The dialogic change approach is an open-source, collaborative model that empowers employees to co-create and execute change by encouraging participation, fostering dialogue, and shifting ownership to those closest to the change. It moves from the conventional change management framework that focuses on a top-down approach. The purpose of dialogic change is to encourage open communication and shift away from traditional hierarchical change processes.
This executive brief summarizes top change and transformation leaders' insights on how organizations can leverage dialogic change to accelerate transformation initiatives. Identify key principles, potential challenges, and strategies necessary to integrate this approach effectively into your transformation initiatives.
This roundtable was held on October 28th, 2024.
Roundtable Participants
Led by Nellie Wartoft, CEO of Tigerhall and Chair of the ECLC
- Allison Drobniak, SVP, Chief of Staff Office of the COO
- Andranik Ziyalyan, Sony Pictures Entertainment - Executive Director, Finance Transformation - Organizational Enablement
- Chandra Vadamodula, Rite Aid - Vice President - Enterprise Technology Solutions
- David Stein, VML - SVP, Performance Marketing Operations
- Hiren Dalal, LPL Financial - SVP, Transformation
- Jeremy Lane, TTI, Inc. - Corporate Vice President, Change Management & Strategic Transformation
- Kristina Muller, VML - SVP, Delivery Operations & PMO
- Laureen Knudsen, Broadcom - Chief Transformation Officer
- Marjorie Etter, Meta - Global Training, Knowledge & Change Management Leader
- Nadine Hammer, Genentech - Director Organizational Design & Change
- Nicholas Mudd, Cummins - Global Service Transformation Director
- Paul Papoutsis, Radial - Senior Regional Director
- Rahul Trivedi, Transunion - VP, Business Transformation
- Stacey Taylor, Visa - VP, Implementation & Change
- Sundeep Thusoo, Philips - Director Business Transformation
Experimenting with Dialogic Change: Shifting Command to Collaboration
Case Study 1: GenAI Implementation
Leveraged a dialogic approach by empowering teams to independently explore technology’s potential. Worked directly with local groups and employees on how they wanted to get it done through coffee chats, social media, and regular monthly town halls before allocating the resources needed.
This approach allows a decentralized decision-making process to encourage engagement, leading to faster adoption and innovative solutions tailored to specific departmental needs. However, a top-down directive is still involved to define the WIIFM and ensure timely implementation and delivery.
“Crowdsourcing change helps since employees are more eager to explore and refine change when they are more involved in decision-making and feel a sense of ownership over the process.”
Stacey Taylor - VP, Implementation & Change | Visa
“Looking at it from another perspective, resource constraints may push organizations towards open-source change as a necessity and not necessarily a strategic choice. Teams may end up leading their own change with a try-then-adopt method.”
Nadine Hammer - Director Organizational Design & Change | Genentech
Case Study 2: ERG-Led Transformations
Volunteer-based Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) drove transformation around the organization’s hiring practices. Rather than top-down directives, employees within the ERGs identified the opportunity to recruit military veterans for hard-to-fill positions by adjusting the job requirements to make it easier to hire veterans.
“There’s an ironic parallel between open-source change and insurgency; it requires the right knowledge and people in the right place and time. This bottom-up initiative redefined hiring practices and tapped into overlooked talent pools.”
Nicholas Mudd - Global Service Transformation Director | Cummins
Case Study 3: Network of Change Champions
Implemented a network of change champions to facilitate dialogic change across the organization. These champions, selected from various departments, acted as liaisons between leadership and employees by gathering feedback, championing initiatives, and ensuring that ideas were translated into action. It resulted in a more inclusive transformation process that was able to scale organically.
“The ‘what’ and ‘why’ are non-negotiable and dictated by senior leaders, but the ‘how’ and ‘when’ can be co-created with the help of change champions.”
Hiren Dalal - SVP, Transformation | LPL Financial
Navigating Open-Source Change: Tactics, Learnings, and Challenges
1. Identify Ownership & Responsibilities
✔ Leadership Role & Commitments
One of the central concerns for the dialogic change approach would be balancing between leadership’s directive role with employees' autonomy. While leadership must set the vision, the execution needs to be empowered at lower levels to ensure buy-in.
