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Customer Experience: A Growth Engine

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Customer Experience A Growth Engine

If you’re still treating Customer Experience (CX) as a peripheral initiative—a “soft” function owned by service teams—you are operating with an outdated playbook. In 2026 and beyond, CX is not a support activity. It is a growth engine. And the latest findings from Nextiva’s The Leaders Guide of CX Trends in 2025 make that unmistakably clear.

The message is not that companies should “invest more” in CX. The message is sharper: businesses must architect CX as a strategic system that drives revenue, alignment and trust. Let’s unpack what this really means.

1. CX is a revenue strategy, not a service function

For years, CX was framed as a satisfaction initiative—important, but hard to quantify. That narrative is over. According to the research, 96% of business leaders now agree that CX directly impacts business outcomes. Even more compelling: 58% of CX leaders report significant ROI from CX investments, while another 36% report moderate returns. That is not anecdotal optimism. That is measurable financial impact. What’s changed?

Three things:

  • Customers switch brands faster than ever.
  • Acquisition costs continue to rise.
  • Loyalty is now experience-driven, not price-driven.

When CX reduces friction, resolves issues faster, and personalizes engagement, it does more than create happy customers—it reduces churn, increases lifetime value, and drives repeat revenue. It becomes a profit lever. The fact that 67% of CX leaders now find it easier to secure budget approval compared to five years ago reflects this shift. Executive teams no longer see CX as discretionary spending. They see it as competitive advantage.

2. CX cannot thrive in silos

One of the most important insights from the research is that 73% of companies now involve back-office teams in CX efforts. This is a great shift in mindset.CX is not owned by customer service. It is co-created by:

  • Marketing promises
  • Sales commitments
  • Operational delivery
  • HR hiring and culture
  • Technology infrastructure

When these functions operate in silos, customers feel the fragmentation. Marketing promises speed. Operations delivers delay. Service apologizes. Finance enforces rigid policies. From the customer’s perspective, it’s one brand. Internal boundaries are invisible. Organizations that break down silos and align teams around a shared CX vision create consistency. Consistency builds trust. Trust builds loyalty. Loyalty builds revenue. The operational takeaway is clear: To deliver a patented customer experience, CX must be governed cross-functionally. Without structural alignment, even the best CX strategy will collapse under internal friction.

3. AI is powerful—but only as good as your data

Artificial Intelligence is transforming CX—but it is not a shortcut to excellence.

The research shows that 86% of companies struggle with data integration. This is not a technology problem alone. It is an architectural one.AI thrives on unified, clean, contextual data. When customer information is scattered across CRM systems, service platforms, marketing tools and legacy databases, AI cannot generate meaningful insights. Instead, it amplifies fragmentation. True AI-enabled CX requires:

  • Integrated customer data platforms
  • Structured data governance
  • Clear ownership of data accuracy
  • Cross-system visibility

AI can personalize recommendations, predict churn, automate responses, and analyse sentiment—but only when the data foundation is strong. The sequence matters: first integrate, then automate, then optimize. Skipping that order leads to expensive disappointment.

4. Omnichannel is the new baseline

Customers no longer “choose” channels. They move fluidly across them.

They may discover you on social media, ask a question via live chat, follow up via email, and complete a purchase on mobile. To them, it’s one journey.

The research highlights increasing investment in social media and live chat as priority channels. But, omnichannel CX is not about adding more touchpoints. It is about ensuring continuity across touchpoints.  What customers expect is:

  • Context retention across channels
  • Consistent tone and information
  • Seamless handoffs between bots and humans
  • No repetition of their issue

If a customer has to explain their problem three times across three channels, your omnichannel strategy has failed—regardless of how many platforms you support.

The goal is not channel expansion. The goal is journey integration.

5. Trust is the ultimate CX currency

As AI and automation become more prominent, trust becomes the defining differentiator.

The research shows that 33% of employees fear AI may replace their jobs and customers are increasingly concerned about data privacy and usage. This shows two parallel risks:

  1. Internal resistance to automation
  2. External scepticism about transparency

To reap the benefits of CX, trust must be engineered intentionally which means:

  • Being transparent about AI usage
  • Clearly communicating data policies
  • Designing AI to augment, not replace, human connection
  • Maintaining accessible human escalation paths

Customers do not object to AI. They object to impersonal experiences and opaque data practices.

Ethical AI and transparent communication are not compliance issues. They are loyalty drivers.

From insight to action: doing CX right

The research makes one point unmistakably clear: CX is now central to business performance.

But insight alone does not create advantage. Organizations that win will:

Treat CX as a revenue discipline, align cross-functional teams, build integrated data foundations, deliver seamless omnichannel journeys and prioritize transparency and trust by shaping internal customer centricity.

The difference between “doing CX” and “doing CX right” lies in integration and execution.

CX is no longer a department. It is a business design choice. The companies that commit to that design will not just satisfy customers. They will outperform competitors. The question is no longer whether CX matters. The question is whether your organization is architected to make it work.

This blog has been written by the Customer Centricity Practice team @GrowthSqapes.

Is Your Culture Quietly Killing Your Strategy?

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Is Your Culture Quietly Killing Your Strategy

“We have a great strategy. The right people. The right resources. So why aren’t we getting the results we expect?” If you’ve asked this question, even once in the past year, your organization may be sending you a message. It’s time to listen.

Strategy without the right workplace culture is just a well-intentioned document. Culture is the invisible operating system of your organization. It dictates how decisions are made, how conflicts are handled, how new ideas are welcomed or strangled, and ultimately, whether your business thrives or merely survives.

As a middle or senior manager, you sit at the most critical intersection in any organization: between the vision at the top and the daily reality at the frontline. That vantage point gives you something rare; the ability to sense cultural drift before it becomes a crisis.

The signals you may already be ignoring

Culture change rarely announces itself loudly. More often, it whispers through small patterns, quiet frustrations, and recurring friction. Think about your organization right now and see if it resonates.

  1. Your best people are quietly updating their résumés.
  2. Meetings end with agreement, but nothing actually changes.
  3. Silos are getting taller, not shorter.
  4. New initiatives die not from lack of resources, but lack of will.

If even two of these resonate, you are likely facing a cultural challenge, not an operational one. No amount of restructuring, new software, or process redesign will fix what is fundamentally a people and culture problem.

When is culture change needed?

Culture change becomes necessary, not optional, under several conditions. When your organization undergoes a significant strategic pivot, a merger, rapid scaling, or a leadership transition, the old cultural DNA may no longer serve the new direction. What once made you successful can quietly become what holds you back.

It is also critical when employee engagement is in freefall. Disengaged employees don’t just underperform. They actively erode the energy and commitment of those around them. A Gallup study found that companies in the top quartile of engagement outperform those at the bottom by up to 23% in profitability. Culture is not a “soft” issue. It is a bottom-line issue.

And when diversity & inclusion remain buzzwords rather than lived reality in your organization, culture change is overdue. A culture that fails to create genuine belonging doesn’t just lose diverse talent. It loses the diversity of thought that drives innovation.

