This article is the first in a three-part series on applying systems diagnostics to understand the sources of organizational underperformance (this article) why transformations often fail to deliver (Designing transformations to avoid failure), and how to keep transformations from going off course (Diagnosing and adjusting transformations to ensure success). It is based in part on my Strategic Analytics book. The issues addressed in the series will be covered in depth in the upcoming virtual workshop Driving Organizational Change with Data.

This article is the second in a three-part series on applying systems diagnostics to understand the sources of organizational underperformance (Using systems diagnostics to drive process improvement and change), why transformations often fail to deliver (this one), and how to keep transformations from going off course (Diagnosing and adjusting transformations to ensure success)). It is based in part on my Strategic Analytics book. The issues addressed in the series will be covered in depth in the upcoming virtual workshop Driving Organizational Change with Data.

This article is the third in a three-part series on applying systems diagnostics to understand the sources of organizational underperformance (Using systems diagnostics to drive process improvement and change), why transformations often fail to deliver (Designing transformations to avoid failure), and how to keep transformations from going off course (this one). It is based in part on my Strategic Analytics book. The issues addressed in the series will be covered in depth in the upcoming workshop Driving Organizational Change with Data.

(This article is based on content that will be covered in the upcoming webinar webinar Driving Change with Data and Diagnostics on Tuesday June 25 that Maura Stevenson and I will be leading.)

Executing a (new) strategy means two things. You have to build new capability required for the strategy. And the organization has to change from the old capability to the new. Capability building and change. Simple enough, and easy to say. So why do most strategy executions fail?

Ever since ChatGPT was launched in November 2022, there has been a figurative and literal “gold rush” into the world of generative artificial intelligence (AI).

It is too soon to predict with certainty much of anything about where AI will be taking us. Yet I am very confident about one particular application: applying AI to People Analytics (PA) to analyze staff and team issues and dynamics. Unlike many prognostications for AI, the potential for applying it within PA (a) is real, (b) has very big upsides that can be realized now, and (c) has dangerous downsides that are hard to prevent. This article addresses both the encouraging upsides, and how to avoid the downsides.

Ever since Dave Ulrich created the HR business partner (HRBP) design in 1997, it has become the standard organizing principle for HR functions globally. Over that quarter century, the role of HR has undergone significant transformation: HR now sees itself as a strategic partner in driving business outcomes. However, despite this shift in perception, many HR functions still need help to deliver measurable business value.

Faster, cheaper, better. We all know that you can’t have all three, only two. Yet leaders repeatedly set goals that require all three simultaneously.

This is a big issue when it comes to building new organizational capabilities. Quality. Customer service. Technologically cutting-edge applications. Time to market. Innovation. Uptime. Waste/efficiency. The list of critical – or strategic – organizational capabilities can be quite long.

Commemorating Labor Day 2023, I take a look at some key trends and challenges that have emerged over the past 30 years, including:

• How technology and work design choices have allowed leaders to shift risk from the company to individual workers.
• Why this has created great strain and weakened employee commitment, productivity, and willingness to continue working for the company at full capacity.
• How leaders need to rethink the subtext of the choices they make, not just the dollar amounts associated with different work design options.

Co-authored with Dr. Johanna Anzengruber.

This is article 6 of 6 in the Organization Capability series. The first article, Organization capability: The missing piece connecting organization design and the operating model, introduced the series. The second article, Resolving confusion about organization design, the operating model, and organization capability, defined the three domains. The third article, The operating model and organization design strengths and weaknesses, compared those two key parts of the organizational system. The fourth article, Challenges of system design and optimization, addressed which parts of system design can be set upfront during the design phase, versus the parts that have to be addressed later during the rollout/implementation phase while the work is ongoing. The fifth article, Organizational capability definition, strengths and weaknesses, provided our view of how organizational capability should be approached.

Co-authored with Dr. Johanna Anzengruber

This is article 5 of 6 in the Organization Capability series. The first article, Organization capability: The missing piece connecting organization design and the operating model, introduced the series. The second article, Resolving confusion about organization design, the operating model, and organization capability, defined the three domains. The third article, The operating model and organization design strengths and weaknesses, compared those two key parts of the organizational system. The fourth article, Challenges of system design and optimization, addressed which parts of system design can be set upfront during the design phase, versus the parts that have to be addressed later during the rollout/implementation phase while the work is ongoing.