“If change from the bottom up is truly going to work, alignment with the leaders’ time and interests is still required to ensure successful efforts. Have the right leader with the right understanding of the business on board to help support the initiative.”
Nicholas Mudd - Global Service Transformation Director | Cummins
“The limits of dialogic change is that organizational change isn’t always a democracy. Good leadership involves honesty, communication, and feedback, but that doesn’t necessarily mean giving everyone a voice in the decision-making process.”
David Stein - SVP, Performance Marketing Operations | VML
✔ Clear Ownership & Accountability
Clear ownership is critical to prevent accountability gaps in open-source initiatives. Assigning specific responsibilities, even in a decentralized framework, ensures that there is follow-through and that change doesn’t lose momentum.
“Everyone’s job becomes no one’s job. Change ownership cannot be left purely to the masses as chaos may emerge from it. Accountability still lies with specific individuals or groups to ensure the change process, especially time-sensitive ones, are executed properly.”
Rahul Trivedi - VP, Business Transformation | Transunion
“Demonstrate the impact of employees' contributions. When people feel proud and accountable for the changes they help create, they become more engaged and take ownership of the process.”
Kristina Muller - SVP, Delivery Operations & PMO | VML
✔ Select the Right Change-Makers
Not everyone can participate in open-source change. Identify the right kind of personality, mindset, passion, and energy needed for open-source change. You can’t have a room full of followers and expect change to be made successfully. Have a clear vision of the confines in which people can operate to give them the right seat at the table and ensure sustainable change over time.
“Keep in mind the risk of people being assigned to tasks based on availability rather than skills as it can dilute the effectiveness of change initiatives.”
Sundeep Thusoo - Director, Business Transformation | Philips
“There is also a luck factor in this where the right talent makes a significant impact despite lacking seniority or formal authority”
Nicholas Mudd - Global Service Transformation Director | Cummins
2. Identify Potential Roadbloacks
✔ Managing Bandwidth and Resources
Bandwidth and resource constraints can be the limiting factor in getting a broader audience involved. Organizations must prioritize efforts and allocate resources strategically to sustain momentum.
“While a larger group allows a wider resource pool, you also can’t let people just lead change without having a central, critical perspective on it all.”
Paul Papoutsis - Senior Regional Director | Radial
✔ Dealing with Disengagement & Resistance
It can be particularly challenging to engage employees in an open-source change. Address concerns early and maintain transparency to minimize resistance. For instance, newer employees are more willing to propose and activate changes than tenured employees. Work on fostering collaboration between older and newer employees to make them feel heard and engaged.
“It is tricky to sustain momentum without continuous engagement and reinforcement. Employees need to see progress and impact for them to stay committed.”
Stacey Taylor - VP, Implementation & Change | Visa
3. Leverage Available Tools & Tactics
✔ Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)
By utilizing the collective knowledge and passion of employees, organizations can unlock new ideas and drive innovation in transformation efforts. ERG groups can drive some of the most impactful changes as they have a deep understanding of the challenges employees face.
✔ Hypothesis Driven Approach
There is a higher chance of success when the company uses hypothesis-driven approaches that allow objectives to be set while acknowledging uncertainties in identifying the best way to get there.
“Once objectives are set, teams will then work to try to meet those objectives quickly and share what is working and not. It requires alignment and touchpoints at a regular cadence.”
Laureen Knudsen - Chief Transformation Officer | Broadcom
“Organizations should view themselves as complex adaptive systems rather than deterministic ones. Using a hypothesis-driven approach means we can experiment, learn, and adapt based on what’s working and what’s not.”
Sundeep Thusoo - Director, Business Transformation | Philips
✔ Top-Down and Bottom-Up Combination
When an organization is undergoing a massive change, you don’t usually end up using one model of change; you end up using a mix of them. Dialogic change is useful but it must be integrated with other models for successful change implementation.
