Change Signal

In this episode: Navigating uncertainty versus ambiguity, treating strategy as a living conversation, and looking beyond the obvious for weak signals.Dr. Jason Fox challenges conventional notions of change management by urging us to develop sensibilities rather than just skills. He argues that traditional scenario planning creates an illusion of control that fails when contexts shift radically.We’re both deeply skeptical of outsourcing strategy to consultants with impressive PowerPoint decks. Rather, Jason suggests cultivating in-house intelligence and attunement to what's emerging. "Strategy emerges from relationality," he explains, emphasizing the importance of collective sense-making.Perhaps most provocatively, he warns against fixating on the bright, shiny trends everyone's talking about. "When you fixate upon something that's shining bright, it means that it's harder to see what exists in the penumbra," Fox notes — encouraging leaders to develop curiosity, empathy, and attunement to weak signals.Whether you're leading transformation or just trying to stay ahead of disruption, Dr Jason Fox's perspectives offer a refreshing alternative to business-as-usual approaches.Change Signal. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works in change management. 🎧 New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter at thechangesignal.com.

Find leverage points that yield disproportionate returns, study bright spots instead of just solving problems, and tap into existing motivation rather than forcing buy-in.Dan Heath is one of the smartest writers I know about change and transformation, and his new book "Reset: How to Change What's Not Working" explores systems-level change that complements the behavior change approach from his earlier book "Switch."Dan shares brilliant insights about how teams miss change opportunities by accepting the status quo and believing change isn't possible. He explains why studying your bright spots — the areas already working well — can provide powerful leverage points and practical solutions without triggering resistance.I love Dan's distinction between the over-developed "problem-solving muscle" and the neglected "success-spotting muscle" that leaders need to strengthen. His most provocative idea? The straight-line path to change that makes analytical sense is often doomed if you ignore what actually motivates people.The conversation offers practical frameworks for leaders facing tough trade-offs and needing to make courageous choices about what to prioritize and what to let go.Change Signal. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works in change management.🎧 New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter at thechangesignal.com.

Emotions at work, agency in change, and turning bitter into better: these are the deep insights for what it takes to maintain enthusiasm for successful transformation. In my conversation with Cassandra Worthy, she shares how painful corporate acquisitions led to her developing the "Change Enthusiasm" mindset and framework she now champions.She challenges the consulting doomsayers who claim 70-95% of change initiatives fail. Instead, Cassandra offers a refreshing perspective: change happens for you, not to you.Her powerful insight? "Our potential as human beings is determined by what happens at the intersection of change and emotion." Signal emotions aren't to be suppressed but embraced as guides.Leaders must create courageous containers where people feel safe expressing authentic feelings. By building momentum with enthusiasts and skeptics, you'll eventually win over the cynics, too.This isn't just theory — it's a well-tested approach from someone who's navigated corporate upheaval from the trenches to the executive suite.Change Signal. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works in change management. 🎧 New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter at thechangesignal.com.

Audit your change tools, map them on a 2×2 matrix, and discover your untapped breakthrough approaches. In my first solo episode, I share a practical framework for evaluating your change management toolkit — perfect for transformation leaders who want to boost their success rate. Inspired by my conversation with Carolyn Webb, I suggest creating a consultant's classic tool: a 2×2 matrix plotting usage against impact.This matrix reveals four crucial insights about your change approaches. Your high-use, high-impact tools are your trusty go-tos, while the low-use, low-impact quadrant shows what you've wisely abandoned.The most interesting quadrants? High-use with low-impact (why are you still using these?) and the potential goldmine: high-impact tools you're underusing. These underutilized approaches might be your breakthrough opportunity.Are you clinging to comfortable but ineffective methods? Or avoiding powerful tools because they're challenging? Your transformation's success might depend on your answer.Change Signal. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works in change management.🎧 New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter at thechangesignal.com.

