WHY IS THERE SUCH A HIGH FAILURE RATE IN BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION TODAY?

The true number of business transformation project failure is underreported. Depending on which research you follow, the figure is between 70% – 80% of business transformation projects end in failure. There is five (5) main causes in business transformation failure are – lack of stakeholder involvement, lack of senior stakeholder support, changing requirement, incomplete requirements and poor planning.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH EXISTING APPROACHES?

Nothing. They are good at the purpose they were designed for, except they are now used for a different purpose, and that is not the original purpose they were designed for. Look at TOGAF® (The Open Group Architecture Framework) for example – it’s a framework for managing ‘technology’ or ‘technology changes’. It is not surprising, it was written by a “technology standards company”. They know and understand technology. What is happening is, TOGAF® is being used in business transformation projects that the ‘framework’ to manage the ‘transformation’, but it only focuses one thing – technology. It doesn’t focus on anything else other than Technology (it almost completely ignores, the other two (2) important aspects of the organisation – People, and Process(es)). It also ignores how to transition the business from the current state, to its desired future state. It effectively put the Technology stakeholders in the drivers set, to dictate to the Business what they think they want and literally throw it over the fence to the Business for them to work out if first it is fit for purpose, and then how to use and implement it.

HOW DOES HOBA® SOLVE THE PROBLEM IN BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION TODAY?

HOBA® solves the 70% failure rate in business transformation problem by addressing the causes that problem in the first place – by putting the Business back into control, to take control back from Technology and into their own hands, using a structured process and framework that was developed WITH the Business, BY the Business, to be USED and OWNED by the Business, putting the control back into their own hands.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST PROBLEM WITH BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION PROJECTS AND HOW DOES HOBA® HELP?

The biggest problem with business transformation projects is firstly the name. “Business Transformation” is incorrectly called or referred to as “Digital Transformation”. ‘Digital Transformation’ is a misnomer, it is not ‘digital’ per se that is ‘transforming’, it is the ‘Business’ that is transforming, and how it does or is doing that in this period of time is via ‘digital technologies’ (if ‘technology’ isn’t already digital, what were they before?). What this intentional confusion in the marketplace is causing, is it causes is an incorrect bias and focus on the ‘technology aspect’ only of the transformation, which by doing so completely ignores the Business aspects – that’s the Business Operations Stakeholders and their concerns, and the Processes those stakeholders carry out. HOBA® helps by putting the Business back in to control, to be very clear and structured with what is the Vision, Strategy, Objectives and Measures, what stakeholders are involved and need to be involved in the transformation and their decision making authority, the process to manage those decisions, scope and risks; what are the problems they want to address or opportunities they want to take advantage of; what benefits they want to realise from the transformation and when; what the future or Target Operating Model (TOM) needs to look like to achieve their Vision and Strategic Objectives and business benefits, and how and when will the changes be implemented. Everything and nothing more, only doing what needs to be done, to transform the business, not doing what is happening in the marketplace today and that is ‘creating reams and reams of colourful models and diagrams, that while beautiful, are in reality just “interesting but (sadly) useless”.

WHAT IS THE DESIGN PROCESS?

The Design Process is the 6-Step process used to implement HOBA® and manage the transformation from the very start, to the very end, implementation.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION IN THE MARKETPLACE?

