Strategy & Change Consulting

As a Change Management Consultancy, we help companies, organizations, and NGOs to quickly and effectively master change processes.

We ensure attention is paid to

strong involvement of employees and managers
an appropriate mix of bottom-up and top-down elements
a pragmatic and practice-oriented approach
feedback mechanisms that enable organizational learning
agile loops and fast learning
modern activating participation formats
sustainable and effective anchoring of the change in the organizational structure, processes, regulations, habits – in other words: the cultural DNA of your company

Our approach has won several awards – as a management consultancy with 21 years of change-management experience in a wide range of industries.

What Does a Change Management Consultancy Do?

We understand change-management to be the sum of targeted actions to implement new

strategies
structures
systems
processes
regulations
and visible behaviors.

The aim is successful realization and long-term stable anchoring of the desired outcome.

In a sense, change-management is the “implementation component” in the context of organizational development.

Why Change Management Consulting?

Lack of experience:
by proceeding carelessly, you create resistance among employees and managers that could actually be avoided with skill and experience.
Poor communication:
the objectives and the necessity for change are not clear to everyone involved. It needs a clear “change story” – well crafted and perfectly conveyed.
Is it really the best solution?
What to do if employees do not believe in the “change story” – despite all reasoning and communication? Do you just have a “communication problem” or possibly not the best solution after all?
Resistance is not addressed:
can you turn resistance into a productive force for the change process?
Hardened resistance:
what experiences has the workforce had with previous change processes?
Complex structures:
“Preservation of vested interests”, “Not invented here” syndrome, “historically grown” staffing, unfavorable leadership culture – the more complex, the more Change Management Consulting with “effective levers” is needed
Lack of change structure:
complex situations in particular require a sophisticated and excellently executed sequence of actions and “dramaturgical tricks” (we call this an effective “change structure”)
Inadequate project management:
a good plan is no substitute for excellent execution…
Führungskräfte nicht ausreichend qualifiziert:
Natürlich können Sie sich voll und ganz auf uns als Berater verlassen. Wenn Ihr Management aber ebenfalls weiß, warum wir Dinge so tun, wie wir sie tun, und welche Fehler im Change-Management zu vermeiden sind, schadet das nicht (das lernt man unter anderem in unserem Change-Management Training).

Change-management specialists

Our Range of Services

Complex change-processes
Agile change-management
Agile transformation
Digital transformation
Strategy processes and implementation support
Culture change
Process optimization
Change and further development of leadership and management culture
Implementation of strategic goals
Digitization
Optimization or adaptation of core and support processes
Introduction of a new process management system
Introduction of a new project management system
Restructuring / structural changes / merger
New management, matrix organization
Change towards an agile organization
Introduction of an “organizational culture of learning”
Cultural change (innovation, corporate responsibility, …)

Change-management for IT projects according to the ITIL standard

Change projects in IT contexts often have a different focus. Here, operational and transitional security have a higher priority.

These standards are defined and documented in detail in ITIL.

Here, change-management is defined as a process that ensures that all changes to the IT infrastructure are

controlled
efficient
and minimize risks to the ongoing operations of the affected business areas.

In change-projects for IT departments, we align the form and content of change-projects with the standards defined in ITIL.

Typical Fields of Action in Change

Strategy and goals – creating full transparency
- Define KCIs
processes
- Digitization
- Automation
- Dynamization
- Agile – self-learning
structures
- - Organizational structure
  - Locations
  - Fusion
  - Sale – separation
  - New structural principles / models of cooperation Circle structure
    - Self-Organization
    - Process organization
  - Restructuring of departments / teams,
  - Changes in responsibilities / management relationships
systems
- - ERP system
  - IMS
  - Controlling
  - New IT systems
Resources
- - Budgets
    - Availability
    - Allocation
  - Personnel development
    - Quantitative
    - Qualitative
  - Personnel planning
    - Strategic
    - Operational
Guidance
- Leadership development is always an inseparable part of change management
Corporate culture and values
- Leadership understanding/leadership model
- Value system
- Transparency and participation
Collaboration
- Breaking down silo mentality
New Work
Goal systems, leadership, compensation, hierarchy
- Framework conditions
- Leadership guidelines
- Assessment and management systems
- Compensation and reward systems

Involving all stakeholders in a change process is in our DNA. We support stakeholder analysis and develop a tailored and comprehensive concept for participation (ICP concept) together with you

If you want to delve deeper:

Erfolgreiches Change-Management

our Role

We support you with 21 years of know-how in Change Management Consulting – for example as

Change Coach
Sparring partner
Consultant
Facilitators
and planner / project manager of the overall process.

