Is "Transformation" a Dirty Word?
Everyone loves talking about “transformation”. Data transformation, Digital transformation, business transformation...but what do users hear when they hear about yet another transformation?
Transformation gets thrown around so much that it starts to lose its impact. At this stage I worry it's nothing more than a buzzword, or worse a sign of disruption without direction. Is the term starting to feel overused? Does it risk becoming a red flag for business users intent on simply getting on with their role?
I suspect when we talk about transformation then users are braced for chaos, endless meetings, shifting priorities and a vague promise of a better future (which in the past hasn't come). At worst it signals job losses, stagnation and a lack of decision making while new priorities are explored.
The Real Issue
The issue isn't the transformation itself, it's how we approach it. All too often it's a grand sweeping initiative led by expensive consultants, where what's really needed is targeted incremental change.
Instead of asking how "do we transform" we could ask:
- what actually needs to change and what value will it provide?
- how will people experience this change?
- what small wins can prove the value before we continue?
- how do we continue to improve beyond the quick win and realise value on a larger scale?
Transformation isn't bad, it's just that the term is overused and the results historically have been underwhelming, with users themselves unable to see value.
Is talking about Value Realisation projects instead of Transformation Projects a better approach? Does the wording imply something than will empower rather than disillusion? What do you think - has "transformation" lost its meaning?
This really resonates with me Chris. In my view the word has been slowly corrupted by becoming increasingly used as a euphemism for cost reduction efforts in large organisations. Now heads go down when they hear it.
I don't think the transformers are always to blame. True transformation is hard, and requires a lot of resource (time or brains) to achieve real impact. Restructures are comparatively easy to demonstrate impact (but also hard to get right).
I think people need to see real change happening and with most transformation, especially data transformation the changes are big (infrastructure/ platforms) but not linked to value. Meaning that actually underlying the same issues exist, or worse.