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” — Peter Drucker’s words remain as sharp today as ever. The organizations that outperform are those where culture and strategy move in the same direction.

Why leadership is the catalyst?          

Here is the uncomfortable truth: culture is set and reset by leadership behaviour. Not by values posters in the hallway. Not by annual surveys. By what leaders actually do, tolerate, reward, and ignore every single day.

Effective change management begins with leaders at every level modelling the behaviours they wish to see. If you want a culture of accountability, start by holding yourself accountable publicly. If you want psychological safety, be the first to admit when you don’t know something. Culture changes when leaders change what they do, not just what they say.

This is precisely why middle managers are the unsung heroes of cultural transformation. You translate intent into action. You are the ones who make culture real or render it irrelevant through the hundred micro-decisions you make each day.

The role of organizational development

Sustainable culture change is not a one-time event — it is a disciplined practice of organizational development. It requires honest diagnosis: What is our current culture, really? What culture do we need to achieve our goals? Where is the gap?

It requires intentional system design: aligning hiring, performance management, recognition, and learning systems to reinforce the new culture. Culture that conflicts with your systems will always lose. Systems always win.

And it requires patience — the hardest ingredient. Deep cultural shifts typically take three to five years. Leaders who expect transformation in one annual cycle set themselves and their teams up for disappointment.

The cost of waiting

Perhaps the most dangerous cultural myth is that change can wait until things get worse. By the time culture becomes visibly toxic, the organization has already paid an enormous price. That price is in lost talent, missed opportunities, customer churn, and leadership credibility spent.

The right time to begin culture change is not when you’re in crisis. It is when you first sense the gap between the culture you have and the culture you need.

That moment — the one that prompted you to read this article — may be happening right now.

The question is not whether your organization needs to evolve its culture. Every organization does, continuously. The real question is whether you, as a leader, are willing to be the one who starts the conversation, names what you see, and commits to doing something about it. That is where transformation always begins.

This blog has been written by the Organization Development & Change Practice team at GrowthSqapes.

5 Changes In Sales Beliefs: And What It Means

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5 Changes In Sales Beliefs And What It Means

Every enduring success story in business is really a story of constant adaptation. Markets evolve, buyers mature, technologies reshape behaviour—and sales professionals who don’t revisit their assumptions inevitably fall behind. That’s why one of the most valuable habits a sales leader can develop is the discipline of periodically questioning what they believe drives sales success.

Some ideas which were once strongly endorsed no longer hold up in today’s complex B2B environment. Others were never wrong—but they were incomplete. Written below are five beliefs that we have seen changed our mind about, and why re-examining them is essential for anyone who wants to remain relevant and effective in modern sales.

1. There Is No “Ideal Buyer” Anymore

    For years, sales strategy revolved around identifying the “ideal buyer”—a well-defined persona with predictable needs, authority, and buying patterns. That approach worked when decisions were centralized and purchase journeys were linear. Today, that reality has disappeared.

    In most B2B environments, buying decisions are made by buying groups, not individuals. These groups are cross-functional, loosely structured, and often fluid. Research consistently shows that an average of a dozen or more stakeholders influence a single B2B decision, spanning multiple departments with different priorities and success metrics.

    This means sales can no longer afford to be narrowly focused. Winning today requires selling across the organization—understanding the language, pressures, and incentives of finance, operations, IT, procurement, and end users simultaneously. The “ideal buyer” has been replaced by an ideal buying ecosystem, and sellers who fail to recognize this remain trapped in outdated pursuit strategies.

    2. Collaboration Was Seriously Underestimated

    Another belief we’ve revised is how deeply collaboration shapes buying behaviour—especially as newer generations enter the workforce. Collaboration is no longer a preference; it is the default operating model. Younger professionals routinely consult peers, mentors, internal communities and external networks before committing to decisions. Many of these influencers don’t appear on formal organization charts, yet they exert real sway over outcomes. Ignoring them because they lack official authority is a costly mistake.

    For sellers, this demands a shift in approach. Success is less about convincing a single decision-maker and more about enabling internal alignment within the customer’s organization. The most effective salespeople today help buying groups make sense of complexity, resolve internal friction and build shared confidence in the decision.

    3. Salespeople Are Now The Real Marketers

    There was a time when marketing generated awareness and sales closed deals. That clean division of labour no longer exists. In a digital-first world, buyers encounter sellers long before the first conversation—through content, commentary, insights and reputation.

    As a result, sales professionals must think like marketers. Your credibility is shaped by what prospects see before they speak to you: your point of view, your ability to articulate industry challenges, and your willingness to educate rather than pitch. Cold outreach alone cannot substitute for visibility and relevance. Modern selling rewards those who build a personal brand anchored in problem-solving and insight. When buyers already recognize you as someone who understands their world, conversations shift from persuasion to collaboration.

    4. Your Sales Approach—Not Your Value Proposition—Is the Real Differentiator

    Consultative selling, value-based selling or solution selling was once a powerful differentiator. Today, it’s table stakes. With AI and automation, generic value propositions can be generated in seconds. What can’t be automated is contextual understanding and authentic insight. Customers don’t just evaluate what you sell—they evaluate how it feels to engage with you. The sales experience you provide, from discovery to decision, increasingly outweighs price-to-value comparisons.

    This means that sellers who demonstrate genuine curiosity, deep research and tailored thinking create trust that no brochure or slide deck can replicate. It is no longer the value enhancing negotiations, the real differentiation now comes from the quality of insight you bring and the experience you create—not from feature lists or generic benefits.

    5. “Best Practices” Are Increasingly Dangerous

    Perhaps the most important shift is this: best practices age quickly. What worked last year—or even last quarter—may already be losing effectiveness. Yet many organizations cling to familiar methods simply because they once delivered results. This resistance to change is a known cognitive bias, and it quietly undermines performance. The antidote is relentless measurement and experimentation. High-performing sales teams test assumptions, track outcomes, and make continuous micro-adjustments rather than relying on inherited wisdom.

    This means, in today’s environment, success belongs to those who question everything—including their own instincts.

    The sales profession has never been static, but the pace of change has never been faster. The challenge isn’t learning new techniques—it’s unlearning outdated beliefs. As Richard Feynman famously observed, the easiest person to fool is yourself. In sales, staying honest about what’s no longer true may be the most valuable competitive advantage you can build.

    This blog has been written by the Sales Training Program & Development practice team at GrowthSqapes.

    Top 10 Leadership Skills Every First-Time Manager Must Master

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    Top 10 Leadership Skills Every First-Time Manager Must Master

    One of the most underestimated leadership challenges in organisations today is the transition of individual contributors into first-time managers (FTMs). Overnight, these high-performing employees find themselves responsible not only for tasks and outcomes, but for people, relationships, and results delivered through others. This shift is more than a promotion—it is a personal and professional transformation. First-time managers must let go of familiar success markers and step into a role that demands influence, judgment, and emotional maturity. While the transition is often exciting, it can also feel overwhelming. Leadership skills suddenly intersect with change management, and the ability to adapt becomes critical.

