A Transformation Framework That Works

Every year, organisations waste $2.3 trillion¹ on transformation projects that fail.

Between 70% and 90% of these initiatives don’t deliver the desired results², meaning most organisations make large investments but never see the improvements they expected.

Successful transformations have one thing in common: they constantly ask, “Does this create value for the people we serve?” This question guides decisions, changes and investment.

Of course, every organisation aims to create value for customers. It's in mission statements, strategic plans and board presentations. The question is: how do you make it central to your transformation, rather than just good intentions?

“What value are we creating, for whom?”

When you focus on human value, business outcomes follow. Increased loyalty, stronger advocacy, efficiency and growth are all natural results of better customer and employee experiences.

Customer-led transformation changes how your organisation thinks, decides and delivers. It requires aligning three layers around customer value.

The ‘Customer-Led Transformation Framework’

Core: Why do people choose you, and what do you promise in return?

The ‘core’ is about why people choose you, stay with you and advocate for you. It includes your purpose, vision and customer value propositions (CVPs). A strong core ensures your offerings connect deeply with customer needs.

Delivery: How does value reach the people you serve?

The ‘delivery’ layer articulates how value reaches customers and stakeholders through your products, services, channels and experiences. Effective delivery is crucial for both customer satisfaction and profitability.

Enablers: What makes delivery possible, efficient and sustainable?

These provide the infrastructure that makes delivery efficient and sustainable: your processes, capabilities, technology and governance. Strategic investment in enablers supports both customer experiences and commercial objectives.

What success looks like

When these layers work together, they build transformation momentum. You'll know the layers are aligned when:

• Your internal operations reflect what customers value externally
• Investments in systems and processes are guided by the unique value you promise customers
• Different parts of the organisation work towards consistent, shared outcomes

Where to start

The most crucial aspect of taking a customer-led transformation approach is starting with a well-defined Core.

Where you start determines everything else. Begin your transformation with a clear vision that puts customer value at the centre.

Your transformation vision needs four qualities:

• Customer-led: Built from the customer's perspective, shaped by what they need
• Aspirational: Ambitious enough to inspire your people
• Measurable: Defines success in concrete terms, including commercial metrics
• Sticky: Simple and memorable, so people can rally around it

Your vision is supported by customer value propositions (CVPs). A strong CVP answers two questions:

1. Why do customers choose you instead of competitors?
2. What value will they get every time they interact with you?

CVPs give you a consistent way to make decisions. They guide what products you build, how you deliver services, where you invest money, and what leaders prioritise.

When you build your transformation around what customers truly value, you create advantages that last long after they’re initially implemented.

Three further principles for customer-led transformation

1. Give employees what they need to succeed

Your employees make or break transformation. When they understand what customers need and have the tools to help them, they naturally support change. Empowered, capable, engaged staff deliver on your customer promises in ways that feel genuine.

Practice co-design and work with employees to design new ways of working. Be transparent about what's changing and why. This speeds up adoption, builds lasting capabilities, and directly improves both service quality and commercial performance.

2. Only build what supports value delivery

Technology, processes and structures are tools, not goals. They matter, but only because they help you deliver value to people.

Before you invest in any system, process or structure, ask: Does this directly improve things for customers, staff or stakeholders?

Design these tools to serve the experience you want to create. This approach keeps you from over-investing in things that don’t move the needle on your customer-led success measures.

3. Leadership creates sustained capability

Customer-led transformation demands a different and unique kind of human-centred leadership. Leaders need to:

• Question their own assumptions about what customers want
• Listen to customers and frontline staff
• Stay focused on creating value even when other pressures mount

This means saying no to things, making bold choices and building a culture where customer value drives every decision.

Most importantly, leaders need to treat transformation as a permanent way of working, not a one-time project. This mindset fosters continuous improvement and sustained commercial advantage.

The Value of This Approach

A customer-led transformation approach offers several advantages:

• Greater clarity: When your transformation is defined and aligned around customer value, decision-making becomes clearer.
• Increased adoption: Transformation becomes about enabling people to deliver outcomes they find meaningful.
• Compounding benefits: Better experiences and lower costs work together, multiplying benefits. The results are significant cost savings and better profit margins.
• Accountability: Creates clear lines of sight from customer outcomes through operational decisions to financial performance.

Is your transformation centred on customer value?

The organisations that succeed are those that stay anchored in customer value and align each organisational layer to deliver that value sustainably.

If you’re rethinking how to make transformation deliver tangible impact, start by putting customer value at the centre.

If that’s the kind of change you want to lead, get in touch with one of our team.

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References

$2.3trillion wasted globally in failed digital transformation programs - costly and complex business strategies are ‘not necessary’ (2024) Taylor & Francis Newsroom.

Garcia, J. (2022) Common pitfalls in transformations: A conversation with Jon Garcia, McKinsey & Company.