Management of long-term, complex, large-scale change has a reputation of not delivering the anticipated benefits. A primary reason for this is that leaders generally fail to consider how to approach change in a way that matches their intent.

Consider Ling Yen*, a client of ours and finance director at an industrial manufacturing company. She sat with her leadership team, aware that the board’s decision to set up a global organization for the company’s specialist functions would not sit well with them. They had been through two global restructures in the last four years — with mixed success. Those changes had required endless governance-reporting back to HQ, as well as tool kits and implementations that change-weary local businesses were finding only partially relevant. Ling Yen decided that she couldn’t ask her people to go through that type of change again. How could she approach this change in a way that was different, sustainable, and less effortful? Read this great HBR article to find out more.