    An effective first-time manager development program equips new leaders to navigate this complexity with confidence and clarity. The following leadership capabilities are essential for success in the early stages of management.

    1. Leading former peers with credibility

    Managing people who were once equals is emotionally delicate. First-time managers must establish authority without damaging trust or relationships. Success lies in influencing without being overbearing and earning respect through fairness, competence, and consistency. Building credibility early sets the tone for long-term leadership effectiveness.

    2. Balancing a new and heavier workload

    FTMs must manage dual responsibilities—delivering their own work while enabling others to perform. This requires strong time management, prioritisation, and stress control. Retaining domain expertise while stepping back from doing everything personally is a critical early leadership adjustment.

    3. Driving team performance

    In increasingly hybrid and fast-changing work environments, clarity is often missing. First-time managers must bring structure, define priorities, and create momentum. Delegation, accountability, and effective organisation help teams stay aligned and productive even amid ambiguity.

    4. Inspiring and motivating others

    People look to their leaders for direction, energy, and belief—especially during uncertainty. New managers must learn how to inspire effort, communicate purpose, and connect individual roles to a broader vision. Motivation is no longer self-focused; it becomes a leadership responsibility.

    5. Building accountability with empathy

    While inspiration is important, accountability is non-negotiable. FTMs must set clear expectations and address underperformance with courage and fairness. The challenge lies in balancing empathy with standards—holding people responsible while maintaining trust and psychological safety.

    6. Coaching and developing team members

    The growth of a manager is directly linked to the growth of their team. Effective first-time managers invest time in coaching, career conversations, and mentoring. Rather than being the problem-solver, they become enablers of learning, capability, and sustained performance.

    7. Communicating with clarity and consistency

    Leadership communication goes beyond sharing information—it aligns people. FTMs must clearly communicate goals, expectations, and priorities across levels and locations. In remote and hybrid teams, deliberate, structured, and consistent messaging becomes even more critical.

    8. Recognising and celebrating contributions

    Recognition is a powerful leadership lever, especially when teams are geographically dispersed. Fair and visible appreciation reinforces desired behaviours, strengthens engagement, and builds a sense of belonging. First-time managers must learn to recognise effort and results consistently, not selectively.

    9. Building trust through delegation

    Letting go of control is one of the hardest transitions for new managers. Delegation does not mean losing ownership—it means expanding capability. Trust grows when managers involve themselves at the right moments and step back when their team is capable of delivering independently.

    10. Managing interpersonal conflicts

    Wherever people work together, conflict is inevitable. First-time managers must learn to address disagreements early, mediate tensions constructively, and navigate differences in personality, culture, and generational perspectives. Conflict handled well strengthens teams; conflict ignored erodes them.

    Being a first-time manager is not about status or authority—it is about navigating transformation. With the right skills, mindsets, and support, this transition becomes a powerful foundation for long-term leadership success.

    In today’s dynamic business environment, GrowthSqapes’ leadership training programs for managers builds leadership capability through experiential learning, immersive simulations and real-world practice which equips leaders to lead with confidence, clarity, and purpose—turning potential into performance.

    This blog has been written by the Leadership Development practice team at GrowthSqapes.

    The Case For Leadership Development For Senior Leaders

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    The case for leadership development for senior leaders

    Why experience alone is no longer enough for today’s leaders?

    There is a quiet but persistent myth in many organisations: that once leaders accumulate enough years, titles and battle scars, their development is largely complete. Experience, it is assumed, has done the job. Learning is for those earlier in their careers; seasoned leaders simply apply what they already know. This assumption may once have held some truth. In today’s VUCAD/BANI world, it does not.

    Leadership now unfolds in environments marked by volatility, ambiguity and constant disruption. Markets change faster than strategy cycles. Workforces are more diverse, vocal and values-driven than ever before. And employees increasingly expect leaders who offer not just direction, but meaning, trust and emotional steadiness. In such a context, experience alone is no longer a guarantee of effectiveness. In some cases, it can even become a constraint.

    This is why leadership development for experienced professionals is no longer optional. It is a strategic necessity. Explored below are 5 reasons.

    1. The experience paradox: strength that can become a blind spot

    Experience gives leaders judgment, pattern recognition and confidence. It allows them to make decisions with speed and authority. But over time, those same strengths can quietly harden into habits. Familiar approaches feel safe. Proven methods get reused. Leaders begin to rely on what worked before, without always questioning whether it still fits the present reality.

      This is the experience paradox: the very knowledge that once accelerated growth can later limit it.

      Many senior leaders are surprised, when given structured space for reflection, to discover how differently leadership is now perceived by their teams. Expectations around inclusion, communication, vulnerability and feedback have shifted significantly. What once read as decisiveness may now be experienced as distance. What once felt efficient may now feel dismissive.

      High-quality leadership development does not teach experienced leaders “basic skills.” Instead, it helps them surface blind spots, challenge long-held assumptions and recalibrate how they show up in increasingly complex human systems.

      2. The expanding role of the modern leader

      The leadership role itself has changed dramatically. Today’s senior leaders are expected to be far more than strategic decision-makers or operational experts. They are simultaneously expected to be:

      • culture architects
      • coaches and talent developers
      • communicators of purpose
      • custodians of organisational values
      • anchors of stability during uncertainty

      This expanded mandate cannot be fulfilled on autopilot. It requires emotional intelligence, self-regulation and the ability to lead through ambiguity rather than control it away. Leadership programs designed specifically for experienced professionals focus on precisely these dimensions—helping leaders strengthen influence without authority, presence without dominance and clarity without oversimplification.

      3. Shifting expectations from teams

      Perhaps the most profound shift has come from employees themselves. Across industries, people now expect leaders who listen deeply, provide context, encourage learning and offer regular, meaningful feedback. Authority alone no longer earns commitment.

      This has made coaching-based leadership a critical capability at senior levels. Leaders who develop the ability to coach rather than command create environments where people feel safe to think, challenge and grow. Those who do not often find themselves leading compliant but disengaged teams—an invisible risk that slowly erodes performance.

      Leadership training programs for managers provide experienced leaders with tools to build trust, ask better questions and create accountability without fear. These are not just “soft skills”; they are performance multipliers.

      4. Navigating relentless change with perspective

      Most senior leaders have lived through multiple business cycles. However, the pace and intensity of change today—driven by technology, regulation, customer expectations and global uncertainty—are fundamentally different.

      In such conditions, leaders are constantly pulled into reaction mode. Leadership competency development creates something increasingly rare: pause. It allows leaders to step back from the noise, reflect on their responses and strengthen their capacity to think systemically rather than react emotionally.

      During periods of uncertainty, people look upward for steadiness. Leaders who continue to develop are far better equipped to provide that steadiness—not by having all the answers, but by holding complexity with calm and confidence.

      5. Values matter more at the top

      As leaders rise, their behaviour carries disproportionate symbolic weight. What they tolerate, prioritise, or ignore quickly becomes cultural signal. At senior levels, leaders do not just influence culture—they embody it.

