How a Major Global Financial Services Firm Boosted Business Performance Through The Change Compass

When organisations embark on a change program, the conversation typically starts with data — data to help understand change, inform decisions, and track progress. But as illustrated by the journey of a major global financial services firm, real business value is achieved when that data becomes the catalyst for a fundamental shift in how change is managed, governed, and embedded into daily business.

Within just one year of using The Change Compass, this firm elevated its change management practice to become a critical driver of strategic decision-making, operational excellence, and business performance improvement.

Let’s explore the four areas where the greatest value was realised — and how your organisation can benefit from a similarly holistic approach.

1. Optimising performance through change portfolio management

Many organisations struggle with visibility: too often, change initiatives happen in silos, leading to undetected risks, duplicative efforts, and suboptimal resource usage. The Change Compass changed that paradigm by allowing leaders to visualise the full spectrum and complexity of ongoing and upcoming changes across the business.

Key outcomes included:

• Clear visibility of change complexity: Leaders understood not just the number of initiatives but also their interactions, overlaps, capacity required, and cumulative impacts.
• Real-time risk identification: Delivery risks became evident early, enabling proactive mitigation and adjustments.
• Strategic prioritisation and sequencing: With improved transparency, change teams could optimise the order of initiatives, manage dependencies, and ensure critical projects were staffed and resourced.
• Informed resource planning: Accurate data replaced gut feel, driving more precise allocations of people and budget.

Insight:
For many organisations, these benefits translate into fewer unexpected disruptions, smoother implementations, less “change fatigue” for staff, and higher project success rates.

2. Powering change governance with actionable insights

Historically, change teams often struggled to earn a “seat at the table” when major business decisions were made. With The Change Compass, this financial services firm embedded change management as a strategic partner, not an afterthought.

Tangible improvements included:

• Change team at decision-making forums: The change team now contributed concrete, data-driven insights alongside the PMO and executive/business leadership.
• Integrated insights across functions: Data from The Change Compass connected the dots between initiatives, allowing different teams to align efforts and avoid costly missteps.

Value delivered:
This meant better-aligned priorities, more robust business cases for investment, and consistent progress reporting to executives, instilling greater confidence at all levels of the business.

3. Pivoting the Change Practice

True change maturity is not just about delivering projects; it’s about growing the organisation’s ability to manage change as an ongoing capability. Using The Change Compass, the firm shifted from a reactive, project-by-project approach to building a strong, influential change culture.

Results included:

• Strategic partnering skills: Change leaders became trusted advisors to the business, not just project facilitators.
• Community building: A sense of shared mission and ownership emerged among those involved in change, breaking down silos and fostering peer support.
• Influence and credibility: The change function established itself as a go-to resource for insight, guidance, and innovation.

Broader benefit:
Over time, this led to more consistent adoption of new ways of working, higher engagement, and accelerated pace of transformation.

4. Developing strategic change capability

Finally, the journey was not just about fixing today’s pain points – it was about future-proofing the organisation. By centring decisions on solid data, The Change Compass helped this firm systematically level up its change maturity.

Major advances included:

• Data-driven prioritisation: Clarity on what matters most, reducing wasteful activity and focusing on business-critical shifts.
• Partnership between business and PMO: Rather than working in isolation, both functions now collaborated with a common understanding of priorities, impacts, and trade-offs.
• Foundation for continuous improvement: Ongoing education, supported by real-world analytics, equipped leaders at every level to steer change strategically.

Enduring value:
Through this approach, change management became an integral part of the business’s DNA, enabling smarter, faster responses to both market opportunities and challenges.

Why The Change Compass Delivers Real Results

The experience of this global financial services firm illustrates why The Change Compass is not just a tool – it’s a transformational enabler. Organisations using The Change Compass typically report:

• Reduced business performance disruptions
• Greater alignment between change, operations, and strategy
• Improved staff engagement and reduced change fatigue
• Faster realisation of business value from new initiatives

By illuminating the complex web of change, reducing uncertainty, and embedding data-driven insights into everyday business, The Change Compass doesn’t just help organisations “manage change” – it helps them excel through change.

Are you ready to turn change from a headache into a competitive advantage? Discover how The Change Compass can help your business unlock its full potential.

If you’d like to explore these outcomes in detail or get a tailored consultation, contact us today. Let’s accelerate your change journey together.

Download our infographic to learn more about what they did to achieve this.