It's a commonly used term, 'complexity'. In most organisations, it's how the stakeholders will describe the change or their organisation. Now I am not going to dismiss that off hand but let's go through what will make a change complex, and keeping in mind that we should define complexity as high risk. The more complex the higher risk there is that the change just won't stick!

Here are some scenarios where the change may be complex and more importantly what to do to reduce the complexity:

1. There are multiple streams of work taking place which haven't been aligned or streamlined into a cohesive story. The aspect that creates complexity here is a lack of understanding about the program itself. This generates confusion which for many is a safe place to land when they feel overwhelmed. If you want to reduce the complexity, unpack the streams to understand the relationship and dependencies so then it can be 'rebuilt' into a cohesive program. 

2. Geographic distance: The concept that peo...

Complex change normally takes the form of large IT transformations or changes to the strategic direction and identity of an organisation. The complexity comes with multiple streams of work, all which bring change, are often all impacting the same group, at various degrees and at different times. Depending in the size and span of your organisation and impact on processes, the scale of change can result in a need to simplify the story of change so engagement from both leaders and frontline employees is high all the way through. 

The other aspect of a complexity measure is baed in the risk exposure for the organisation. In simple terms, it is a matter of answering the question 'how much can the organisation afford to have this program fail?' For transformations, the risk is higher than other changes due to level of investment and reputational risk - to possible shareholders and external stakeholders is high.

So what are some actions you should take when facing complex change?

1. Clari...