How we support you in your transformation project

Every change-project is different – in terms of the starting point, the objective and the framework conditions that need to be taken into account.

There is no “silver bullet”for change.

But there are a few steps that can help you to develop a suitable approach together that is appropriate to the situation:

A typical sequence of actions includes:

Analysis of the current state of affairs
Clear definition of targets
Analysis of stakeholders
Planning the necessary change actions
Development of an effective change-structure
Development of a meaningful change-project structure
Development of a joint communication strategy with all stakeholders
Planning and implementation of modern formats of participation

This is how we proceed:

We listen – and ask questions

Key questions:

What needs to change?
Why does it have to change?
How did the current situation come about?
What stabilizing and destabilizing factors were there and are there?

Only when we understand what happened and why it happened, do we understand the social system “organization”.

This is essential if we want to be successful as change consultants. Because change can only be successful in the long term if we work with the “social organism company” – and not against all existing forces and conventions.

We formulate goals and CPIs

The development of reliable indicators focusses the common understanding of the goals to be achieved.

In other words: only when there is a common understanding of how “success” should be measured can we be “success-full” together with you.

Analyzing stakeholders together

Who is affected, who needs to be heard, who is needed to help develop tailor-made solutions?

We use this stakeholder matrix to analyze and prioritize the stakeholder landscape:

Developing a coherent change-structure

By “change-structure” we mean an overview of which stakeholders work in which phases and in which order on which topics and issues in order to move step by step towards a tailor-made solution.

Some fundamental decisions need to be made:

How high should and can the level of participation among employees be?
Which framework conditions are more appropriately decided “top down” and which solutions are developed “bottom-up”?
Which milestones must be reached when and with what quality?

And last but not least, this question:

How agile can (or should) the change-project be?

Schedule a free initial consultation here!

Following on from this: develop a change structure

As soon as we have compiled all the necessary information in the afore-mentioned steps, we can make an informed decision about the structure and management of the change-project.

Larger change-management projects often require a hierarchy of responsibility and decision-making with

the project owner
a steering committee
project or sub-project groups

Smaller projects would be rather overloaded with such complexity. Less (bureaucracy) is often more here.

Or to put it another way: “the more agile, the leaner”.

And finally: develop measures in the fields of action

When the

goals of the change process have been defined,
the change-structure has been coordinated
and the project-structure has been decided,

the project groups coordinate the necessary actions with the steering committee in order to implement the changes step by step.

We support the planning groups in this – in different roles depending on the requirements:

project developer
coaches
providers of impulses
Facilitators
challengers
or as specialist consultants using our in-depth change-expertise

Change-Prozess geplant?

Irrwege umgehen
Unnötige Kosten vermeiden

…durch unsere 21 Jahre Erfahrung in vielen Branchen!

Jetzt Informationen anfordern

Kostenlos & unverbindlich

Change-Prozess geplant?

Irrwege umgehen
Unnötige Kosten vermeiden

…durch unsere 21 Jahre Erfahrung in vielen Branchen!

Jetzt Informationen anfordern

Kostenlos & unverbindlich

Change-communication as a field of action

Change-management is often confused with “change communication”.

However, communicating change is not a sufficient substitute for the change itself.

At the same time, changes, their goals, and steps towards them always need to be communicated in a digestible and truthful manner. The aim is maximum transparency about the purpose and objective of the change project:

Klarheit und Transparenz	Orientierung und Unterstützung im Prozess
Worum geht es?	Vorhaben verstehen, mitgehen können und wollen
Wofür machen wir das?	“Marketing” für das Vorhaben machen
Was ändert sich?	Sicherheit geben
Was ist der Nutzen?	Perspektive entwickeln
Wer ist wie betroffen und/oder beteiligt?	Steuern – statt reagieren auf Gerüchte
Wer ist wofür verantwortlich/Ansprechpartner?	Fragen, Sorgen, Ängste auf- und ernst nehmen
Wie sieht der Zeitplan aus?	Konstruktiv mit Widerständen umgehen

Here are some approaches for coordinated change-communication that have proven successful in past projects:

Arrange a free initial consultation on your change-project here!