The biggest misconception in the marketplace today with business transformation is that Clients are led to believe that they need ‘reams and reams’ of pretty colourful presentations to transform your business. This is a fallacy. This only creates expensive shelf-ware. What those ‘pretty presentations’ are designed for is to enable the transformation project to keep moving toward its end goal, transforming the Business. What the Clients are led to believe is those ‘pretty presentations are the actual goal of the project, and often celebrated and hang up on the project office wall with great bravado as if they were the goal of the transformation itself! What those ‘pretty presentations’ actually need to be is two (2) things – first, is they need to be understandable, and written in a language that the Business understands, so first they can understand what it and they mean, and then they can agree to it. Then second, then they need to be useful. A lot of Consultants and Consultancy’s wanting to impress their clients with great marketing, pretty presentations and long list of impressive acronyms and latest “it” words, but this just confuses the Client. What happens is the Consultants will present their ‘ideas’ (because that’s what they are, they have had one meeting with the Client, interpreted that into their own words and perspectives, and come back to them several weeks and months later, having not consulted with them through the process, thinking ‘they know their Clients business best (they don’t, the Client does!) and play back their 300+ page power-point presentation that looks impressive), they present it to the Client, the Client has no idea what it means or says (its written in a foreign language, literally), due to the time it’s taken, and the money it has cost at that point, the Client agrees to it in the room, then walks out the room, and completely ignores everything the Consultant(s) said. The transformation goes nowhere. HOBA® solves that problem, refer to the first question above.

HOBA® is trusted by the UK Government, FTSE-100 companies and start-ups to both set up, and also turnaround their failing transformations. HOBA® is used by thousands around to transform their business, and was made public for the first time in late 2018, after over 10+ years in use with private clients, published in The Business Transformation Playbook – How to Implement Your Organisations Target Operating Model (TOM) and Achieve a Zero-Percent Failure Rate Using the 6-Step Agile Framework’, reaching bestseller on Amazon in 6-categories including Project Management and Consulting, and made it onto the Best Business Strategy eBook List of All Time by BookAuthority, at no.30 (March 2021). See News for details.

CAN I READ A PREVIEW OF THE BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION PLAYBOOK?

Yes, you can download a FREE preview to The Business Transformation Playbook here.

Agile Business Transformation vs Traditional Business Transformation: What Sets Them Apart

By Heath Gascoigne
January 6, 2025
Business Transformation, Enterprise Architecture
Post Views: 454

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Agile Business Transformation vs Traditional Business Transformation

Why Agile Business Transformation Is the Future

HOBA: The Agile Business Transformation Framework Trusted by Industry Leaders

What’s the Difference Between Agile Business Transformation and Traditional Business Transformation?

Business transformation has been a buzzword for decades, but not all transformations are created equal. While traditional business transformation often focuses on creating static, theoretical models that look impressive but fail to deliver results, Agile Business Transformation takes a dynamic, iterative approach designed to drive measurable, real-world success.

In this blog post, we’ll explore the key differences between Agile Business Transformation and traditional methods, why the former is the future of organizational change, and how frameworks like HOBA (House of Business Architecture) empower leaders to deliver successful transformations the first time, on time.

We’ll also introduce you to the concept of the Business Transformator, a next-generation leader who goes beyond traditional business architecture to drive real change as a strategist, designer, collaborator, and negotiator.

Heres what we’ll cover (click the links to skip to the section below):

NB – Click to expand images 📸

Whether you’re a business consultant, a consultancy owner, a C-suite executive, or a PMO leader, this blog post will provide you with the insights and tools to navigate and lead in today’s rapidly changing world. Let’s dive in!

Business Transformation: Art or Science?

For decades, organizations have pursued “business transformation” to adapt to changing markets, improve performance, or seize new opportunities. But too often, these efforts fall into a familiar trap: they deliver flashy marketecture—business architecture created to impress, but not to solve.

Enter Agile Business Transformation, a method that goes beyond static design and theoretical models to create actionable, iterative solutions that drive real change. Let’s unpack the key differences.

💡 "Business transformation isn’t about creating pretty diagrams. Agile Business Transformation is about real results, delivered iteratively. Be the leader who transforms ideas into outcomes."🚀 #AgileTransformation #BusinessGrowth #HOBA #Leadership

Heath Gascoigne Tweet

What Is Agile Business Transformation?

Agile Business Transformation uses iterative development of business architecture as a tool for transformation, not an end goal. It’s a dynamic, real-time approach that evolves with your organization’s needs and priorities, ensuring every step aligns with measurable outcomes.

