"We clearly defined our strategy, communicated the goals, released the budgets, and yet almost nothing moves. Day-to-day business always wins."
– Transformation lead at a German industrial group
Does this sound familiar? The strategy is in place, the roadmap is set, first initiatives are underway. Yet the organisation does not follow through: responsibilities are unclear, decisions stall, and old patterns reassert themselves.
The reason is rarely a lack of will or poor planning. It is that the operating model of the organisation does not fit the new direction. A transformation roadmap defines what needs to change and when. The operating model goes further: it defines the organisational structures that remain in place after the transformation and enable operational excellence. It covers four dimensions: Processes & Technology, Organisation Model, Leadership Model, and Governance Model. Leaving these dimensions unchanged means changing processes and structures on paper, but not how the organisation actually works.
MIT researchers studied more than 1,300 global companies and found that only 22% are truly prepared for the future. In Germany, according to the Fraunhofer Transformation Index, nearly one in two companies has no clearly defined transformation goal.
My 3 keys to success:
- 1Understanding the operating model as the foundation for lasting execution capability, beyond the roadmap
- 2Addressing the governance model, leadership model, and organisation model as the most impactful levers in practice
- 3Shaping change iteratively, holistically, and with genuine employee participation
Why Transformation Fails Without an Operating Model Change: 3 Barriers
1. The strategy is clear – the translation is missing
Many organisations invest heavily in strategy processes. The result: clear goals, well-communicated priorities. Yet structures, responsibilities, and decision-making processes continue as before, because no one adapted the operating model.
The operating model translates strategy into organisational reality. The roadmap shows the path. The operating model determines whether the organisation is actually set up differently at the end of that path, or whether it falls back into old patterns once the project closes.
›Fraunhofer Transformation Index, study of 500 German companies, 2024
2. Technology is necessary – but not sufficient without culture
New systems, digital tools, automated processes: these are the visible parts of a transformation. They are necessary. But they are not enough.
John Kotter of Harvard Business School documented a recurring pattern across more than 100 transformation programmes: technical solutions are implemented early. The cultural side lags behind. This is the most common reason transformations fail to deliver on their promise.
The numbers speak for themselves: only 21% of employees worldwide are actively engaged, according to Gallup. 70% of the variance in team engagement is attributable to the direct manager. Investing in new systems while leaving the leadership model unchanged means leaving significant potential on the table.
›Kotter, J.P., "Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail", Harvard Business Review, 1995. Gallup, State of the Global Workplace 2024.
3. Optimising individual dimensions is not enough
Many organisations optimise specific areas in isolation: more efficient processes here, a new organisational structure there. The expected impact does not materialise. The reason: the four dimensions of the operating model are interdependent.
A new process model without a matching governance model creates ambiguity about who makes decisions. A new organisational structure without a changed leadership model reproduces old behaviours in new structures. Improving parts while leaving the system unchanged does not drive transformation.
MIT researchers found that companies aligning their transformation across multiple capability areas simultaneously achieve on average 17 percentage points higher revenue growth and 14 percentage points higher net margin than industry peers.
›MIT CISR, "Develop Ten Capabilities to Accelerate Digital Transformation", 2022
The Path to an Effective Operating Model: 3 Success Factors
1. Translate strategy into design principles
Before designing the operating model, one question needs an answer: what must the organisation be able to do in order to execute its strategy?
The answer is captured in design principles: short, binding statements about how the organisation should be set up. Not a list of measures, not project goals. Guardrails. Examples: "Decisions are made where the expertise sits" or "Customer accountability is clearly held by one unit." Based on these principles, the operating model is designed and then tested in selected areas before being rolled out company-wide.
Praxisbeispiel
A mid-sized technology company needed to align its decentralised structure with a new product-centred strategy. A workshop process produced four binding design principles. The organisational structure was then adapted accordingly, consolidating responsibilities along product lines. The result: shorter decision paths and faster time-to-market.
2. Prioritise the three highest-impact dimensions
Not every dimension of the operating model is equally urgent. My experience in advisory work shows that three dimensions have a disproportionate impact, because they lay the foundation on which all other changes can take hold.
Governance Model: who decides what, and on what basis? Kotter identifies missing leadership coalitions and unclear decision structures as two of the most common failure points in transformation programmes. Both are governance questions.
Leadership Model: leadership style, culture, change management. Gallup shows that manager engagement has fallen to 27% globally in 2024. Cultural change does not happen through directives. It happens when leaders model the behaviour themselves.
Organisation Model: structure, roles, collaboration, and a frequently underestimated aspect: workforce planning. Every transformation requires new capabilities. According to the Fraunhofer Transformation Index, only around half of German companies have built external partnerships for capability development, even though this directly determines whether new strategies can be executed.
Praxisbeispiel
A services group was struggling with opaque decision-making processes. I developed a new governance model together with the leadership team, with clearly defined decision rights at each level, and ran a parallel leadership programme to strengthen a culture of accountability. After six months: noticeably less coordination overhead and greater ownership across business areas.
3. Proceed iteratively and involve employees
Operating model redesigns often fail for one simple reason: they are treated as a project that must be finished before anything can start. That does not work.
What works: testing the new operating model in selected units first, incorporating feedback from across the organisation, and treating employees not as recipients of change but as co-designers.
Praxisbeispiel
An industrial company engaged me to redesign its operating model as part of an AI transformation. Rather than a top-down rollout: co-design workshops across different levels of the organisation, followed by a pilot in two business units. The insights shaped the final model. The result: higher acceptance, less resistance, and a model that works in practice.
My Approach: 3 Phases to an Effective Operating Model
Phase 1: Diagnosis & Design Principles
Using a structured operating model scan, I analyse the current state across all four dimensions: Processes & Technology, Organisation Model, Leadership Model, and Governance Model.
- Interviews with leaders and key stakeholders
- Identification of gaps between strategy and current operating model
- Derivation of binding design principles
Phase 2: Operating Model Design & Pilot
Based on the principles, I design the target structures and test them in selected units to validate practical workability before company-wide rollout.
- Co-design of all four dimensions with internal subject matter experts
- Selection and execution of a pilot to validate the design
- Refinement of the target model based on direct feedback
Phase 3: Implementation & Capability Building
I accompany the organisational implementation and ensure through targeted change management that the new model is sustainably embedded in day-to-day operations.
- Development of playbooks for roles and decision-making processes
- Enabling leaders to manage effectively within the new model
- Ongoing monitoring and adjustment of effectiveness
Conclusion: A Roadmap Is Not Enough
Good ideas and clear plans are a starting point. But they do not explain why so many transformations fall short of their goals. The operating model does. It determines whether an organisation actually works differently after a transformation, or whether it returns to its starting point.
Only 22% of globally examined companies are truly prepared for the future. Nearly one in two German companies still has no clearly defined transformation goal. These are not communication problems. These are operating model problems.
My 3 keys to success:
- 1Understanding the operating model as the foundation for lasting execution capability, beyond the roadmap
- 2Addressing the governance model, leadership model, and organisation model as the most impactful levers in practice
- 3Shaping change iteratively, holistically, and with genuine employee participation
How well is your organisation's operating model aligned with your strategy? I look forward to the conversation.