      This is why values-driven leadership becomes especially critical with experience. Many leaders benefit from revisiting the principles that shaped them early in their careers and examining how those values need to be expressed in a changing organisational context. Without conscious reflection, even well-intentioned leaders can drift away from the standards they believe in.

      Structured leadership development offers a space for this recalibration—through dialogue, coaching and deep reflection that rarely happens amid daily pressures.

      The organisational impact of developing senior leaders

      We need to remember that while experience is an asset, growth is a choice. When experienced leaders grow, the effects are immediate and visible. Decision-making becomes more thoughtful. Cross-functional friction reduces. Conversations become clearer and more respectful. Most importantly, trust deepens.

      Organisations that invest in senior leadership development consistently see stronger succession pipelines, higher engagement and greater stability during transitions. When the top layer of leadership continues to evolve, the entire system remains adaptive.

      Growthsqapes’ solutions on strategic thinking training, leadership coaching in India and  leadership programs in India at the senior level as well as in the middle management level create that tangible business impact that creates organizational success.

      This blog has been written by the Leadership Development Practice team at GrowthSqapes.

      Learning & Development Outlook for 2026: A Ground-Level View for Indian Organizations

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      Indian corporate employees participating in a modern learning and development session, symbolising capability building and future-ready skills.

      If you’ve been anywhere close to HR or L&D this year, you’ve probably felt the churn. Things that used to be “future of work” topics have suddenly come rushing into the present. And honestly, 2025 already feels like a year where the ground keeps shifting under our feet.

      This note is my attempt to make sense of it — not in a buzzword-heavy way, but the way most Indian Organizations are experiencing it on the shopfloor, in corporate corridors, and inside leadership rooms.

      1. AI has quietly taken the driver’s seat (and nobody wants to admit how fast it happened)

      Most companies are no longer debating the pros and cons of AI. They’re simply using it — sometimes in structured ways, sometimes in very scrappy, jugaad ways. Many openly admitting, many discreetly.  Suddenly, everyone English has become flawless and everyone is an author.

      People are creating small videos, rewriting SOPs, building assessments, and throwing micro-content into Teams or WhatsApp. And honestly, everybody is gradually going above the moral fibre of evaluating it. It’s fast, it’s cheap, and it works.

      In coming years, this would get deeper and a wider: dedicated AI methods, embedded project trackers, human-like automated reminders, and “learning co-ordinators” in-built in the L&D workflow itself. Not super-tech but all feasible applied realities.

      2. Competencies are the real battlefield now

      Every conversation these days ends with the same question:

      “Do we have in us to deliver what we promised?”

      Be it tech, manufacturing, BFSI, or even hospitality, the issues are similar:

      • Too many skill demands
      • Too little time
      • Too much pressure from the business side

      Organizations are slowly waking up to the fact that a training calendar is not a capability strategy. Skill maps, gap analysis, and role-based development are moving from good-to-have to absolutely essential — especially in India’s hyper-competitive environment.

      3. Nobody has patience for long workshops anymore

      Let’s be honest: people are tired – two are doing the jobs of five. Workloads are up. Teams are lean. Attention spans have become sickeningly shorter.

      So micro-learning is not a trend — it’s survival. Rather, appropriate.

      Small lessons. Phone-friendly content. Blended journeys. Bite-sized coaching circles. And occasional deep-dive sessions only when necessary.

      2026 takes this further. Think of learning journeys that are steady and going on while people get their real work done. That further takes L&D deep into the technology domain.

      4. Leadership development is being ripped apart and rebuilt

      Most companies have realised that their standard olden days leadership programs are just not cutting it. The workplace is more fragile, more hybrid, more demanding.

      Leaders are struggling with:

      • Team fatigue
      • Trust issues
      • Culture drift
      • Execution slippage
      • Cross-functional bottlenecks

      So the big investments in 2025–26 are going into leadership journeys, coaching cohorts, and high-stakes capability building for managers who carry the organization on their shoulders.

      5. “Show us the impact” has become the new pressure point

      A few years ago, organizations were happy if people showed up for training. Today, participation is not even the bare minimum.

      Leaders want answers like:

      • What changed after this intervention?
      • What behaviour moved?
      • What business metric shifted?

      In 2026, expect more dashboards linking learning → capability → performance → culture.

      This is finally becoming serious. And that is good for society of organizations.

      6. Human skills matter even more in an AI-heavy world

      It’s interesting: the more AI we adopt, the more valuable the “human part” becomes. Organizations are rediscovering the importance of:

      • Empathy
      • Judgment
      • Influence
      • Negotiation
      • Managing difficult people
      • Listening
      • Collaboration

      These are not “soft” skills anymore. I always protested this term. They are “business survival humane behaviours.”

      7. Frontline capability building is a goldmine of transformation

      One of the biggest shifts happening in India is the attention being paid to frontline teams — plant workers, supervisors, sales promoters, service staff, call-centre teams.

      Organizations are moving towards:

      • Vernacular learning
      • QR-led micro-lessons
      • Gamified safety modules
      • Short audio instructions
      • Simple behaviour coaching

      This is where the real L&D will sits in 2026 onwards. Well, for some time at least, as – Fads fade, people fade, approaches fade, but the learning never fades.

      8. Culture-linked behaviours are becoming part of capability building

      Many organizations have realised that strategy along with skills and competencies alone don’t drive performance.

      Culture does. If not, it eats strategy for breakfast. (No, Peter Drucker never said that) Truly, what is the use of a great strategy if the daily experienced culture puts brakes on it.

      So training and culture work are merging — ownership, reliability, customer focus, innovation mindset, psychological safety — all of these are becoming part of capability development.

      2026 will see culture and learning being treated as one integrated operating system.

      9. Platforms are useful, but learning journeys drive learning

      Many companies buy popularly available platforms, but the learning needle does not move because people barely use them.

      Rather, focus on:

      • Journeys
      • Community learning
      • Periodic nudges
      • On-the-job KT
      • Coaching
      • Check-ins

      The technology helps, but the design and rhythm matter more.

      10. L&D roles are changing, whether we like it or not

      The job market is shifting. Stop calling yourself a ‘trainer’. Identify yourself with the roles appropriately.

      New roles are emerging quietly:

      • Capability architects
      • Behaviour coaches
      • AI-assisted learning designers
      • Workplace learning strategists
      • Learning data analysts

      2026 will amplify this trend as organizations expect L&D to operate like a strategic function, not a support unit.

      So what does all this mean for your organization?

      Three clear mandates:

      1. Build capability faster than the market is changing.

      If you don’t, your competition will.

      2. Blend human skills, culture behaviours, and AI-enabled learning.

      This is the only sustainable formula.

      3. Treat learning as a system, not an event.

      Journeys outperform workshops.

      Coaching outlasts content.

      Impact beats attendance.

      Closing thoughts.

      Every organization loves saying that “people are our biggest asset.” Most put it on posters. Some mention it in townhalls. Very few actually live it.

      The future is going to make that difference painfully visible.

      Because learning today is not just about rolling out modules or keeping a training calendar busy. It’s about whether an organization can change its mind before it changes its machinery or service SOP. Whether it can let go of old habits, old hierarchies, and old ways of thinking long enough to let something new take root.

