Lead Your Organization Next Transformation

The data around organizational transformations isn’t pretty. McKinsey reports that 70 percent of large-scale business transformations fail. And even when transformations “succeed,” McKinsey says, companies are realizing only 67 percent of the maximum financial benefits envisioned. Unsuccessful transformations realize only 37 percent.

Yet the need for business transformation has never been greater. Harvard Business Review (HBR) notes that half the companies on the Fortune 500 list in 2000 have either gone bankrupt, been acquired or ceased to exist—largely because they failed to transform fast enough to keep pace with the rate of digital disruption.

But that seems to be a significant issue for organizations and could, in fact, be an opportunity for project management professionals. What if, rather than turning to costly external consultants to drive transformations, companies relied instead on internal transformation experts—individuals who not only understand a company’s values and culture but are already responsible for driving change within the organization.

The benefits would be many. Transformations would likely be faster, more cost-effective and more culturally attuned to the organization’s needs—ensuring companies keep pace with the quickly evolving business environment. And project professionals would become an even more valuable resource—serving as trusted consultants to the C-suite, while also enhancing their potential to climb the corporate ladder.

That, briefly, is the rationale behind PMI’s Organizational Transformation Series—a three-part e-course series designed to teach project professionals and changemakers at all levels how to effectively participate in and lead transformations. The series covers the processes, best practices, frameworks and strategies behind large-scale organizational transformations and allows organizations to leverage internal talent to transform from within.

The Organizational Transformation Series approaches transformation as a company-wide initiative rather than a siloed or top-down approach starting at the C-suite. It helps bridge the gap between transformation strategy and execution, allowing project professionals to lead transformation efforts in a more effective and efficient way.

The Series comprises three e-courses: Foundation, Implementation and Orchestration. Each course engages learners with content that explains how to reduce transformation expenses, drive engagement and ultimately strengthen organizational culture.

The courses also challenge the learner to consider and reflect on their personal transformation and career goals and to chart their progress on building transformation skills that may make them more attractive to a current or future employer. The Organizational Transformation Series breaks down as follows:

• Foundation: A nine-module course that explores the theory, concepts and benefits behind an organizational transformation. The course describes what drives transformation and why transformation competencies are critical to business success. It also identifies transformation challenges, describes best practices and explains the role project leaders play in the transformation process.
• Implementation: A five-module course that prepares project professionals to undertake transformation projects. The course helps professionals assess an organization’s transformation readiness and describes the frameworks available to execute a transformation strategy.
• Orchestration: A seven-module course that prepares learners to drive and oversee people-oriented, agile transformation efforts. The course explains what it takes to lead a people-centered transformation, describes the frameworks needed to achieve transformation outcomes and helps professionals assess market conditions and the capabilities needed to successfully transform.

Upon completing each course, project professionals can test their learnings and earn a micro-credential—positioning themselves as trusted experts who can not only support but also potentially lead an organizational transformation.

The Organizational Transformation Series also complements other offerings in PMI’s portfolio, including PMI Citizen Developer™, Disciplined Agile, Wicked Problem Solving® and the PMI Risk Management Professional. Project professionals can pair courses in any of these areas to solve other large-scale challenges associated with transformations.