Change Signal

Tension drives innovation, productive conflict is essential for change, and effective listening helps you understand what truly matters to people. Dr. Liane Davey reveals how to use conflict as a catalyst for positive change in organizations where most teams have too little productive tension, not too much. As a change leader, it turns out that your job isn't to avoid conflict but to create the right kind of "yoga uncomfortable" stretch that makes everyone stronger. Davey's tent metaphor brilliantly illustrates how teams should balance multiple tensions to achieve optimal solutions where "everyone sleeps dry tonight." I particularly love her advice on giving people an obligation to disagree rather than permission, transforming resistance into purposeful contribution. She shows us how to ask "open drawbridge questions" that help us understand the treasure people are protecting when they breathe fire. This conversation will fundamentally change how you approach resistance in your next change initiative. The skills Davey shares will help you create the forums where good fights happen and better solutions emerge. 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.

John Zeratsky, a former design leader at YouTube and Google, revolutionizes change management with his rapid prototyping strategy. He emphasizes that every change is just a hypothesis until tested, urging teams to move quickly from idea to prototype. This approach not only clarifies objectives but also energizes teams and captivates stakeholders. Zeratsky also discusses the importance of differentiation in initiatives, ensuring that changes are truly transformative rather than just incremental. His insights offer fresh methods for navigating workplace change and overcoming resistance.

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.

Dan Heath, a renowned writer on change and transformation, delves into the intricacies of effective change management. He highlights the importance of identifying 'bright spots'—areas of success that can facilitate broader organizational change. Heath argues that teams often overlook motivation, relying too heavily on problem-solving rather than celebrating achievements. He shares frameworks for leaders to navigate tough decisions and emphasizes the courage needed to prioritize impactful actions over the status quo.

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!