      AI will keep expanding. Markets will twist and turn. Competitors will appear out of nowhere and disappear just as quickly.

      That part is almost predictable now.

      But the organizations that pause — even briefly — to deepen their leaders, strengthen their culture, sharpen their frontline, and build real capability… they’re the ones that don’t get thrown off by noise. They hold their ground because their people know how to think, not just what to follow.

      So maybe the real question for 2026 onwards isn’t, “What are the new L&D trends?”

      It’s a far simpler one, and a little uncomfortable:

      Are we building an organization that genuinely learns — or one that only trains because the calendar says so?

      If you can answer that honestly, you already know where your organization is heading.

      This blog has been written by Satyakki Bhattacharjee, Managing Partner at GrowthSqapes.

      Building Stronger Teams and Collaborative Cultures

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      Building Stronger Teams and Collaborative Cultures

      In today’s dynamic workplace, leaders are expected to do more than simply manage operations. They are responsible for fostering innovation, encouraging creativity, and cultivating respect across diverse teams. An organization is a microcosm of the larger world, and leaders must think, feel, and act in ways that make every individual feel valued, respected, and included. While many leaders strive to accept diversity and practice inclusion, truly effective leaders go beyond acceptance—they celebrate differences and leverage them as sources of strength.

      The Power of Differences in Team Collaboration

      The most impactful leaders recognize that power lies not in similarities, but in differences. Diversity of thought, background, and style fuels innovation and strengthens team collaboration. When leaders embrace variety in competence, working styles, and perspectives, they create an environment where team work thrives. This approach not only enhances productivity but also builds resilience within organizations. However, even well-intentioned leaders can falter. Unconscious biases or unintentional behaviours may cause them to be perceived as non-inclusive, which can harm morale and damage the organization’s reputation. Employees who feel excluded or undervalued are less likely to engage in collaboration and team work, leading to inefficiencies and conflict. This is why conflict resolution and inclusive leadership are critical skills for managers at all levels.

      Moving Beyond Acceptance to Celebration

      Effective leaders don’t just tolerate diversity—they actively celebrate it. They understand that differences in perspectives, skills, and approaches are what make teams stronger. By encouraging collaboration across diverse groups, leaders unlock creativity and innovation that would otherwise remain untapped. Celebrating diversity also strengthens conflict resolution. When leaders acknowledge and respect differences, they create safe spaces for dialogue, reducing misunderstandings and fostering trust. This proactive approach to inclusion ensures that conflicts are resolved constructively, reinforcing team collaboration rather than undermining it.

      The Role of Experiential Learning in Leadership Development

      To bridge the gap between aspiration and practice, organizations must invest in leadership development programs for middle managers and senior leaders. These programs should go beyond theoretical training and focus on experiential learning. Our tailored experiential human-process behavioural laboratory is designed precisely for this purpose.

      Through immersive exercises, leaders gain firsthand experience of how unconscious biases and psychodynamic processes influence their behaviour. They learn to identify moments when their “unintentional” actions may exclude others, and they develop strategies to counteract these tendencies. By engaging in real-time conflict resolution and collaboration scenarios, leaders build the skills necessary to foster inclusive team work.

      Why Middle Managers Are Critical

      Middle managers play a pivotal role in shaping organizational culture. They are the bridge between senior leadership and frontline employees, and their ability to foster team collaboration directly impacts organizational performance. Leadership development programs for middle managers must emphasize inclusion, conflict resolution, and collaboration as core competencies.

      When middle managers are equipped with these skills, they can:

      • Encourage team work across departments and functions.
      • Resolve conflicts constructively, ensuring that differences become opportunities rather than obstacles.
      • Promote collaboration by recognizing and celebrating diverse contributions.
      • Strengthen employee morale and engagement by creating inclusive environments.

      Building Inclusive Policies and Practices

      Leadership development is not just about individual growth—it must translate into organizational policies that promote equity and inclusion. Experiential learning helps leaders internalize inclusive behaviours, which in turn influence organizational practices. Policies that encourage collaboration, team work, and conflict resolution become embedded in the culture, ensuring long-term sustainability. For example, inclusive leaders are more likely to implement mentorship programs that connect diverse employees, encourage cross-functional team collaboration, and establish clear frameworks for conflict resolution. These initiatives not only improve team work but also enhance organizational agility and resilience.

      The Psychodynamic Dimension of Leadership

      Many leaders are unaware that their behaviours are shaped by deep psychodynamic processes. These unconscious drivers can manifest as unintentional exclusion or bias. Our experiential laboratory helps leaders uncover these hidden influences, enabling them to act with greater awareness and intentionality.

      By addressing these psychodynamic processes, leaders learn to:

      • Recognize unconscious biases that hinder collaboration.
      • Develop empathy and emotional intelligence to strengthen team work.
      • Use conflict resolution techniques to transform disagreements into opportunities for growth.
      • Celebrate diversity as a source of innovation and strength.

      The Organizational Impact of Inclusive Leadership

      When leaders embrace diversity and inclusion, the impact extends beyond individual teams. Organizations benefit from:

      • Enhanced collaboration: Diverse teams bring unique perspectives, leading to more creative solutions.
      • Stronger team work: Employees feel valued and respected, increasing engagement and productivity.
      • Effective conflict resolution: Inclusive leaders resolve disputes constructively, preventing escalation and fostering trust.
      • Improved reputation: Organizations known for inclusivity attract top talent and build stronger stakeholder relationships.

      Ultimately, inclusive leadership is not just a moral imperative—it is a strategic advantage. Organizations that invest in leadership development programs for middle managers and senior leaders position themselves for long-term success in a competitive global environment.

      Celebrating Diversity as a Leadership Imperative

      Leaders must move beyond simply accepting diversity to actively celebrating it. By fostering collaboration, encouraging team work, and mastering conflict resolution, they create inclusive environments where every individual can thrive. Experiential learning laboratories and leadership development programs for middle managers are essential tools for bridging the gap between aspiration and practice.

      Inclusion is not a one-time initiative—it is a continuous journey. When leaders embrace diversity as a source of power, they transform organizations into vibrant, innovative, and resilient communities. The future of leadership lies in celebrating differences, strengthening team collaboration, and building cultures where everyone feels respected, valued, and empowered.

      This blog has been written by the Leadership Development Practice team in GrowthSqapes.

      7 Senior Leadership Competencies That Middle Managers Can Develop: To Affect Organizational Culture Transformation

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      7 Senior Leadership Competencies That Middle Managers Can Develop - To Affect Organizational Culture Transformation

      In every organization that has successfully transformed its culture—from reactive to proactive, from compliance-driven to purpose-led—one constant emerges: the pivotal role of its senior leaders. Culture transformation is not a communications campaign or a set of values displayed on office walls. It is a lived experience shaped daily by the behaviours, decisions, and priorities of leaders. For frontline and middle managers aspiring to grow into senior roles, it is essential to understand what competencies enable such transformation. Leadership development programs help inhoning the competencies of the middle and frontline managers.

