What Works—and What Doesn’t—in Transformation
Transformations are becoming harder, with 57% missing targets, but data-backed success factors let the best companies still outperform.
Summary
BCG's third annual transformation survey (~1,000 companies) found 57% of transformations missed value or timeline targets, up from 40% the year before, amid pandemic-driven cost overruns and delays. What separated the successful minority: a clearly articulated case for change (90% vs. 74%), consistent leadership alignment (49% vs. 26%), and explicitly centering employees in change planning (46% vs. 29%).
Editor's opinion
The success factors are solid but familiar change-management basics; the failure-rate headline is a pandemic-year snapshot that won't age well.
Key concepts
Transformation failure rates · Success factors · Leader and employee engagement