“A balanced approach, where leadership provides direction but employees lead execution, works best for complex organizations.”
Marjorie Etter - Global Training, Knowledge & Change Management Leader | Meta
Unlocking Success: Which Dialogic Change Approaches Drive Successful Transformation and Which Don’t?
1. Transformation Goals & Scope of Change
Identify the type and magnitude of change and assess the risks that come with it. Automating low-risk, mundane tasks is a good example of bottom-up change that can be effective. For organizations with high-risk needs, such as those involved in security or licensing, not all changes can be left to the bottom-up approach.
“Open-source models work well when changes are additive, such as introducing new opportunities or tools to lessen workload. Meanwhile, it may not be feasible for dramatic changes like retrenchment and outsourcing as it involves significant loss or risk.”
Andranik Ziyalyan - Executive Director, Finance Transformation - Organizational Enablement | Sony Pictures Entertainment
Solely depending on the open-source approach increases potential risks. For instance, too much autonomy and uncontrolled tool usage within the organization without oversight may lead to significant issues such as data leaks. Having clear boundaries is crucial to prevent chaos.
2. Organization Size & Structures
Dialogic change can be more easily implemented in smaller organizations due to their flatter structures and fewer hierarchical barriers. However, larger organizations may require more structure and resources to implement open-source change at scale.
“When you have a big organization, you need to manage risk and align corporate goals across the organization. This requires direction and oversight; you can let people run free but in a controlled environment.”
Laureen Knudsen - Chief Transformation Officer | Broadcom
“Adopting an "either-or" mindset doesn't work in large companies, a flexible culture is needed. Finding this balance combines clear structure with employee empowerment to foster a collaborative and innovative environment.”
Marjorie Etter - Global Training, Knowledge & Change Management Leader | Meta
Identifying the Ideal Context & Cultural Environments for Dialogic Change
✔ Assess Cultural Readiness
The company culture plays a significant role in ensuring transformation success with dialogic change approaches. Evaluate where your corporate culture is at the moment and how it aligns with open-source change. Organizations with an existing culture of trust, collaboration, and employee empowerment are best suited to embrace this model.
“Open-source change can only be effective if you have a corporate culture that empowers people. Without a receptive culture that listens to innovative ideas from all levels of the organization, people will be hesitant to share their opinions.”
Hiren Dalal - SVP, Transformation | LPL Financial
Ground-up ideas are usually rooted in the reality of everyday work which makes them very valuable but, if as a leader, you can’t act on it, you won’t be getting many more ideas sent your way.
“Building trust is critical. Employees won’t engage unless they feel they are heard and respected.”
Kristina Muller - SVP, Delivery Operations & PMO | VML
“If employee trust is at an all-time low, can we use this to increase trust? Can we bring the change to them instead of telling them to change? Authentic stories from employees are more powerful than top-down updates in creating trust and showing real impact. If people are talking about the change, it helps with the speed of change adoption.”
Nadine Hammer - Director Organizational Design & Change | Genentech
“Organizations need to have a highly collaborative environment and existing innovative and agile culture so they already have tools to crowdsource ideas in place. It would be harder to leverage dialogic change within organizational cultures that are structured, hierarchical, or highly regulated.”
Stacey Taylor - VP, Implementation & Change | Visa
✔ Start Small, Scale Gradually
Open-source change works well with smaller changes that impact smaller numbers of people. As soon as more people become more involved or the change gets larger, it becomes incredibly harder to manage.
“Moving from a command-and-control model to an open-source model is an exponential challenge, not a linear one. The goal is to start small and gradually scale up, learning from each iteration.”
Hiren Dalal - SVP, Transformation | LPL Financial
“It takes longer to make an open-source change work in larger organizations. In principle, it sounds good but, in practice, it’s not that easy. By the time a change is brought back to the bottom, it can feel prescriptive.”