      1. Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence

      Culture begins with self-awareness. Senior leaders who lack insight into their emotions, triggers, and behavioural impact often fail to inspire trust. Emotional intelligence allows them to respond rather than react—especially during resistance or ambiguity. When leaders demonstrate empathy, listen without defensiveness, and regulate their own emotions, they set the tone for psychological safety.For instance, during organizational restructuring, emotionally intelligent leaders balance transparency with reassurance, reducing anxiety and maintaining focus on shared purpose. Middle managers observing such conduct can learn how self-management and empathy cascade down as behavioural norms.

      2. Strategic Clarity and Sense-Making

      In a transforming culture, everyone looks to senior leaders to interpret “why we are changing” and “what success looks like.” Leaders who can connect daily actions to long-term strategy make change meaningful. They simplify complex goals into understandable narratives, avoiding jargon while reinforcing strategic alignment. Sense-making competency requires both analytical and storytelling ability—translating data, trends, and business shifts into a language that motivates teams. Middle managers should develop this skill by asking: Can I explain our strategy clearly enough that my team feels its relevance to their work?

      3. Accountability and Ownership Mindset

      Cultural transformation collapses quickly when accountability is unclear. Senior leaders must model ownership—taking responsibility for results, behaviours, and people outcomes, even when they are not directly at fault. Instead of shifting blame or hiding behind hierarchy, they examine systems, clarify expectations, and ensure learning from every setback. Frontline and middle managers can practice this by fostering micro-cultures of accountability within their own teams—where commitments are honoured, feedback is timely, and follow-through is non-negotiable.

      4. Inclusive Leadership and Respect for Diversity

      Modern culture transformation is inseparable from inclusion. Senior leaders who engage diverse voices—not as a formality but as a strength—create workplaces where innovation thrives. Inclusive leadership goes beyond demographic diversity; it involves intellectual openness and humility to learn from others.For middle managers, inclusivity starts with everyday actions: inviting quiet voices into discussions, challenging groupthink, and ensuring decisions reflect a range of perspectives. When senior leaders model inclusion, they normalize respect as a core cultural behaviour rather than a compliance requirement.

      5. Collaboration and Systems Thinking

      Cultural transformation requires breaking silos. Senior leaders must view the organization as an interconnected system, not isolated departments competing for resources. Systems thinking enables them to balance short-term performance with long-term sustainability, considering how one decision impacts others.
      Middle managers can cultivate this by understanding upstream and downstream effects of their actions—recognizing that collaboration often delivers better outcomes than competition. When leaders model cross-functional partnership, culture shifts from “my unit” to “our organization.”

      6. Communication and Influence

      No transformation succeeds without communication that inspires belief. Senior leaders must articulate vision with clarity, consistency, and authenticity. Influence in culture change is less about authority and more about credibility—earned through listening, transparency, and alignment between message and behaviour.
      Frontline managers can start refining their influence by mastering storytelling—translating organizational values into personal relevance for their teams. When communication becomes two-way and values are lived rather than recited, culture begins to shift meaningfully.

      7. Resilience and Purpose Orientation

      Finally, culture transformation is not a straight line; it tests endurance. Resilient leaders anchor themselves in purpose—why the organization exists and whom it serves. They absorb pressure without passing it down, sustain optimism during setbacks, and keep the narrative focused on contribution rather than control.
      Middle managers can mirror this by linking team efforts to the larger mission, reminding people that culture transformation is not an HR initiative—it’s the way we win sustainably.

      Conclusion

      Just like a sigular Organizational Development program does ensure change, culture transformation is also not the responsibility of senior leaders alone. However, they are its most visible custodians. Their behaviours, competencies, and decisions either accelerate or derail the process. For frontline and middle managers, an early start of competencydevelopment through First Time Manager Leadership Development Solutions and Mid – Level Leadership Development Solutions and sustained leadership training on competencies like self-awareness, accountability, inclusion, coaching, agility, ethics, collaboration, communication, and resilience—creates a pipeline of leaders ready to sustain the culture of tomorrow. A transformed culture ultimately reflects transformed leadership. And every leader, regardless of level, contributes to that transformation—one decision, one conversation, and one behaviour at a time.

      This blog has been written by the OD practice team at GrowthSqapes.

      How People Managers Lay The Foundation Of Organizational Success

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      How People Managers Drive Organizational Success

      What is People Management?

      Businesses are made successful by people. These people need to be managed effectively. People management focusses on leading, guiding, training, developing, motivating, and day-to-day management of employees to support their development and the overall goals and mission of the organization. People management responsibilities encompass all people-related tasks, including recruitment, onboarding, training and development, performance management, conflict management, employee engagement, and compensation and benefits.

      Usually, line managers, that is First Time Manager or in some cases the Middle Manager are responsible for people management in their departments, with the HR department providing guidance and assistance. HR professionals work alongside team managers to help provide feedback and leadership guidance to the Managers to enable them to work cohesively with the team and meet their career goals.

      What is the importance of People Management?

      People make the heart of every organization, which is why effective people management is so important. Here are some of the ways in which strong people management skills can benefit your employees and your organization. 

      • Retaining employees – multiple statistics show that people don’t leave a company or a job; they leave a poor manager. The reverse of this is that people always remember a truly great manager who was easy to work with, helped them reach their goals, and genuinely valued them. Effective people managers will help you increase your chances of retaining top talent. 
      • Creating a positive and psychologically safe & supportive workplace environment – Effective people management leads to employees who feel supported and psychologically safe, who are then more likely to be happy, engaged, and have a positive attitude at work. That contributes to a positive workplace climate for everyone. 
      • Stimulating productivity, engagement, and performance – When employees feel valued and cared for, are recognized and rewarded for good work, and understand the role they play within the organization and how to progress in their career, they are much more likely to be engaged at work and perform at their best.
      • Conflict resolution – People management skills enable managers to have open and direct conversations with employees. Team managers can navigate conflict and address any issues sooner rather than later to reduce dysfunctional conflict at work. 
      • Effective collaboration – Leaders with strong people management skills are better able to manage their teams, meet objectives, and foster an engaged and collaborative team environment. 
      • Skills development – Good managers help employees develop in their careers and gain the skills and confidence they need to meet their personal and professional goals, which also benefit the organization. 
      • Creating Business Impact – The ultimate goal of people management is to meet the goals and mission of the organization. When people are managed effectively, they are better equipped to succeed in their role and contribute to these goals and create a business impact.  

      Which People Management skills warrant a development?

