Only 30 per cent of change succeeds, say authors Kendall Lyman and Tony Daloisio – and a 70 per cent failure rate would be unacceptable outside the ranks of leadership.
That figure comes from a 1996 study by a Harvard Business School professor. The pair authors are partners at The Highlands Group, a US-based management consultancy specialising in strategy, organisational change and leadership development, which has worked with Kellogg’s, KPMG, Merck, Mobil and AT&T.
Getting change right can have win-or-fail and even life-or-death consequences, the authors pair point out in their book Change The Way You Change! 5 Roles of Leaders Who Accelerate Business Performance.