Business Transformation Without a Thermometer Is Just a Cold Shower… or…

Ever used this shower? We had a pink version as kids! 🤪

One tap is molten lava.
The other is Antarctic plunge.
Let go of either hose and you’re either scalded or frozen, with no warning and no sympathy!

This picture epitomises business transformation in motion!
I’ve seen transformation programmes where leaders charge in, full of confidence, only to discover too late that:
The “hot” tap (pace, ambition, disruption) was turned all the way up
The “cold” tap (capacity, trust, readiness) was barely trickling
Cue screaming. And not from the pipes.

A few real-world (names-changed) moments
A new operating model launched at full heat… while teams were still grieving the last reorg
A shiny new system switched on Monday morning… with zero training and a helpdesk already underwater
A “quick win” programme that moved so fast it snapped the cultural plumbing clean off the wall

Just like that shower, no one set the temperature first.
The lesson: always check the water before you step in
Before you “turn on” a transformation, measure the temperature:
Organisational readiness – Do people actually understand why this is happening?

Change capacity – What else is already boiling in the system?
Leadership alignment – Are all taps connected to the same pipe?
Emotional climate – Are people energised, exhausted, or quietly looking for the exit?

Practical takeaways you can use immediately
Take the temperature before you design the solution, not after it breaks
Balance heat (urgency, ambition) with flow (support, clarity, pacing)
Re-check the temperature regularly, because it changes faster than you think
Remember: resilience is not infinite, even if the strategy deck says it is

Great transformations don’t shock the system.
They warm it up gradually, keep the flow steady, and make sure no one gets burned.
Because nobody does their best work while screaming under a freezing, boiling shower.

Comments welcomed, as always!

MC