Transformation process – 4 steps to follow

Developing a company requires a certain transformation process. This requires a methodical approach, one of the key elements of which is change management.

In this article, we’ll give you all the keys you need to make your plan a success. After a short introductory section, we’ll present a method and concrete tools to help you with your transformation project.

What is business transformation?

Definition of a transformation

A transformation involves a change in a company’s operations and strategy. In particular, it aims to improve performance or adapt to new developments.

Their origins are :

• Endogenous: new management project, new organizational/operational/salary challenges or desire to innovate.
• or exogenous: adaptation to technological, competitive, societal, legal or regulatory trends and transformations.

Transformations lead to more or less profound changes in the way a company operates. These changes naturally have an impact on the organization and its employees. Setting up change management systems can help cushion the impact.

Here are just a few examples of transformation processes

Stages in the transformation process

Step 1. Measure the impact of a transformation on employees

Whether the transformation is initially endogenous or exogenous, it can be qualified according to two characteristics:

• Temporality. Is it a one-off transformation (e.g. a financial or health crisis…) or a gradual one (e.g. regulatory change, the arrival of a new competitor…)?
• Employee commitment. Do employees feel obliged to follow or do they volunteer to do so? Of course, there can be different employee segments (as we’ll see in another section of this article).

The combination of these two characteristics gives an initial qualification of the transformation. However, whatever the combination, you’ll need to ensure that the transformation project is as gradual as possible, and as unifying as possible for your employees. This movement is obviously not natural, and requires an adapted transformation process.

Step 2. Analyze the existing situation with the help of company employees through an audit

It’s a good idea to study the existing situation before throwing yourself wholeheartedly into a solution. An analysis of the existing situation is a collaborative process that enables us to gain a precise understanding of how the company operates. It also enables us to gather feedback from current employees.

This analysis will form the basis of your search for solutions and the sizing of your change management systems. It is also a communication tool that will unite your teams in this transformation process.

It also allows us to map the actors and sociodynamics.

Analysis preparation

Even if you think you have a good vision of how your company works, it’s important to include as many stakeholders as possible in this process.

This collective work has several advantages:

• Gain a clearer picture of current operations
• Gather operational information
• Gathering feelings and frustrations
• Identify new problems that may or may not be correlated with your own, and add to the overall problem.

To prepare for the analysis, you’ll need to define listening and feedback mechanisms such as individual interviews, questionnaires or group workshops. In the image below, you’ll find a description and some tips on how to use these tools.

You’ll also need to build an analysis grid for your survey. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel: there are plenty of them available on the Internet that you can use as you wish. From this analysis grid will naturally flow the interview guides, the questions for the online questionnaire…

Performing an audit or diagnosis

You’ll have to get out your best investigator’s suit to meet as many of our employees as possible. Expect to discover workings you couldn’t even imagine.

4 very important points in this process :

• Be exhaustive. Holes can lead to nasty surprises later on in your transformation project.
• Meet the right people. Sometimes it’s more useful to meet with a line manager than with your manager to find out exactly how a department works.
• Don’t direct your questions. Open-ended, closed or semi-closed questions are designed to understand, not to validate beliefs.
• And this is perhaps the most important point. The assessment is also the first tool for managing change. Being a good listener and educator will only benefit the rest of the project (especially if it involves major organizational changes).

Analysis and consolidation of collected data

This analysis will lead to the creation of a transformation framework file. This file will include a list of the various needs to be covered to ensure the success of your transformation project, as well as various maps of your company’s operations.

Mapping players using sociodynamics

A tool as powerful as it is dangerous, sociodynamics enables you to identify the ease with which different stakeholders can adapt to the transformation.

In a transformation project, we find both synergy (what brings people together) and antagonism (what separates them). Antagonism includes the personal game and trials of intent, while synergy encompasses the collective game and the credit for intent. Stakeholder mapping is used to position each player along these two axes.

This mapping will enable you to set up alliance strategies and identify the time you need to spend with different families. For example, you’ll need to spend more time with hesitants than with opponents. And, if necessary, you’ll need to neutralize stubborn opponents.

Warning!!! This mapping exercise must be kept private and must not be communicated, otherwise it could lead to a major social crisis. To avoid any trace, carry out this exercise in a workshop in person, with people you trust, and without any formalization or notes.

To carry out step 2, we recommend an audit or diagnosis.

Step 3. Prioritization of requirements for the transformation process

Once you’ve drawn up a list of the requirements you need to cover in order to make a success of your transformation project, it’s important to determine which ones have the highest priority. Tackling all needs at once can be totally counter-productive.

To prioritize each requirement, you can use a calculation grid. For example, you can use the example below.

Example of an evaluation grid for a purchase order entry process.

Step 4 – Find solutions for your project in line with the strategy and plan a roadmap

How do you create the best possible transformation plan?

Whatever the transformation, 7 axes of work are very important when you build the plan of your transformation project:

The transformation process requires excellent communication

A misunderstanding or misunderstanding can get your transformation project into trouble. It’s important to use stakeholder mapping to propose communications adapted to the context.

What’s more, even if you were to encounter a crisis during your transformation project (which happens more often than you might think). The quickest and most appropriate communication possible will be your main ally in gradually turning the situation around, and keeping employees’ trust.

Communication is achieved through a variety of channels:

• Employees’ understanding of the situation : what is at stake, the work of others, the approach, the timetable, the objectives and the impact on each person’s daily life.
• Sharing resources: like kits, process sheetsmanuals…
• The example of decision-makers and managers
• Regular measurement of employee perceptions , enabling sociodynamics to evolve

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Now you know all about transformation projects. Now it’s your turn! See you soon for more content!