans often require ongoing refinement. However, without a clear purpose, efforts to change can easily be misdirected. With a well-defined purpose, change not only becomes more manageable but also more motivating for your organization and colleagues. The methods, tools, and strategies for change must be tailored to the purpose, which should be collaboratively defined by those involved and impacted.

Why collaboratively? Because true business value is created by the people who execute the processes aligned with that purpose. The solution is merely a tool to facilitate these processes — not the process itself — as value is ultimately defined, perceived, and appreciated by humans, not systems. This aligns with the principles of Human-Centered Design (IDEO, 2009), where solutions are designed around the needs of the people involved.

This means that solutions must be designed to meet the needs and requirements of the people involved. By focusing on a shared purpose and understanding how various stakeholders contribute to business value, organizational barriers can be dismantled, and obstacles cleared. Starting with a common purpose ensures that efforts are aligned and that the solutions developed are truly effective. John Kotter's work on change management (Kotter, 1996) emphasizes that leadership plays a crucial role in guiding such transformations effectively, by first ensuring that the purpose is clear and shared.

Is this straightforward? No, it isn’t. According to "The Chaos Report" (The Standish Group, 2020), the majority of projects fail to deliver true business value, with only about 30% deemed successful since 2011. Managing change, motivating teams, and creating business value together are some of the greatest challenges organizations face today. Yet, these are also the most critical skills for future project success (McKinsey, 2021). This is why I prefer to refer to change management as "improvement management" — while change requires energy, improvements inspire and drive motivation, provided they are rooted in a shared purpose.

In practice, this requires a well-facilitated, ongoing process of learning, improvement, and communication. Frequent deliveries allow for directional adjustments and demonstrate how they contribute to meaningful change, which in turn boosts motivation (as discussed by Dan Pink, Simon Sinek, and Sir Ken Robinson). By working together, you foster collective ownership of valuable business change — change that is comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful. This coherence, as described by Antonovsky (1996), is essential for human well-being and is achieved by jointly defining a purpose with true business value. By starting with a common purpose, rather than rushing to a solution, we ensure that our efforts are aligned with true business value, leading to more coherent and impactful outcomes.

As Helen Keller wisely said, "Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much" (Keller, 1935).

— Johan Hildingson (formerly Lagerström), Enterprise and Management Enthusiast