Change from the Inside-Out: Lasting Organizational Change Starts with People

May 18, 2025

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“We updated the system. We streamlined processes. We trained the team. But six months later… we don’t have all the benefits we want.” Sound familiar?

Many business leaders pour energy into structural, system, and process changes - yet become frustrated when old habits resurface and momentum fades. The problem isn’t the strategy. It’s the missing focus on how individuals experience and internalize change.

The Real Challenge: Change begins from within

As INSEAD Professor Stewart Black explains in his book 'Changing Individuals, Changing Organizations', successful change depends not on organizational charts or IT systems, but on shifting individual mental models.

People don’t resist change; they resist being changed without involvement, support, understanding, or personal relevance.

That’s why lasting change must begin from the inside out - starting with individuals supported by leaders who role model the way.

Here’s how to lead that kind of transformation.

Three Leadership Shifts for Inside-Out Change

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