Leading through transformation: Insider tips for getting it right

You feel the pressure to act. A transformation is underway, stakeholders are watching, and moving fast feels like real leadership. So you jump to a plan, start communicating a direction, and get things moving. Months down the line, you notice that momentum stalls, people start disengaging, and it's not clear why.

The leaders who get transformation right do something counterintuitive first: they slow down.

Allen + Clarke's Managing Director Sonia Sharp has led transformation across organisations and systems for 25 years, and has seen this pattern play out from both sides – the programmes that stalled because leaders skipped the groundwork, and the ones that held together because leaders resisted the urge to rush.

In this session, she shares what that experience has taught her about the sequence that works, and where most leaders get it wrong.

What you'll learn:

• Diagnosing, hypothesising and testing – why these initial steps are critical

• How to run deliberate sensemaking with internal and external stakeholders

• The transformation sprint approach for surfacing and resolving competing needs early

• Tips for keeping momentum visible so people don't disengage or give up

• The leadership alignment practices that stop people from stepping away

• How to predict the hardest parts of your transformation before they derail you

Perfect for executive teams, general managers and change leads responsible for leading transformation across organisations or systems.