Agile Change Management Consulting

By “agile approach”, we mean a change approach with a high proportion of bottom-up processes and a procedure in incremental loops. Here’s an overview of the differences to the “classic” approach in change processes:

“Traditionelles” Change-Management	Agiles Change-Management
Change “von oben” getrieben	Change top-down / bottom-up
Von “geheimen” Teams vorbereitet	Multidisziplinäres & transparentes Team
“plötzlich” Big Bang	Veränderung inkrementell & in kleinen Schritten
Detaillierte, langfristige Planung & wenig Raum für Anpassung zwischendurch	“Just in time” Planung / Anpassung in agilen Schleifen
Change hat Abschluss	Change ist ein Prozess und hat keinen Abschluss – sondern inkrementelle Verbesserungen

“Agile change” as a learning opportunity

The “agility” aspect of a change project is particularly important for three reasons:

Today, agility is often the goal of a change-process so that organizations can react more quickly to changing requirements
However, agility is often also a required characteristic for change projects. (Usually, this means a particularly high degree of flexibility and adaptability of the project architecture and project progress).
Often, agility principles are to be anchored as a cultural feature in the organization as part of a change project. (A change project can indeed be a not-to-be-underestimated “learning surface” for this).

We will always take the relevant requirements into account accordingly in our “change-structure”.

Implementation step by step

The implementation will not go “according to plan” everywhere, just as it is not the case in “classic” projects. After all, in every company/all organizations, we are dealing with living and (hopefully) lively social organisms:

Resistances emerge,
unplanned events only appear late on the “radar”,
the external conditions are changing,
responsibilities change
and the “human element” plays a part, as it does in every project.

Therefore, change projects cannot be thought of and planned in a classic “waterfall” manner. To integrate unforeseen events into the project process as well as possible, we use an “agile toolbox” for implementation:

Target/customer focus

At the beginning of a change process, there is always the definition of a target image based on vision, purpose, mission statement/values, and strategic goals. This must be clear, understandable, and comprehensible and serve as orientation for all participants in the change process.

Together with you, we always ensure transparency and focus.

Self-organization

Based on a binding goal focus for everyone, we rely on the ability and willingness of employees and managers to shape approaches, method use, measures, and their implementation on their own responsibility, taking into account the framework setting. Here, too, the following applies: A market economy is much more successful than a planned economy – always within the framework of set rules and goals.

We support you in empowering and motivating those involved and in setting the right framework (can – will – may).

Learning in short learning loops

You can’t try everything, but implementing and testing changes in small steps or on a small scale quickly is the basis for fast learning. Errors are connotated as a valuable resource in the process in the sense of the saying: “I have only learned from my mistakes, because if it worked, I already knew how to do it.”

We create space for continuous joint learning, which ensures maximum flexibility, accuracy of fit and speed of implementation.

Free initial consultation on your change-project here!

People before systems

People in an organization play an outstanding role in their different roles, tasks, and responsibilities for the success of a change. They want to be taken seriously in a change process with their concerns and their emotional needs. Then most people are willing to walk even a difficult path and overcome obstacles.

Here are the key areas of action to ensure that change can be accepted:

Together with you, we ensure attentive participation, transparency and understanding of the goals and approach, time and space for exchange and emotions, regular feedback and recognition.

Our Approach as External Change Management Consultants

In change management consulting, we usually start from scratch: We listen and first form our own independent picture.

Strategy:
is the direction correct, is the strategy coherent and comprehensible?
Change-story:
does the “story” make sense, do questions remain unanswered?
Change-structure:
What actions are planned so far? Do they fit and work together? Is the sequencing correct?
Working with resistance:
what visible and hidden reactions are there to the change project? Which stakeholders are there – and how would they have to be adequately informed and involved?
Obtaining buy-in from managers:
how does management assess the planned change? Which are the “forces of resistance” that need to be dealt with?
Qualifying change agents:
we can do “change”, but we will be gone again at some point. So your team should learn how to proceed once we are gone (in this and future change-projects).
Agile change-management:
good planning is important, rapid adaptation to acute developments is even more important. Therefore, we work in agile change-management mode right from the start. And we will teach you and your staff the basics – and cutting edge change-know-how.
Excellent execution:
Upon careful reading, you will have already recognized some “pitfalls” in change management. We know these and more (not to say all) – and protect our clients from all the mistakes that others have already made.

