The operating onion model

A compass tells you where True North is. It tells you nothing about the swamps and obstacles between here and there. That is the striking metaphor that opens the chapter on Direction in Changing Fast and Slow, the excellent new book by Jeroen Tas and Rob Theunissen that I recently finished. It explains why so many transformations are difficult.

Leaders are often clear about the destination but far less clear about the terrain that must be navigated to get there. Rob is a highly respected former McKinsey colleague and a dear friend. Jeroen brings an impressive track record across both entrepreneurial and corporate environments. Together, they combine decades of hands-on transformation experience with pioneering thought leadership.

It is a joy to see those insights distilled so clearly into this book. One of the frameworks I found helpful is their view of the operating model as an onion with 15 elements. It consists of five transformation levers: 1.⁠ ⁠Direction 2.⁠ ⁠Value Creation 3.⁠ ⁠Power 4.⁠ ⁠Motivation 5.⁠ ⁠Culture Each lever operates across three pace layers, creating three concentric rings.

The first element of each lever sits in the operational layer, where change can happen quickly. The second sits in the strategic layer, where change takes longer. The third sits in the existential layer, where purpose, capabilities, trust and identity reside, and where change is slowest, but often most consequential.

The central insight is that while organisations naturally gravitate towards changing the outer operational layer, transformational impact comes from peeling back the onion and addressing the deeper layers as well. In my experience, successful transformation requires attention to all five levers across all three pace layers.

It is tempting to focus on only a few levers and to prioritise the operational layer because it produces visible progress quickly. Yet that is precisely where many transformations stall. The real challenge, and the real art, is orchestrating all five levers across the three layers in a coherent and reinforcing way.

A good question to ask when you find yourself navigating the inevitable swamps on the journey towards True North is: Which lever or layer am I overlooking?