      Fundamentally speaking, People Management is the skill and art of leading, guiding, training, developing, motivating, and overseeing teams to ensure that the organizational becomes more effective and progresses towards its strategic goals. Fortunately, First Time Managers and Middle Managers can acquire and/or develop the above skills through people management training and leadership development programs. These development programs help participants develop:

      • Trust and Empathy: The most fundamental aspect of doing a people management role is the ability to build trust on team members and stakeholders. Further, empathy is important for managers because it builds trust, fosters a positive work environment and creates psychological safety. It helps them understand their team members’ needs, leading to increased engagement, better conflict resolution and lower attrition.
      • Constructive Feedback: People managers must offer constructive feedback without criticism to encourage continuous excellence and learning. Managers who adeptly offer specific and timely feedback to their team members ensure actionable steps towards growth.
      • Delegation: An important skill for people managers to delegate tasks to their team members. Often, managers feel compelled to complete all the tasks and may overlook the strategic growth of the organization. Effective and efficient delegation not only frees their time but empowers their team members and motivates them to deliver their best performance as they feel their contributions matter and are valued.
      • Motivation & Engagement: The Manager is the first point of contact for the team member. Also, the relationship with the organization is defined by the relationship with the Manager. Hence,Managers must carefully monitor the amount of motivation, attention and direction they give employees. Creating circumstances that motivate and engage team members is the responsibility of the Manager.
      • Communication Skills: Active listening transcends information exchange and encompasses reading and understanding non-verbal cues. Additionally, they acquire the skills to provide clear and concise instructions to team members.
      • Professional Development: Ensuring the development and growth of employees is not simply an organizational responsibility but is a strategic requirement. Effective people managers are able to create tailored growth opportunities that are aligned with individual team members. This not only enhances the performance of team members and help them acquire new skills but also ensures organizations can nurture capable individuals to lead the company’s future growth.

      People management is a continuous process and the bedrock for organizational success. GrowthSqapes’ solutions under the First Time Manager Training program and Mid-Level Leadership Development offers robust frameworks that develop the People Managers wholistically to make them future ready.

      This blog has been written by Sukanya Bhadra, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes

      The Importance of EI in the Age of AI

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      The Importance of EI in the Age of AI

      Let T.A.R.A. guide you home

      Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the fiercest disruption that human civilization has experienced since the arrival of computers several decades ago.

      When computers first arrived, there was considerable resistance, especially in unionised industries, driven by an inadvertent fear of losing livelihoods. After the industrial revolution, we had almost mastered the art of intertwining assembly lines with human brawn, and life felt balanced. But then computers changed everything. They sped up processes, condensed turnaround times, rendering many old skills to obsoletion. Slowly we evolved — learning to coexist with these machines. Over the last 50 years, we have figured out a way to move computers from sitting at our desks to fitting into our palms, until they became friends.

      Today, however, we are caught in the throes of AI disruption – a lovechild of COVID and computers really. But it has hijacked our imagination. AI now feels larger than life and harder to predict than ever before.

      A film that illustrates this beautifully is Her (released in 2013). The protagonist, overwhelmed by the emotional complexities that dating apps offer, brings home a software. This software forms a bodiless, soulful connection with him — one so deep that no other human connection compares. She becomes “the one,” missed only by the lack of a mortal touch.

      This is how AI is manifesting around us much faster than we imagined. AI is learning to imitate Human Intelligence. Technology is transitioning from simply doing to essentially being. 

      AI is a colleague we fear who may be smarter than us. We are being displaced and replaced, pushed out from our comfortable positions and legacy knowledge, into an era whose boundaries feel like an elusive mirage, a storm whose eye is unknown.

      So, what is happening to us as living, breathing, well-meaning souls? We, us – how do we feel? And how do we act? We experience fear of the unknown, a threat of survival.

      Leaders are tasked with the role of navigating this transition for themselves and those that they have led. They face resistance, insecurity, they experience people’s experience of betrayal when tough decisions are being taken, such as – slower appraisals, job losses etc. The world is changing in ways we cannot fully comprehend. And as leaders, we have to explain this change to others. Do we feel inept, insufficient or limited in helping others navigate change, while still knowing that we are well-meaning individuals? Does our humanness feel more challenged than ever before? Possibly.

      But we know for certain that we have something that AI does not: human emotions and our infinite capability to translate our emotional intelligence from our doing to our being.

      And therein lies the infiniteness of my concept – T.A.R.A.

      TARA, meaning star in Indian languages, holds many connotations in ancient and medieval cultures — a guiding light, a form of divinity, symbolising compassion and direction.

      Let me use this as an acronym to explain the forces behind it that will help us to thrive as leaders. T.A.R.A stands for Trust. Accept. Resolve. Align.

      Let us delve into why these are the most important in transforming our leadership journeys.

      • Trust – An essential quality — one that we often find either intrinsically present or conspicuously absent from individuals and organisations. When we do not trust others, can we say we truly trust ourselves?

      In moments where we fear losing our position, feel overshadowed by someone more skilled, or threatened by replacement — are we operating from trust or insecurity?

      Trust brings inner security. Calm leaders are able to trust themselves and their people and even in the eye of storm it helps them to include.

      Emotional Intelligence begins here: developing trust in oneself, and extending it meaningfully to others.

      • Accept – Acceptance is the ability to process a situation and make composed decisions. It means navigating circumstances with awareness — not just of what’s happening outside, but of the inner struggles within ourselves and others. True acceptance is a boundary set by the self. It is intentional.  Compliance, in contrast, operates within boundaries set by others. We fall in line — often activating survival mode. Compliance can feel like compromise. Acceptance does not. It allows us to move with resourcefulness, without slipping into victimhood.

      Yet, acceptance – as a state of being — is difficult. We grow up in cultures steeped in rejection. From childhood to leadership, rejection lights up powerful emotional triggers. In response, we learn to either react or repress — both forms of coping that prevent deeper acceptance. When rejection is unprocessed, we lose the ability to accept ourselves — and, in turn, others.

      As leaders, our challenge is to cultivate acceptance not as compliance or passivity, but as an active presence that makes dialogue and connection possible.

      • Resolve – What cannot be accepted needs to be resolved. Resolution is not just about finding a solution. It is deeper work. It requires presence, authenticity, compassion and dialogue. But often, we are so entangled in the aftermath of the stimulus that we forget to navigate toward resolution at all. Resolution is not about agreeing, but about processing with trust and acceptance.

      Leaders struggle to resolve because we want to act on impulses. We do not resolve because we do not communicate. We do not communicate because we do not trust the process. We either react or avoid — fight or flight.

      Resolution for leaders simply means breaking it down and detangling, uncomplicating, with empathy and with kindness. When misalignment happens, be the first to say, “Let’s talk this through.” Listen beyond words. In meetings, notice what’s not being said. Ask clarifying, feeling-oriented questions.

      • Align: Imagine an axis running through the centre of every being — an invisible line that holds us upright, grounds us, and guides our every movement – be it an individual or the collective (the organisation).

      The balance of this axis determines how centred we are within ourselves. It is where our locus of control should lie. Alignment requires our wholeness — our ability to remain rooted in who we are, even as the world around us shifts.

      When alignment becomes the center of a leader’s being, we make choices not out of survival, but from a place of clarity, purpose, and integrity. It is this alignment to our values, our truth, and our humanity, that allows us to move forward without losing ourselves.

      Reconnect with your “why”: What kind of world are you helping create — with or without AI?

      Activating EI-driven Leadership shifts in times of AI

      In an era where AI feels threateningly whirlwind-like, let T.A.R.A. keep you centered.