With our change-management approach you will achieve the following goals:

The changes are jointly supported and accepted
Experience, knowledge and concerns of your employees are used as a powerful resource in the change-process
The “costs” of change are minimizedfor all sides
Your organization remains controllable, your team is sustainably strengthened

Als spezialisiertes Beratungsunternehmen für Change-Management haben wir schon viele Preise gewonnen! Gerne beraten wir auch Sie in einem kostenfreien Erstgespräch .

Your benefits

Greater speed:
change-processes are accelerated by our goal and solution-oriented consulting approach.
Lower costs:
conflicts that usually arise in change-processes are less inhibiting due to the consideration of differences in interests. Friction losses are thus significantly reduced.
Better results:
systemic organizational consulting supports decisions that take into account remote and side effects as well as potential “pitfalls”.
Higher quality of decisions:
the inclusion of different perspectives, expertise and ideas from key stakeholders ensures that the best possible decisions are made.
More commitment:
by consciously managing the process with the involvement of employees, significantly more motivation and commitment is generated.
Better cooperation:
the systemic way of working promotes cooperation between departments in the company, even after the consulting process has officially ended.
More sustainability:
change-processes are firmly anchored in the company through participatory development and lead to greater acceptance of decisions.
More knowledge building in the company:
Systemic consultants do not see themselves as carriers of secret expert and methodological knowledge, but ensure a targeted transfer of knowledge into the company.
More freedom and relief for managers:
External consultants relieve managers of both the design and moderation of processes. You can focus more on content, solutions and team-work.

Kostenfreies Erstgespräch

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Kalkulation der anfallenden Kosten

Hier bekommen Sie alle Informationen, die Sie brauchen:

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In-depth Reading on Change Management Consulting

Let’s talk!

We have more than 21 years of experience and will be happy to advise you!

Book your free initial consultation. We will get in touch with you.

ENTHUSIASTIC CUSTOMER REACTIONS AND OPINIONS:

Thank you very much for the highly professional and motivating implementation of the Open Space. The feedback from the participants was consistently positive.

Thank you again for the great workshop – we have already started implementing the first suggestions and are having a lot of fun doing so.

The training was enjoyable and, above all, it advanced us, inspired us, and was fun. Thank you very much for that!

That was really good. You understand your craft!

Thank you for the great event. We took away a lot of impulses and look forward to reaping the benefits.

We have received very positive feedback about your training. Thank you very much for that!

That was a really great workshop, thank you very much!

Thank you once again for this all-around successful workshop day! We couldn’t have managed it like this without your support. The effort was worth it!

Thank you again for the great workshop – we are very happy with the outcome!

The day was extremely productive. I am very motivated to continue working with the results.

I’m always thrilled to work with professionals – Thank you very much for the goal-oriented moderation!

A big thank you for moderating the workshop. As a team, we emerged from the day with a good team spirit and a clearer picture regarding the way forward. The workshop was very worthwhile!

4-day workshop and yet: playful, creative, inspiring and structured with good methodology. Highly recommended.

Objective, constructive, optimistic – You have put us on course. Thank you to initio – I will definitely recommend you!

The DAV sincerely thanks initio for their support on this sometimes challenging journey. A mission statement of this quality would not have been possible without initio, and above all, we would not have conducted the discussion so openly. We are grateful for this impetus.

Once again, my sincere thanks for the excellent collaboration, organization, and the great results of the workshops!

We achieved all our goals and it was exactly what I had envisioned. Thank you very much!

It’s fun to work with you!

That was a very good method. We couldn’t have done it without you!

The support in the preparation and execution of our retreat was very professional and helped us greatly. We were very satisfied with the two intensive days

Everyone was very satisfied with your moderation. The agreements made together work wonders. The team workshop did us a lot of good!

It’s truly impressive how you perceive group dynamics and spontaneously guide them in a targeted manner for further proceedings during the event. We all, and I personally, really liked that.

The change management training was very good! You truly understand the subject matter in depth – it shows.

You moderated our two-day strategy workshop very professionally. The challenge was significant, and the result is very good. Thank you very much for that!

