The 4 Ps of Transformation (and Why One Missing Piece Wrecks the Whole Thing)
Let me be blunt: I’ve seen brilliant ideas stall out, expensive platforms sit unused, and leaders wonder why their “transformation” didn’t transform anything, and some don’t even want to look at the adoption dashboards to see how bad it is. Most of the time, it’s not because people resisted change. It’s because one of the four critical ingredients was missing.
Transformation isn’t about slides or slogans. It’s about getting the right things to line up—at the right time—for the right people. That’s where the 4 Ps come in:
1. Purpose – Why are we doing this?
If your users can’t explain why something matters, they won’t care. And if they don’t care, it won’t stick.
I worked on a rollout where the tech team was amped about automation—but end users saw it as “yet another system.” Until we reframed it in terms of what they would gain (less time hunting for files, more confidence they were using the latest version), engagement didn’t budge.
👉 People don’t adopt tools. They adopt outcomes they believe in.
2. People – Who is involved?
Change doesn’t land because the CIO signs a contract. It lands when the right people are part of shaping it.
I once coached a frontline supervisor who became the unofficial champion for a new process tool—not because anyone asked, but because we involved her early. Her team followed her lead. Her buy-in was the tipping point.
👉 Engage people before you need them.
3. Process – What’s actually changing?
Too often, the focus is on the shiny new platform—but not the workflows, habits, or handoffs that surround it.
In one project, we replaced a legacy tool, but didn’t clarify who was responsible for uploading reports in the new system. Chaos ensued. Once we mapped out the actual process shifts, things stabilized fast.
👉 Tools don’t change behavior. Clarity does.
4. Participation – How are we enabling ownership?
One of the biggest predictors of success? Whether users feel like they had a voice in the journey.
For a recent AI rollout, we invited users to co-create prompts, test drive features, and suggest use cases. It turned a top-down deployment into a grassroots movement. People bragged about their ideas getting implemented.
👉 If they build it, they’ll back it.
Here’s the bottom line
Purpose × People × Process × Participation = Real Change
It’s a multiplication equation. If any one of them is zero, the whole outcome is zero. You can’t overcompensate in one area to make up for another being ignored.
So next time you’re mapping out a big shift—whether it’s rolling out AI, consolidating systems, or redesigning workflows—ask yourself:
Is the why clear?
Are the right people engaged?
Have we mapped the process shifts, not just the tech?
Have we created space for ownership?
Miss one, and your change might look great in theory… but go nowhere in practice.
Let’s not settle for performative transformation. Let’s do the real thing.
