Managing Change
Change is the only constant in business, yet managing it well remains one of the hardest things to do. Whether it’s a strategic transformation, a new technology rollout, or a cultural reset, the way change is managed can ultimately determine its success.
At Nine Yards, we believe the most effective organisational change happens when leaders consider both business outcomes and the employee experience. When strategy and empathy go hand-in-hand, change becomes not just successful, but sustainable.
1. Start with the ‘Why’ – and Make It Real
Change fatigue is real, especially when employees don’t understand why things are shifting. Over the last 5 years, we have experienced immense change, including lockdowns due to the pandemic, return to work mandates and the emergence of AI, and one thing is clear, people need a clear and compelling rationale for the change.
Leaders should connect the “why” to something tangible and human — how it will make work better, customers happier, or opportunities greater. Authentic communication builds trust and reduces resistance.
Nine Yards Tip: Try to tap into the emotional impact of the change, not only for the organisation but for you personally. Storytelling is a great tool to use here.
2. Engage, Don’t Just Inform
Traditional change management often stops at communication — town halls, emails, presentations. But communication without engagement is just noise.
True engagement means involving people early: asking for input, testing ideas, and giving employees ownership of the journey. When people participate, they commit. You can liken this to a psychological phenomenon called The Ikea Effect – this occurs where people place disproportionately high value on things they help create or assemble themselves, even if the end result isn’t perfect.
Nine Yards Tip: Consider different ways to create engagement and input from your team – open forums, pulse surveys, or design sprints that let employees shape the change.
3. Equip Your Leaders to Lead Through Change
Middle managers are often the make-or-break layer of transformation. They translate vision into reality, but they’re also the ones being squeezed in terms of output.
Invest in their capability to coach, communicate, and navigate ambiguity. If you are in the midst of change, consider the tools and support they will need in order to lead the change in the most effective way.
Nine Yards Tip: Support your leaders in how they lead change, especially if it is a skill or process they haven’t had to navigate before. Offer practical support such as talking points, key messages for change and leadership channels & communities to help leaders manage through uncertainty.
4. Prioritise the Employee Experience
When people feel cared for, they deliver their best. During times of change, uncertainty can erode trust, productivity, and morale.
Designing an optimal experience means thinking about what employees need at each stage – clarity, support, recognition, or simply space to innovate or adapt.
Nine Yards Tip: Use human-centred design principles in your change approach. Map the employee journey just as you would a customer journey and consider what areas should be a focus area.
5. When change means redundancy
Every organisation, at some point may have to reshape the structure of their organisation, which may mean redundancies. This is genuinely a challenging time given the impact on the individual employee and the team at large. When managing this process it is critical to understand your legal obligations as well as how best to support the employee as they transition out of your organisation.
Nine Yards Tip: Treating employees with respect should always be the priority, think providing outplacement services, EAP and even referrals to external partners to support them in their next chapter.
6. Measure What Matters
Too often, change success is defined only by timelines and budgets. But lasting impact depends on adoption, engagement, and performance outcomes. Balance your metrics and track not only what changed, but how people experienced it.
Nine Yards Tip: Combine hard metrics (KPIs, project milestones) with soft data (sentiment analysis, engagement scores, feedback loops). This helps you learn from the process, to set you up for success in the future.
The Takeaway
Successful organisational change isn’t just about moving from A to B – it’s about bringing your people with you. When you integrate business needs with human empathy, you create change that sticks.
#Leadership #ChangeManagement #EmployeeExperience #OrganisationalDevelopment #NineYards