Sundeep Thusoo - Director, Business Transformation | Philips
Key Challenges in Implementing Effective Open-Source Change Today
✔ Lack of Accountability & Flexibility
There is no one-size-fits-all approach within the dialogic change model. Companies need to adapt to their specific context and needs. Having flexibility is essential in driving the success of open-source change, particularly in larger, more complex organizations with a mix of operational and technical needs. While decentralization encourages autonomy and creativity, it can also lead to unclear ownership and accountability. Without proper structures, change efforts risk losing direction.
“It is challenging to get employees to take full accountability and ownership of the change process due to the existing workload. This requires more negotiation and conversation to encourage employees to drive change locally.”
Nadine Hammer - Director Organizational Design & Change | Genentech
“Dialogue and feedback loops are needed, but the hierarchical structure still needs clear leadership roles and responsibilities for key tasks in planning and implementing change. Instead of having everyone responsible for change, have select groups made accountable and listen to their input.”
Rahul Trivedi - VP, Business Transformation | Transunion
“What is the sandbox that people are allowed to contribute to? Top-down change works for setting boundaries, defining what constitutes change, and best practices. Meanwhile, open-source change is useful in implementing business intelligence across the organization and encouraging different perspectives and feedback on priorities. Remember, you still need a North Star of what needs to be achieved as an organization. ”
Kristina Muller - SVP, Delivery Operations & PMO | VML
✔ Fragmentation & Chaos
Aligning dialogic change initiatives with strategic transformation goals is critical. Without alignment, there’s a risk that the change process will diverge, resulting in fragmentation and lack of focus. Fragmentation may occur when different teams or departments pursue change in isolation, leading to confusion and lack of coordination. Without proper integration, these efforts can become disjointed and fail to create the desired organizational impact.
“If listening for feedback is done well, the change program will evolve to include what the employees want.”
Stacey Taylor - VP, Implementation & Change | Visa
“It’s easy to start doing dialogic change but it’s a lot harder to maintain with time. Without proper management and control, the process can lead to elitism and divisiveness. Have guardrails as a measure but remember to give people the opportunity to create. ”
Sundeep Thusoo - Director, Business Transformation | Philips
✔ Demonization of Change
Change often faces resistance, especially when it is perceived as disruptive. Some employees or leaders may view open-source change as unnecessary or threatening to the status quo, leading to resistance and even the demonization of the process. Overcoming this mindset is critical for successful implementation.
“People tend to equal change with layoffs. It’s important to have trust and psychological safety so that people feel like they are building towards growth and not to their own destruction.”
Marjorie Etter - Global Training, Knowledge & Change Management Leader | Meta
✔ Poor Change Mindset
A poor mindset towards change is characterized by skepticism, fear, or reluctance. These can severely hinder the effectiveness of open-source change. Without a mindset that embraces learning, adaptation, and collaboration, even the most well-thought-out strategies will struggle to gain traction.
“Organizations with a poor change mindset are often resistant even to the smallest shifts. Cultivate a mindset that sees change as an opportunity, not a threat.”
Andranik Ziyalyan - Executive Director, Finance Transformation - Organizational Enablement | Sony Pictures Entertainment
Conclusion
Participants agreed that leveraging a dialogic change approach may help enhance the success of organizational transformation, particularly when combined with other established change models. While dialogic change excels at fostering collaboration, transparency, and employee ownership, it may not be sufficient on its own for all transformation initiatives. Embracing this blend of approaches allows organizations to tailor their strategies to the specific needs of their workforce and goals, leading to more sustainable, impactful, and long-lasting change.
The Executive Council for Leading Change
The Executive Council for Leading Change (ECLC) is a global organization that brings executives together to redefine the landscape of organizational change and transformation. Our council aims to advance strategic leadership expertise in the realm of corporate change by connecting visionary leaders. It's a place where leaders responsible for significant change initiatives can collaborate, plan, and create practical solutions for intricate challenges in leading large organizations through major shifts.
In a world where change is constant, we recognize its crucial role in driving business success. ECLC’s mission is to create a community where leaders can excel in guiding their organizations through these dynamic times.
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