Go Fast for Better Change: Accelerate Results at Work

The Speed Advantage: Go Fast for Better Change
Aesop famously taught that the slow and steady tortoise wins the race. That lesson holds in certain contexts — but from a change management consulting perspective, it is incomplete. Knowing how to move fast, with precision, is often what separates stalled initiatives from successful transformation.

When the goal is to cross the finish line of meaningful organizational change, the hare deserves a second look. Its bursts of focused speed offer a powerful counterpoint — demonstrating that well-timed, concentrated sprints can accelerate progress without sacrificing control. The real lesson is not speed versus steadiness, but how to deploy both intentionally.

Successful Organizational Change Is Not the Norm
Across organizations, successful change remains the exception rather than the rule. Clients consistently report that only about one-third of their change initiatives fully achieve their intended objectives. The obvious question follows: why do two-thirds of change efforts fall short?

While there are multiple contributing factors, one of the most overlooked is scope creep — the tendency to expand the initiative beyond its original intent. In practice, this often manifests as organizations:

• Attempting to tackle too much, too quickly.
• Diluting focus and overwhelming resources.

A Recent Client Example
Consider a recent client undertaking a significant transformation initiative impacting approximately 30% of their revenue. The original mandate was clear and strategically sound — transition to new manufacturing partners and redesign a critical component of their offering. The scope was meaningful, but focused.

However, driven by good intentions and a desire to maximize impact, the initiative expanded. What began as a targeted effort quickly grew to encompass every product line, more than 50 SKUs, all packaging, visual design, and brand messaging across the entire portfolio.

The outcome was predictable.

• Sales velocity declined.
• Customer dissatisfaction increased.
• Employee frustration intensified.

Rather than amplifying impact, the expanded scope fragmented it.

In retrospect, the root cause became clear. As the initiative grew:

• Strategic clarity eroded.
• Success metrics became blurred.
• Priorities conflicted.
• Resources were spread too thin to execute effectively.

What started as a strategically coherent effort became operationally unwieldy.

The lesson is straightforward but often ignored — effective change requires disciplined focus. Speed, when applied in targeted, high-impact bursts, can drive change momentum. But without clear boundaries, even the best intentions can undermine results.

How to Go Fast for Better Change: The Case for Speed in Organizational Change Management

1. Ruthlessly Simplify and Focus
   Speed without direction and purpose is just motion. Before initiating any change effort, change management training participants learn to establish absolute clarity on what you are trying to achieve — and in what order of priority. Define success in concrete, observable terms so there is no ambiguity about what “better” actually means.

   Strategic simplicity creates strategic momentum.

   In an organizational context, this translates to identifying the critical few changes that will disproportionately drive results. It requires the discipline to say no to well-intentioned additions that dilute focus. This is where many efforts unravel. When everything becomes a priority, nothing is. The earlier client example illustrates this precisely — the expansion of scope made it nearly impossible to isolate cause and effect, ultimately obscuring both accountability and learning.

   Clarity is not a “nice to have” — it is the foundation that makes speed viable.

2. Execute in Focused Sprints
   With strategic priorities established, speed becomes an advantage — if applied correctly.  Rather than attempting a massive, linear rollout, structure the change as a series of short, intentional sprints. Each sprint should target a defined outcome, executed with intensity and focus.

   Then pause. Evaluate what worked, what didn’t, and why. Capture insights quickly and feed them into the next cycle.

   This approach from change management simulation research creates a cadence of accountability, execution, and learning that compounds over time. It reduces risk by limiting exposure, while simultaneously increasing change agility. Organizations that operate this way learn faster than the environment changes — which is a decisive advantage.

   Critically, speed here does not mean rushing. It means compressing feedback loops. It means making progress visible. And it means adjusting course early, before small missteps become systemic failures.

3. Keep Your Eye on the Prize — and Make It Visible
   Even with focus and speed, change efforts fail when people lose sight of the “why.” Sustained momentum requires a clear and consistently reinforced connection between the change and the outcomes that matter.

   Workplace change is inherently disruptive. Change resistance is not an anomaly — it is a predictable human response. The countermeasure is honesty and transparency. Leaders must repeatedly articulate the rationale, the intended benefits, and the progress being made. Not once, but continuously.

   Equally important is alignment. Engage key stakeholders early and often. Ensure leaders are not just informed, but actively sponsoring the change. Allocate the necessary resources so teams are not forced to choose between the change initiative and their day jobs. And establish clear mechanisms for tracking progress and reinforcing accountability.

   When people understand where the organization is going, why it matters, and how progress is being made, resistance diminishes and engagement increases.

   Speed, in this context, is not reckless acceleration. It is disciplined momentum — grounded in clarity, executed through focused sprints, and sustained through transparency.

The Bottom Line
Most change efforts stall before they deliver meaningful results — not because of flawed intent, but because of unfocused execution. The advantage goes to organizations that combine the tortoise’s clarity, discipline, and persistence with the hare’s ability to move in fast, focused bursts. When speed is guided by reflection and anchored in clear priorities, momentum builds without losing direction. Get that balance right, and you don’t just finish the race — you redefine how it’s won.

To learn more about how to go fast for better change, download 5 Science-Backed Lenses of Change Leadership

by Tristam Brown: CEO

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.