Here's why auditing current commitments is essential before launching any new initiative, how to overcome our powerful bias toward maintaining the status quo, and what a 19th-century philosopher's fence teaches us about intelligent transformation.When leading organizational change, it pays to first understand what's already in motion. In this bonus episode, Caroline Webb, leadership coach, former McKinsey consultant, and author of "How to Have a Good Day," reveals our tendency to add new initiatives without stopping existing ones—and how this leads to burnout and ineffective change efforts.Drawing from her experience coaching executives and leading organizational transformations, Caroline highlights our blind spot: we don't even know what we're already committed to. She shares a powerful example of mapping initiatives with a hospital CEO's team, where they discovered projects some thought were finished, others no one had heard of, and many with unclear status.What makes this conversation valuable is Caroline's no-nonsense approach to the change leader's dilemma: you can't add something new without making space by removing something else. Her insight that every choice—including not changing—comes with "prizes and punishments" and provides a powerful framework for decision-making. The audit process she describes helps not only identify what to cut, but also reveals where you can leverage existing work rather than creating something entirely new.If you're wrestling with overwhelmed teams, wondering how to create space for new initiatives, or trying to focus on what truly matters, this episode gives you actionable tools to audit your current state before embarking on any change journey.Change Signal. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works in change management. 🎧 New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter at thechangesignal.com.

Leidy Klotz, a Professor at the University of Virginia and author of "Subtraction: The Untapped Science of Less," explores the overlooked power of subtraction in change management. He shares how organizations often default to adding rather than removing, hindering effective improvements. Through engaging examples like Lego bricks and Strider bikes, Leidy reveals the importance of recognizing what to eliminate. His practical strategies encourage a mindset shift to enhance decision-making and creativity, empowering leaders to transform their approaches to change.

Margaret Heffernan, author of "Uncharted" and mentor to global CEOs, dives into the complexities of organizational change. She highlights why euphemistic language can derail transformation and encourages leaders to treat their teams as capable individuals. With insights from her time in tech and a captivating case study from Pixar, she illustrates how to foster a culture of creativity and agency. Heffernan’s no-nonsense approach reveals that constant change is vital for growth, challenging leaders to embrace rather than resist it.

Katy Milkman, a Wharton professor and author of "How to Change," dives deep into the psychology of behavior change. She highlights that 40% of premature deaths result from choices we can control, offering insights on improving decision-making. Katy emphasizes the power of 'fresh start' moments and the importance of engaging the 'movable middle' in organizations to drive transformation. She also debunks the myth of positive visualization, advocating for pre-mortems to predict challenges instead. A fresh look at change management!

Pim de Morree, co-founder of Corporate Rebels, champions a radical shift in change management by prioritizing people over outdated models. He discusses how transformative processes can flourish through employee voting and participation, rather than top-down mandates. Pim emphasizes the importance of addressing the human side of transformations, likening it to 'group therapy' for teams. This approach has resulted in enhanced productivity and engagement. Ultimately, he argues for a thoughtful, experimental mindset that values connection as much as process.

If you lead organizational transformation, this will be your favourite podcast.Leading change in organizations is harder than ever. It’s complex, it’s unpredictable and it’s overwhelming. Change Signal cuts through the noise to find the good stuff that works.New episodes drop every two weeks. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at https://thechangesignal.com/==A welcome from MichaelI’m so delighted you’re here. Thank you.If you know me at all, you might know me as the author of The Coaching Habit.It’s become the best-selling book on coaching this century, Brené Brown called it “essential,” and Seth Godin said it is “the best book on coaching.”So what am I doing digging into organizational transformation? The truth is, I've spent three decades hunting for the best insights, strategies, and tools in change management. My journey started in innovation, working in an agency helping clients launch new products and services. It was a fun first job … but we didn’t make much of a difference.It’s true, I can boast playing a small role in stuff-crust pizza and in a whisky that’s been rated “the worst single malt whisky ever invented” … but mostly, we found it hard to get things done.Frustration with our low success rates led me to become a change management consultant. I did end up writing the vision for GSK when it merged, but mostly I learned that consultants don't always have the answers. Or at least, not the useful ones.I led an internal culture change initiative (with middling success), and then founded Box Of Crayons, where for more than twenty years we’ve helped major organizations harness curiosity as a catalyst for change.Along the way, I've seen some transformation projects succeed brilliantly, a few fail spectacularly, and many be … underwhelming.From digital transformations to mergers, from product launches to technology upgrades – I've collected a few trophies and a ton of scars.I’ve learned enough that I’ve had the privilege of writing the introductions to books by two of my big change influences, William Bridges and Edgar Schein.But I'm still learning. This field feels like it needs a shake up.There’s too much that’s bland, predictable, tired, colonized by the big consultancies, and outdated.I want to change thatI’m on a quest to bring you the good stuff that works. I want you to feel more confident and less overwhelmed, more influential and less stretched.Change Signal feels like the culmination of a thirty-year journey.I’m glad you’re here with me.~ Michael Bungay StanierPS - Sign up for our weekly newsletter at https://thechangesignal.com/