Business Transformation, a view from the top - Interview With Nick Ranier

“Transformation is, at its heart, a reconfiguration of power, so people are thinking ‘what does this mean for me?’” This week we are joined by another special guest, Nick Ranier, a senior transformation leader with extensive experience of enterprise wide transformation. Nick shares his experience of running transformation portfolios across a wide range of settings. He also shares his perspective of why culture, organisation and people are critical to the overall success of any transformation initiative.

*Episode breakdown* Below is a brief overview of some of the topics that Jason and Nick discuss and at what point to find them in the podcast:

- 01:20: Nick shares his background & experience
- 03:46: Nick's experience transitioning from operational HR to transformation
- 06:05: Sponsorship in transformation - what makes an effective sponsor (and what to avoid)?
- 14:50: Problem definition - is this a problem we need to fix, and how do we define it?
- 17:35: Benchmarking - where do you get the data?
- 21:15: Gathering requirements - uncovering the business needs
- 25:00: Capability requirements - what capabilities are needed to deliver change?
- 28:10: Preparing for change - what's the minimum requirement?
- 39:15: Methodology & Approach - the difference between projects, programmes & portfolios
- 51:10: Vision, objectives and design principles - why things can go off track without a vision
- 58:15: Governance and decision making - how do you structure the change?
- 63:45: Solution design - moving from an operations to a solution architecture mindset
- 71:02: Capability design - the need to build internal capability
- 74:00: Business case - what are the most common mistakes and how to avoid them?

Show Notes

Thank you to Nick Ranier for joining us to talk about his career in transformation with a particular focus on the scoping phase. Nick is a senior transformation leader with 25 years' transformation experience in a variety of sectors, including energy, defence, engineering and distribution. His career has been spent at the coalface of the digital revolution, leading transformation portfolio offices, introducing new technologies and solving challenging business problems. He was part of the small 'bunker team' that designed and set in motion the build of the UK’s two new Aircraft Carriers. He also led the team that developed and operated an award-winning business campus for a world-leading defence, security and aerospace business. He has been instrumental in delivering a raft of restructurings, business turnarounds and enterprise-wide digital transformations. 

If you'd like to learn more about Nick and the work he does in supporting highly complex and global businesses change initiatives, you can connect with him on LinkedIn.

This season of the Underscore Transformation Podcast is based on our recent white paper covering the first stage of transformation: Scoping. The 10 Points covered in the Scoping Checklist are:

1. Programme sponsorship
2. Problem definition
3. Preparing for change
4. Requirements gathering
5. Vision, objectives and design principles
6. Governance and decision making
7. Methodology and approach
8. Programme management capability
9. Solution design capability
10. Business case

We’re always looking for ways to improve our content and would love to hear your feedback. If you would like to join the conversation, please contact Jason West to join our WhatsApp group.

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Visit our website to find more content on transformation, project resourcing, and talent development. 

This episode was recorded and produced by Matt Gore of icon business media.

What is Underscore Transformation?

The podcast that provides practical guidance for successful business transformation.