From 70% Failing Transitions
— to 95% Successful Change
Organizational change fails more frequently than it succeeds. This is not merely an opinion — it is one of the most thoroughly substantiated observations in management literature. Harvard Business Review, John Kotter, and McKinsey have independently arrived at the same conclusion: approximately 70% of all change initiatives fail to achieve their intended outcomes.
Harvard Business Review
One of the most cited sources for the 70% claim.
Cracking the Code of Change.
Harvard Business Review, May–June 2000.
Key passage:
“The brutal fact is that about 70% of all change initiatives fail.”
This statement is frequently cited in consulting literature and change management studies to underscore the complexity inherent in organizational transformation.
John Kotter
Kotter is one of the most frequently cited authors on organizational change.
Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail. Harvard Business Review.
Numerous summaries of Kotter's work assert that approximately 70% of transformations either fail or do not achieve their desired outcomes.
Kotter's analysis was founded on observations from over 100 transformations within large organizations.
McKinsey
McKinsey employs comparable statistics in its research concerning organizational transformations.
The forgotten step in leading large-scale change.
Key finding from the research:
Approximately 70% of change programs fail to yield their intended results. Many challenges stem from mindsets, behavior, and leadership.
This figure is derived from surveys conducted among executives and analyses of transformation programs.
The root causes are consistently the same: a lack of a shared vision at the top, strategies that aren’t translated into action, and insufficient attention to people and culture. Novy-T has turned that situation into the other way around.
The approach behind 95% success
Novy-T's strength is rooted in three interconnected pillars that directly address the most prevalent failure factors:
Lean Six Sigma
A structured methodology that enhances processes, minimizes waste, and measurably elevates performance through the DMAIC approach.
Change Profile Scan
A unique baseline assessment that provides senior management with insights in change capacity, risks, and success factors—and creates a shared starting point for all types of transformations.
Practical Implementation Guidance
No reports destined to gather dust. Novy-T provides guidance from initial diagnosis through to sustainment — ensuring that change is not merely conceptualized, but effectively implemented and embedded.
Transitions succeed when
- Senior management has a clear and shared vision
- Strategic decisions are explicit and well-understood
- Interventions are specific and goal-oriented
- Decisiveness is evident at every level of the organisation
This is precisely what Novy-T aims to achieve.
Would you like to know how your organisation can make the move from 70% failure to 95% success?