Research was undertaken with the buyers to establish what it was about the system that they saw as unacceptable, and sought for ways to restructure the implementation so that it delivered the benefits claimed.

It became clear that the implementation was regarded by the buyers as debasing their self-worth, as they saw themselves as relationship managers, experts in the ways of the suppliers they dealt with, and as negotiators, people who made deals; not – as they described it – as data entry clerks.

Working closely with HR and the business unit managers, the training and the remuneration packages were redesigned. The value of good MI was emphasised and motivated by performance-related pay being associated with good record keeping (a recognised weakness in the earlier systems) and a re-emphasis on the gaining and utilisation of business intelligence on the suppliers.

Focus on corporate behaviour was strengthened with the buyers becoming a vocal force in the use and deployment of business intelligence to further the ambitions of the retailer.

An organisational-wide change arises from the sum of all the individuals’ change behaviours – and there lies a challenge. There is generally not a single, completely shared change journey, but multiple transformations, and so there is no single motivation or change process that will work.

It has been said that running a programme is like herding cats; shepherding individuals and groups and pushing them forward is difficult.  Of course, if you want the cats to behave ‘rationally’, the best way is to put ‘treats’ where you want them to go, and wait.  What then count as ‘treats’ for those who need to change?

Things to consider

1. Have you identified what counts as ‘achievement‘ in the vision of the new world and any ‘natural’ rewards in the outcomes?
2. Has the change initiative developed sign-post Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for use during the transition period?
3. Have you modelled rewards in terms of pay, promotion and praise (non-financial reward? (Each ‘p’ has a major contribution to play in developing and embedding behaviours)
4. Are the value systems of the groups that are to change identified and understood?

And are you considering

1. linking jobs and roles to recognisably valuable outcomes
2. replacing the KPIs for the change with operational ones after the transition – defining a profile over time that recognises the occurrence of learning?
3. involving the adopters in the design of any new processes.