By contrast, traditional business transformation often revolves around creating rigid, overly complex business architecture—what we call marketecture. It looks great on paper and excites business architects, but it rarely translates into tangible results for the organization.

The “Business Transformator” Mindset

Agile Business Transformation isn’t just about better tools; it’s about a better mindset. At HOBA Tech, we call ourselves “Business Transformators.” Unlike traditional business architects, who focus solely on design, Business Transformators embody four critical roles:

Part-Strategist: We set focus and direction, aligning transformation efforts with the organization’s vision and goals.
Part-Designer: We help craft the structure, operations, and operating model for long-term success.
Part-Collaborator: We ensure cross-functional integration because transformations impact—and depend on—multiple parts of the organization.
Part-Negotiator: We resolve competing priorities and trade-offs to drive alignment across stakeholders.

Without this holistic approach, business architecture becomes a siloed exercise, impressive only to peers—not the organization.

Why Agile Outperforms Traditional Transformation

The results speak for themselves:

HOBA: The Proven Framework for Agile Transformation

At HOBA Tech, we’ve developed a proven Agile Business Transformation framework that’s trusted by industry giants, including the UK government, FTSE-100 companies, and high-growth startups.

HOBA isn’t just another framework—it’s a game-changer that empowers consultants, consultancy owners, C-Suite executives, and PMOs to deliver real results, on time and the first time.

Transform Your Transformation Efforts Today

Ready to ditch marketecture and deliver real transformation success? Join our Introduction to Agile Business Transformation Course to:

Call to Action:

Don’t just design change—deliver it.

👉 Join the Course Now

BOOK YOUR FREE STRATEGY CALL!

Unlock the roadmap to your business transformation success. Schedule a free strategy call with our experts to align your strategy, architecture, and operations for real change. Let’s create a tailored approach that fits your needs and sets you on the path to success. 🚀

📈 "Traditional transformation creates marketecture—impressive but useless. Agile Business Transformation delivers measurable success. Learn how with HOBA and lead the change." 🌟 #BusinessTransformation #AgileMindset #HOBAFramework #Innovation

Heath Gascoigne Tweet

Conclusion: Take the Lead in Agile Business Transformation

Agile Business Transformation isn’t just a buzzword—it’s the future of how organizations adapt, innovate, and thrive. By understanding the difference between traditional transformation and Agile, and embracing the mindset and framework of a Business Transformator, you can position yourself as a leader in this new era of change.

At HOBA Tech, we’ve helped countless organizations—from government bodies to FTSE-100 companies—achieve transformation success. Now, it’s your turn. Whether you’re looking to upskill, equip your team, or lead your organization to new heights, we have the tools and resources to help you succeed.

Ready to Get Started?

Learn more about our Agile Business Transformation Framework: Visit Our Resources Page
Discover our “Introduction to Agile Business Transformation” course: Sign Up Here
Have questions or need guidance? Contact us to schedule a free strategy call

Let’s transform the way you think, work, and lead—together. The time for change is now, and the opportunity to lead it is yours. Don’t wait—take the first step today!

👉 Contact Us Today

Looking for the Best Training to deliver your Business Transformation? Search no more!

⚡ "A Business Transformator is part strategist, part designer, part collaborator, and part negotiator. It’s time to go beyond architecture and lead real transformation." 🏆 #HOBA #AgileLeadership #TransformationSuccess #FutureOfWork

Heath Gascoigne Tweet

Hope you got a lot of value out of this.

Thanks for reading!

Heath Gascoigne

P.S. If you want to join our Business Transformator community of 2,000+ like-minded Business Transformators, join the community on the Business Transformator Facebook Group here.

P.P.S. If you want to learn more about business transformation, check out The Business Transformation Playbook here.

For more information, visit https://www.hoba.tech

Heath Gascoigne

Hi, I'm Heath, the founder of HOBA TECH and host of The Business Transformation Podcast. I help Business Transformation Consultants, Business Designers and Business Architects transform their and their clients' business and join the 30% club that succeed. Join me on this journey.

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