Your Organizational Transformation
We hate workplaces that oppress the human spirit.
Our mission is to help you build one that doesn’t.
Our Approach
Built on first principles thinking and Gall’s Law (that complex systems that work evolve from simple ones that work), we begin transformation by tailoring a simple system that fits your organization and team. Our focus is helping you build a resilient “learning engine”—enabling your team to quickly identify and solve the obstacles standing between them and a more joyful, harmonious way of working. Leaders become coaches, not only skilled at solving technical problems themselves, but also at developing those problem-solving skills in others. This enables growth based on real human needs, grounded in purpose and shared rhythm.
Lean tools and agile practices work—but without the leadership to navigate the human side, success stalls. We help organizations invest in both sides of change so that process does not outrun people, and learning becomes a system-wide capability.
We aren’t for everyone
Do you value …
If you answered “no” to each of the above, then you have come to right place!
While there is value on the items on the left, through this work we have come to value the items on the right more.
Why Most Transformations Fail …
and How to Beat the Odds
Most organizational transformations fail, but they don’t have to.
Success isn’t just about efficiency or tools—it’s about understanding the foundational principles of how individuals and groups change habits. To create and sustain a joyful, purposeful organization, you need to address both the technical and adaptive sides of change.
What technical skills do leaders need to master?
The great benefit that science provides, ... is the ability to share the results once obtained from one person to another. In contrast, this is impossible with empirical methods, [which relies on interpretation of personal experience], while science can be taught.
— Henry Le Chatelier
Real technical excellence is about more than having the best machines or the latest technology. It starts with observation, experimentation, and teaching everyone to see, solve, and improve together. Many frameworks focus only on process or equipment, but sustainable performance comes from integrating four foundational elements:
1. Scientific Thinking and Analysis
Master the scientific method—asking good questions, testing ideas, and learning from results. Leaders need the ability to convert ignorance into knowledge and use the best-known approach, which often means having a solid foundation in statistics and critical thinking.
2. Knowledge of the Work
Supervisors are often promoted for their technical know-how—which is valuable, but actually the least important skill in effective leadership. Regardless of their background, we expect leaders to support the people they depend on by learning how the process truly works from the people doing the work. Great leaders focus on how people learn technical skills, so they can facilitate effective training, break down jobs into manageable tasks, and ensure the team follows the safest and most efficient methods. Most importantly, they create space for continuous feedback, making improvement an everyday habit.
3. Harmony of Selection and Operations
Leaders must be able to design and synchronize the flow of materials and information, aiming for “ideal” flow and efficient production rates. This means selecting the right-sized equipment and work cells, and coordinating departments so activities follow a clear rhythm—or “takt.” As one early human-centric leader once put it, “The role of the composer is similar to the role of the manager: both aim for harmony—the musician in sounds, the manager in the elements of work.”
4. Finance / Economics
“We build good ships. At a profit if we can, at a loss if we must. But always good ships.” -Newport News Shipbuilding motto
Focusing solely on cost reduction ironically drives costs up—and in extreme cases, can lead to devastating consequences. A foundational leadership skill, often overlooked because “that’s what the finance department is for,” is understanding cost flows and true value streams, both internally and strategically. Before launching a new product line or service, leaders must ask: What is the expected demand? Are we right-sizing our equipment, teams, and space to deliver real value for our customers? Delivering lasting value comes first, but long-term success also requires a system designed to efficiently provide what people actually need—not just more of what we can make.
Once up and running, every operation has an optimal “run rate,” one that is ideal not only for efficiency, but also for people, just as a marathon runner has an ideal pace. In both boom times and slowdowns, leaders must be able to adjust the system to regulate capacity, costs, and value for the organization and its customers.
What adaptive skills do leaders need to master?
People do not fear change, they fear loss. Nobody throws away the winning lottery ticket.
— Ron Heifetz
True transformation honors people’s sense of loss, meets them where they are, and builds trust as change unfolds. Many popular change models, including Kotter’s classic 8 Steps, the Prosci ADKAR approach, and even some Lean and Agile frameworks, share the idea that resistance is best handled by categorizing people and, if needed, removing those who don’t immediately get on board. Our experience—and the research—shows something deeper.
With an understanding of the foundational principles of human-centric leadership, organizational transformation becomes much less daunting—more like mastery in any other field. You must first understand that the “law of inertia of habits” is as foundational to managing change as physical inertia is to Newtonian motion.
How does an individual change habits?
Leaders need to understand what truly motivates people from within. The best coaches help others develop by meeting them where they are, setting achievable short-term goals, and celebrating progress—not just perfection. This approach keeps people engaged and helps them grow into coaches themselves. Here, we rely on proven coaching methods from sports, business (TWI, Toyota Kata), the classroom (linking habit change to personal values and identity), as well as current research on intrinsic motivation, such as Self-Determination Theory (SDT).
Just as leaders must understand constraints and bottlenecks in the flow of materials and information, they also need to address the current constraints to learning and growth within their teams. This is the leadership parallel to Liebig’s law of plant growth: a system (or person) can only grow as much as its most limited nutrient allows. In organizations, human growth is likewise constrained—not by potential, but by the need least met.
A leader’s job is to both challenge and nurture. Real, lasting change depends on removing obstacles to competence, autonomy, or social support. If you’ve ever seen a motivated, skilled person, eager for change, eventually get beat down by a complete lack of support, you know the damage an unmet need can cause. To succeed, leaders must relate to early adopters and nurture a robust support network, ensuring no one is left to struggle alone.
How do groups change habits?
True group change unfolds in natural patterns. Resistance is minimized when leaders proceed gradually, allowing people to adjust at their own pace rather than forcing sudden, sweeping change—a lesson often likened to entering a pool slowly rather than doing a painful belly flop. This principle of gradualism helps ensure lasting results, as each step builds readiness and trust.
Anybody who has endured a failed organizational transformation can attest it is about as much fun as running into a brick wall. The law of inertia of habits is as important to organizational change as the law of physical inertia is to Newtonian motion, “it is better if they get to know this law accurately, adapt to it, and make proper use of it, as complaining will not help here, just as complaining about the law of gravity, which, when properly understood and applied, can bring great benefits instead of misfortune.” (K. Adamiecki)
Change also spreads through what’s known as the law of diffusion. In every group, some people are eager to embrace change, others are more cautious, and many want more data before taking a step. These thoughtful skeptics are valuable; they help organizations avoid costly mistakes and make stronger decisions. The fastest, healthiest transformations rarely happen by demanding that everyone change at once, but rather by supporting early adopters, who then demonstrate success and guide the rest—much like the fingertips of an Olympic high diver entering the water first, followed by the early majority, the late majority, and eventually the laggards.
Law of Diffusion of Innovations, Everett Rogers (1962)