In the Transformation Discovery Compass the WHY sits in the centre. It does not mean the purpose of the company as in the Golden Circle, but the problem that decides whether the transformation succeeds. It often starts with customers or in the market and ends with a tension inside the organization.

An occasion is not a WHY

“We need to become more digital” is an occasion, not a WHY. Two guiding questions help: which value-relevant problem are we solving? And what happens if we change nothing? The second often hits more precisely than the first.

One WHY per run

An organization often has several real problems. The Compass works with exactly one WHY in each application: the one against which the next decision must be measured. If there are several, start with the one that keeps most of the others in place. See also value-relevant problems.

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Related Concepts

Value-Chain-Proximate Problems
Problems directly connected to value creation — as opposed to derived structural or process topics.
Transformation Discovery Compass
An instrument with six perspectives on the same situation. Helps find the mechanism behind a blockage and the decision that changes it.
Canvas
The working surface of the Compass: the WHY in the centre, the five other fields around it. Available as an A3 template.
Illusion of Control
The belief that more planning, more control, and more reporting lead to better results in complex systems.
Transformation
Changing an organization's operating model — not its processes. It rarely fails for lack of ideas, usually for lack of decisions.

Insights

Warum 70% aller Transformationsprogramme scheitern
Transformation wird wie ein Projekt gesteuert — feste Pläne, Meilensteine, Prozentfortschritte. In komplexen Systemen funktioniert das nicht.

Related Tools

Transformation Self-Check 5–10 Min

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