The minister’s cabinet and the department are pleased with the excellent cooperation, which is characterized by trust, reliability, and great empathy!

You were a real asset to our team development. Thank you very much for that!

I thoroughly enjoyed working with you both personally and professionally, and it was a great pleasure to conduct this workshop together with you!

Thank you for the valuable insights into your practical work and the many tips and moderation tricks that provided a lively glimpse into the implementation of methods.

The interactive conference design was really helpful in implementing our WE strategy. Through the high employee participation, we received important impulses for further implementation. The preparation was precise, and the on-site collaboration was professional and very pleasant. Thank you!

Your vigilant and well-founded moderation and inspiration have helped us tremendously. The team was also thrilled!

I have received only positive feedback about your training. The content was very relevant to practice and everyone also found the structure of the seminar very good!

I am very satisfied with the consultation. The workshop has brought us a great step forward. Thank you for that!

Thank you for the great training. You have stimulated many thought processes in me!

Her expertise received 9.5 out of 10 possible points, her teaching 8.8 and the learning atmosphere 9.7 points. Top!

Thank you once again for the truly excellent consultation! This quality is not often encountered.

Thank you very much for your great support. Thanks to your help, we have truly taken a big step forward.

We are all thrilled with your seminar. Thank you very much! I have already implemented the first impulses and I’m already noticing initial successes. I’m looking forward to trying more…

A very helpful and good workshop! The results also helped us greatly during the restructuring phase.

This was a very efficient process that provided us with valuable insights and results. I am looking forward to the further process.

Our leadership conference greatly benefited from your intensive methodical consultation and professional moderation. The results exceeded our expectations!

The Open Space format was a powerful and thoroughly successful kick-off for our change process. The ministry was also thrilled!

The team development was truly excellent preparation for our strategy retreat.

We have received exclusively positive feedback on the conference. We can work very well with the results. Thank you very much for your commitment!

initio operates in the sensitive, complex, and dynamic field of strategic consulting not only efficiently but with foresight, sustainability, and passion. The impulses from our collaboration continue to influence our daily business at Sony Music to this day.

You prepared our workshop intensively and precisely. Both the method and moderation fit very well with our objectives. We were able to continue working very successfully with the results. Thank you very much!

I received particularly positive feedback regarding your moderation. Several workshop-experienced participants reported that they came with rather low expectations and left extremely positively surprised.

I have rarely experienced processes where so much has been achieved.

I will adopt some of your methods for my own workshops.

Thank you very much for this team development process. I’m glad we booked you.

You have played a very significant role in the success of our event, because without your support, it would have been much more difficult for us to ‘sell’ your innovative approach. Thank you for that!

The seminar was very helpful and will accompany me for weeks and months to come.

Very good! 1.6 as feedback score from workshop participants – I hope we continue the constructive and very pleasant collaboration!

Your sharp analytical skills were very impressive and helpful.

I learned a great deal in your seminar. It was exactly the right mix of theory, inspiration, and practical application. Therefore, I give it 9 out of 10 points!

Thank you for these really good, efficient days! The workshop was received positively throughout.
Thank you very much for your support!

The mission statement process was straightforward and creative. A very good result all around!

4 days workshop and yet: playful, creative, inspiring and structured with good methodology. Absolutely recommended.

By your professional steering of the process, you have played a significant part in the success of the project. Thank you very much!

Thank you very much for the really helpful seminar!

A model of this quality would not have been possible without your help. The result, however, is thoroughly gratifying and is already finding its way into our daily work.

The well-prepared and professionally accompanied team event gave us valuable suggestions and insights. Together we are now implementing this in further concrete steps. Thank you very much!

Thank you for the valuable insights into your practical work and the many tips and facilitation tricks that gave a lively insight into method implementation.

Rarely received such a well-structured seminar with excellent content.

It was impressive to see how much came out of our workshop. That was outstanding!

We are more than satisfied with the result. Thanks again for doing an excellent job! We hope to continue working with you!

The method training was very helpful. We can highly recommend initio Consulting for future seminars.

After the workshops with initio, we can clearly see how we can develop and proceed further and which tasks have high priority now. Thank you very much for your support!

The strategy workshop was extremely productive. You have always kept the group focused on the essential issues. We fully recommend your facilitation!