From Change to Reinvention

 Are you leading true transformation—or just moving faster in the wrong direction? This episode unpacks the critical difference between change and transformation, revealing why speed alone won’t future-proof your business. Discover how strategic reinvention, visionary leadership, and letting go of legacy thinking are essential to real transformation. A must-listen for executives, consultants, and transformation leaders navigating AI disruption and digital strategy. 

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Transcript

1. The Widespread Misunderstanding

Hi, I’m Rob Llewellyn. Let’s start with something uncomfortable:  Most companies that claim they’re transforming are just changing faster. That’s the truth.

They’re launching digital projects, updating platforms, maybe redesigning processes—and calling it transformation. But what they’re really doing is speeding up what already exists. And speeding up the past isn’t the same as creating the future.

This misunderstanding is more than a semantic issue. It’s strategic. And it’s costing organisations time, relevance, and competitive edge. Let’s unpack why the difference matters—and what happens when it’s ignored.

2. Change Is About the Past — and That’s the Point

Change is essential. Every enterprise needs it. But change is fundamentally past-oriented. It’s about making what we already do more efficient, more streamlined, more scalable.

This is where frameworks like Lean, ITIL, and Agile backlog refinement come in. These are tools for optimisation. For tuning the machine.

The question change asks is: "How do we do what we do — but better?"

And that’s a valid question. But it only matters if what you do is still strategically relevant. If the market has moved, if your customer expectations have shifted, if your business model is no longer fit for purpose, then change is a short-term patch, not a long-term answer. That’s where transformation comes in.

3. Transformation Begins With the Future

Transformation doesn’t begin with process. It begins with purpose. With vision.  It doesn’t ask, "How do we improve this?" It asks, "What should we become?"

Transformation starts from a blank page. It’s not constrained by legacy systems or existing capabilities. It’s driven by ambition and imagination. And when it’s done well, transformation allows an organisation to operate in fundamentally new ways.

Change builds on the past. Transformation builds from the future. Where change asks, "How do we get better at what we do?", transformation asks, "What new thing do we want to bring into existence that doesn’t yet exist?" It’s a completely different mindset.

4. Who Drives What: Managers vs. Leaders

The people behind these efforts matter. Change is often driven by managers. Highly capable professionals focused on process, efficiency, and delivery. They analyse, plan, and implement. They follow established pathways. They drive discipline and predictability.

Transformation, on the other hand, is led by visionary leaders. They don’t just optimise — they reimagine. They set direction in the face of uncertainty. They lead people where there is no roadmap. And they create conditions for others to act boldly.

Managers improve performance. Leaders inspire progress. If your aim is transformation, you need leadership that can move hearts and systems—not just metrics.

5. The Transformation Illusion: Fast Caterpillars Everywhere

This brings us to the metaphor that captures it perfectly: the fast caterpillar.

George Westerman once said, "When digital transformation is done right, it’s like a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. When done wrong, all you have is a really fast caterpillar."

Many companies are investing in tools, platforms, and dashboards. They’re calling it transformation. But they’re just building faster versions of what already exists. No new business models. No new capabilities. No fundamental shift.

What they have is more speed. But not more relevance. This is the transformation illusion. It’s everywhere.

6. Three Strategic Dangers of Mistaking Change for Transformation

When this illusion takes hold, three dangers follow.

• First: stagnation masked as progress. You’re doing a lot, but not changing your position in the market.
• Second: resource misallocation. Your best people, budget, and focus get consumed by optimisation—not innovation.
• Third: false confidence. You think you’re transforming, but you’re not preparing for what’s next.

The cost? Competitive decline. Talent attrition. Strategic confusion.

This is how companies become irrelevant. Not because they failed to improve—but because they failed to transform.

7. Transformation Requires Letting Go of Legacy Thinking

To transform, you must release legacy thinking. This means more than sunsetting old systems. It means challenging the assumptions baked into your culture, your metrics, your operating model. You can’t create a butterfly by upgrading a caterpillar. You have to let go of being a caterpillar.

Transformation is uncomfortable. It’s unpredictable. It often breaks things before it builds. But that’s the work. And that’s the edge.

8. Transformation Is a Systemic Act of Creation

Transformation touches every part of your organisation. It creates new behaviours, new mindsets, and new systems. It redefines how value is created, how work is done, and how customers are served.

Transformation is not a tech deployment. It’s a strategic reinvention. You’re redesigning from the inside out.  You’re not just doing digital. You’re becoming digital.

9. Clarify the Game: Change or Transformation?

So here’s the key question:

Are you changing — or are you transforming? It’s not a trick question. It’s a strategic one. If you’re changing, own it. Measure it. Celebrate the gains.

But if you’re transforming, don’t settle for incrementalism. Don’t mistake modernisation for reinvention. They are different games. And they require different rules, tools, teams, and leadership. And perhaps most importantly, they require different levels of courage.

10. Final Challenge: Are You Leading Butterflies or Building Fast Caterpillars?

Let me leave you with this:

• Your business doesn’t need a more efficient past.
• Your employees don’t want to keep refining old processes.
• Your market won’t reward speed without relevance.

So what will you lead?

A butterfly? Or a faster caterpillar?

Because the organisations that thrive won’t be the ones that changed best. They’ll be the ones that transformed boldly.