A matter of trust — A journey through the Five Continents of Change Management

Abstract

Today, organisations are in a continuous process of transformation. Change is the norm, not the exception. At the same time, it is becoming increasingly difficult to generate enthusiasm for change and transformation¹ among management, employees and the public. In recent years, it has become significantly harder to make change work. One key component of professional change management is implementing a holistic communications strategy that differentiates between various types of transformation. Here, we liken these types of transformation to expeditions: the organisation is travelling on the route of success, and its possible destinations are the Five Continents of Change. For all these expeditions, Pleon’s experience shows trust to be the single most important factor in deciding whether change succeeds or fails.

In this article, the terms “change” and “transformation” are used interchangeably. In the theoretical discussion “transformation” normally refers to long-term holistic change processes whereas “change” constitutes the more comprehensive term and is rather used in context of mergers and acquisitions. In practice Pleon clearly allows for this differentiation. Consequentially, the company’s Practice Group is called “Change & Transformation”.