Client stories of culture change

Across sectors and contexts, we’ve partnered with clients to turn cultural intent and values into lived mindsets and behaviours.

The three client stories below share a glimpse into the work of effective cultures change. Each shows culture making in action, grounded in clear behavioural shifts, leaders at the centre, and a deeply human approach that enables organisations to respond to change and uncertainty and achieve high performance together.

Case Study 1: Developing a more commercial culture

Context

Global Re-insurer Swiss Re identified a strategic priority to develop a more commercial culture. Achieving this required everyone in the business to change how they worked internally and external with clients.

Our work

Working with a client project team, WDI undertook four core activities.

• We carried out diagnostic and design conversations to surface barriers and opportunities, shaping the right change approach to achieve sustainable change and design bespoke workshops.
• We developed signature behaviours that defined the essence of the behavioural and mindset shifts required, and introduced a head, heart and gut change leadership approach.
• We designed and facilitated a series of leadership workshops, delivered face to face and virtually, to inspire confidence and build the capability of global change leaders.
• To sustain the shift, we introduced engagement and coaching for the executive team, trained a global Ambassador network and developed an online change toolkit.

Outcome

The programme rapidly unfroze numerous ‘old culture’ barriers to commercial behaviours and created a significant opportunity to achieve a more sustainable commercial culture. The shift to ‘coaching in the moment’ and heart led leadership is now role modelled by senior leaders and has significantly enhanced motivation, as evidenced in well being Pulse survey data. Feedback demonstrated increased urgency, more pragmatic prioritisation, and enhanced collaboration and agile decision making.

When looking at three key elements driving change, employees report very high encouragement to live the behaviours (79%) and good role modelling (63%) (Extracted from the overall RI Change Leadership pulse report).

WDI’s deep expertise in building change capability is giving our leaders a different way of leading resulting in tangible and lasting changes to our culture.

Natasha Gill Pajarola, Head Human Resources Reinsurance, Managing Director, Swiss Re

Case Study 2: Embedding collaborative behaviours for high performance

Context

Highways England (HE) was investing £9 billion over 6 years in a major Regional Investment Programme, issuing ground-breaking new contractual arrangements with its many delivery partners. Successful delivery of the new contracts required deep collaboration between HE and its partners.

We were brought in to embed collaborative behaviours to enable higher performance and more effective ways of working under pressure.

Our work

Working with the HE project team and 16 construction partners

• We co-created a 360° instrument based on the new desired behaviours and then worked with leaders to gather peer feedback on their current experience of collaboration.
• We defined the new collaborative behaviours, facilitating workshops, using live business challenges to practice new ways of working together. Importantly these sessions were part of delivering road contracts and not a separate add on activity.
• We empowered teams to self-evaluate and identified the performance benefits already being realised and set ambitious goals for the next six years.
• We embedded the culture change through developing industry wide collaboration coaches to develop internal capability to ensure sustainability of the work into the future.
• Teams measure their collaborative behaviours on a 6-monhtly basis, refining their actions plans based on their needs.

Outcome

By embedding collaborative behaviours through leadership practice, the organisation strengthened its ability to work across boundaries and sustain performance.

Leaders were supported to build confidence and empowerment, role modelling collaboration and reinforcing it through peer influence and everyday leadership actions.

WDI worked with us to establish a transformational process embedding collaborative team behaviours. This is a cornerstone to improved project performance with activity across 18 integrated (Highways England and Supplier) teams, simultaneously. Changing behaviours are already delivering improvements in the way we work increasing performance and improving business outcomes. WDI’s expertise has contributed to our growing capability and confidence in leadership and empowerment.

Prof. Martin Perks, Commercial Programme Director [Regional Investment Programme]

Case Study 3: Transforming culture in a high stakes environment

Context

Following a series of ‘Never’ events, an NHS Trust commissioned an independent review that identified human factors and a leadership gap as the root causes. WDI was brought in by the CEO to support cultural change in a complex, high pressure environment.

Our work

WDI designed and facilitated high impact, short intervention workshops that empowered and inspired leadership teams around a shared vision and goals. The solutions generated were practical, owned within Theatre department and grounded in the unique operational context, ensuring they were sustainable and motivating for staff.

Outcome

Leaders began to recognise the power and influence they had when collaborating on solutions. This led to re establishing trusted connection from Board to Theatre daily operating rhythm, greater visibility and approachability of the Theatre Leadership Team, and staff feeling heard, understood and valued.

There was a clear move away from functional silos towards collaboratively addressing conflict. Vision, values and behaviours became embedded, with increased emphasis on leadership skills and cultural fit in recruitment and promotion. Team leaders became more motivated and more willing to courageously challenge and uphold performance standards.

You have quickly understood the pressures and complexity of the acute hospital environment and have worked hard to support our teams whilst also challenging the status quo to improve behaviour and culture for the benefit of patient care. Thanks again for your support.

Neil Dardis, Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

We believe that culture change becomes actionable when aspirational intent is translated into clear, observable behaviours. Leaders are at the centre, connecting personally to the change and role modelling it through their daily actions. Sustainable change is reinforced through peer influence and shared accountability, and a meaningful connection to the value of the culture to achieve the organisation’s purpose.