      T.A.R.A.Shift from “Doing”Shift into “Being”
      TrustControlling, proving, fear stateGrounded in self-reliance, empowering others
      AcceptResisting, complying, impulsesSeeing clearly, embracing with openness
      ResolveAvoiding, blaming, angerEngaging, processing, healing
      AlignHustling, reactingRooted, intentional, values-led, self-awareness

      T.A.R.A. can act as your leadership compass and help build 1) resilience without resistance, 2) courage without aggression, 3) adaptability without losing identity, 4) groundedness in the face of abstraction.

      Let’s get emotional, let’s bring our T.A.R.A home!

      This blog has been by Sukanya Bhadra, an Associate Partner with GrowthSqapes

      Strategic Organizational Transformation

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      strategic organizational transformation

      What and why needed?

      Organizational transformation is the process of transforming and changing the existing organization structure, corporate culture and employee behavior to reap certain strategic business results. It is affected by visible action taken by organizational leaders to move from the present to the future in order to achieve a specific outcome or benefit or to respond to the changes in the VUCA world that may be adversely impacting the organization. This blog underlines the steps that can be taken to cause a successful transformation; written in the context of a real-life case pertaining to NWO, which is predominantly an upstream operator and asset owner, exploring and producing in the North Sea, Africa, and the Middle East.

      When the price of a barrel of oil plunged by more than 80% the market dynamics had already changed. Nord-West Oelleitung GmbH (NWO) met the challenges of these new market conditions by implementing an extensive organisational restructuring and behavioural change programme. Implemented in a matter of months, this programme led to a new more agile organisation ready to react to industry changes and embrace new opportunities as they arise. NWO, puts the success of the programme down to one simple reason, “We had a plan and we stuck to it”. It might sound like a simplistic approach, but with over 700 employees affected and the business-critical implementation carried out in a matter of months, this simple tactic proved its worth.

      Onboarding the right people:

      To help them execute the plan, NWO brought in transformation consultants. The tight timeframe and extent of the changes led to the transformation team taking a bold approach to strategic change management. In addition to carefully planning and documenting a series of initiatives, including workshops and training sessions, they decided to use a pull model to allow time for support on an ad-hoc basis. Transformation Leader Dr Pete Harpum explains, “We started this programme with a very clear idea of the key processes and behaviours that the business needed. But we also knew that we couldn’t just take a training manual approach to a transformation of this size. We needed to incorporate flexibility to deal with the unpredictable issues we knew would emerge as the programme unfolded.”

      This combination of a clear strategic plan plus scheduled and ad hoc support meant the strategic transformation programme was completed in a matter of months with visible benefits from the start. Furthermore, its success was underlined by the fact it was carried out with minimal impact on production and zero incidents.

      Meticulous planning:

      Planning the organisational transformation started and putting success measures in place is crucial to the success of the initiative. At NWO an internal team looked at the restructuring needed to achieve greater agility in delivering business critical projects while reducing operating costs. The resulting design of the new organisation was created around a strong matrix structure that aligned the new teams with a clearer focus on the business instead of being organised around functions. To handle the organisational change, NWO established a cross-functional Transformation Management Office (TMO) comprising of a secretariat, HR and the transformation consultants. Part of the TMO, Jane Smith was involved in the scoping of the strategic transformation and describes the changes as “incredibly sensitive” as they affected around 700 employees. “Some people were promoted, some demoted, people got new managers, new areas to work in. So it was all about finding the right operating processes and rhythm for the company,” she says.

      Mapping the right skill:

      Ensuring that the right job is mapped to the person who has the appropriate skill set is important to ensure the success of any change management initiative . Although they were brought in as external consultants, the transformation team worked as an integrated part of the TMO, located on site, and were able to complement the NWO team with their unique skills. “We used the skills of the transformation consultants but the process was still very much internally driven. This was definitely part of its success. No-one could say that we’d used consultants who didn’t understand our business. We knew which processes were necessary but not how people would react. This was where transformation specialists could help,” said Jane Smith. “Each consultant in the transformation team had a different profile and area of business expertise. It was a good opportunity for us to learn from them and take advantage of their key skills,” says Fred Brown, Head of HR at NWO.

      Agility in management:

      The VUCA world demands that the change is implemented before it becomes necessary to change again. Therefore, to avoid the insecurity and inefficiency that any transformation programme breeds, the process was fast and intense – lasting just a few months. All employees were presented with the case for change in their teams and then held individual meetings with their old, and in some cases new, managers to discuss questions, concerns and plans.

      Once the transformation was underway, the benefits of the flexible approach to the change process taken by the consultants were clear. Any issues were spotted and managed in a timely manner before they escalated or became negative office gossip that could heighten insecurity. In many ways, this approach also pre-empted the resistance that is encountered when external consultants are involved in creating new organisational structures.

      Managing stakeholders:

      Transformation is driven by the key stakeholders, hence keeping them in one’s good books definitely helps. “The managers at NWO are highly professional dedicated individuals who have been hired because they can deliver. Therefore, they’re not the sort of people who think they need help. Our approach and presence on site as part of the team meant we could provide the coaching and role modelling they needed without putting it into a formal structure,” says Pete Harpum. It might sound like an unusual approach but this fluidity meant the transformation team could react as needed in a more dynamic way. “It probably appeared coincidental when we showed up at the coffee machine to talk to the individuals about what was going on. But for us, this was carefully thought about. Working closely with the TMO, we had already identified peoples’ specific sensitivities and had anticipated their needs,” explains Pete Harpum. “By having the transformation consultants on site, we could get change management support immediately and therefore we could adjust to what the organization needed,” says Fred Brown, Head of HR at NWO.

      Building cohesive teams:

      In addition to this ad-hoc individual support, the transformation team also facilitated a series of over fifty customised workshops in the areas, ranging from strategic thinking to culture change to leadership development. By focusing sessions on actual needs, the teams involved were able to create vision statements for their teams, clarify roles and responsibilities, identify team ground rules, establish efficient and value adding activities, and improve effectiveness of team meetings as well as identify opportunities in terms of strategic feasibility and cost reduction. “Again, we knew what we had to achieve and by not scripting each session down to a fine level of detail we could maintain our focus on the people and teams affected by the change and their actual needs. And it paid off. During one session, a team in the Sub Surface Function found savings of £80 million in one hour. This kind of initiative wouldn’t have happened had we had not let the workshop be led by the people involved,” says Pete Harpum.

      Measuring success:

      No transformation initiative can be called a success unless the success measures are achieved. Nine months down the line and the new organisational matrix structure was in place. 200 people switched jobs, managers and teams and the organisation had the agility required to face future challenges. Looking back, Jane Smith is pleased with the way people have embraced the new structure. The overall process was a success from a business perspective. Change was never easy but it has been well managed and during the process, NWO has managed to maintain stable production and reduce the number of incidents. The transformation project has been vital to the company. It was well executed as could be seen in the fact that production indicators actually increased, which had never happened in previous change management programmes.

      GrowthSqapes offers multiple solutions in leading and managing change from diagnosis to implementation.

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