Not a day goes by without most of us not hearing, reading or using the word “transformation”.

And while we may find it easy to transform ourselves, for leaders to manage change can be difficult. Why? Because no one likes change or having to adapt to new situations. I see it every day when working with clients. Too many times we are putting the focus on the magic words of “efficiency” or “effectiveness” or “process optimization”, almost forgetting the special magic word “people”.

By putting people first, organizational change can be much better navigated. After all, it is the people who will be transforming the organization, so as leaders it is your task to enable them to do so – from creating the right motivation to giving them the tools and helping them thrive.

Jim Hemerling, Senior Partner at BCG, in a recent TED talk summed it up nicely in his slide of the five imperatives for transforming organizations with one common theme: putting people first.