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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesDigital transformation is not just a technology rollout: it changes how people do their work, make decisions, and collaborate. Organizations are more likely to make new tools stick when leaders model the desired behaviors, employees help shape implementation, teams build the necessary skills, and new practices become part of everyday operations. Culture matters as an implementation condition, not as the sole explanation for success or failure.
Why technology alone does not change how an organization works
A new platform can be installed while familiar habits remain untouched. If teams keep working in silos, employees do not understand why a process is changing, or no one owns adoption after launch, the technology may not alter the work it was meant to improve. Digital transformation therefore involves changes to activities, behaviors, and interactions as well as systems.
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“Culture shift” is most useful when it refers to observable practices: leaders demonstrate the expected way of working; employees have a voice in implementation; people learn and experiment; teams collaborate across boundaries; and processes make room for feedback and refinement. Risk aversion, siloed mindsets, and broad reluctance to use technology can all slow adoption.
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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteBCG put the idea this way in its 2018 article: “Like any major transformation, a digital transformation requires instilling a culture that supports the change while enabling the company’s overarching strategy.” That is a useful framing, but survey associations do not show that culture alone causes a transformation to succeed.
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What the reported success figures do—and do not—show
Several widely cited findings point to a relationship between culture or implementation practices and transformation outcomes. They come from different surveys, time periods, and definitions, so they should not be treated as directly comparable or as causal estimates.
| Finding | Context and qualification |
|---|---|
| 26 percent | In McKinsey’s 2021 article, 26 percent of respondents said transformations they knew best were very or completely successful at both improving performance and equipping the organization to sustain improvement. The survey itself was fielded November 11–21, 2014, with 1,946 executives; 1,713 had participated in a transformation in the previous five years. |
| 90 percent versus 17 percent | BCG reported that, among roughly 40 digital transformations it assessed, the share reporting breakthrough or strong financial performance was 90 percent for companies focused on culture and 17 percent for companies that neglected it. This is an association reported by BCG, not proof that culture focus alone produced the difference. |
| 14 percent; 3 percent | In McKinsey’s 2019 article, 14 percent of respondents said their digital and analytics transformation efforts had made and sustained performance improvements, while 3 percent reported complete success at sustaining change. These are respondents’ reports under the article’s definitions. |
| 51 percent versus 13 percent | In McKinsey’s 2018 implementation survey, 51 percent of respondents whose organizations monitored KPIs during implementation reported success, compared with 13 percent among those whose organizations did not. This is a reported association within that survey. |
The figures indicate that sustained improvement is difficult and that culture-related and implementation practices are worth attention. They do not establish one universal recipe: each study measures its own population and outcome.
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What a practical culture shift looks like
Leaders explain the change and demonstrate it
Leaders need to make the direction legible: where the organization is going, why it is changing, and why the change matters. Communication is more credible when leaders also use the new processes themselves, support experimentation, and make decisions consistent with the stated goals. McKinsey’s transformation research reports an association between successful transformations and leadership role modeling, employee engagement, and face-to-face communication.
Employees help decide where technology belongs
People closest to a task can identify friction that a central rollout plan may miss. Invite employees to point out where digitization could support the business, involve them in implementation choices, and give them a meaningful role in shaping new workflows. Participation is not merely a message campaign; it gives the organization practical knowledge about how work happens.
Training continues beyond the launch
Employees need time and support to use digital solutions and develop skills for new ways of working. A launch announcement or initial training session cannot substitute for continued learning as people encounter real tasks, exceptions, and opportunities to improve the process.
Ownership, handoffs, and measures survive implementation
Define who leads the initiative and who takes responsibility when it moves into normal operations. McKinsey’s 2018 implementation research identifies dedicated initiative leads, clear handoffs to business units, employee training, and KPI monitoring as practices associated with reported success. Measures are more useful when they remain part of long-term processes rather than ending with a project team.
Employees can refine what has been introduced
Implementation should leave room for people to master, improve, and refine a solution after it goes live. That requires a route for reporting problems, reviewing performance, and making adjustments. Treating launch as the finish line can leave a poor fit between the tool and actual work unaddressed.
How to assess whether a transformation is changing the work
Use these questions to examine the implementation, rather than relying on a general claim that the organization is becoming “more digital”:
- Leadership: Do leaders explain the purpose of the change and visibly follow the practices they expect from others?
- Employee voice: Can employees influence where technology is applied and how processes are redesigned?
- Capability: Are training and skill development available as new work practices emerge, not just before launch?
- Work design: Have workflows, team responsibilities, and handoffs changed to fit the technology?
- Ongoing operation: Are implementation KPIs monitored in normal operations, with clear ownership and a way to refine the solution?
These are evidence-supported dimensions to inspect, not a validated scorecard or proof that any single operating model fits every organization. The appropriate changes depend on the work, the technology, and the people expected to use it.
Quick Recap
Sources and scope
- McKinsey, “The science behind successful organizational transformations” (2021 article; survey fieldwork in 2014).
- McKinsey, “How the implementation of organizational change is evolving” (2018 article; survey fieldwork in 2017).
- McKinsey, “Unlocking success in digital transformations” (2018).
- McKinsey, “How innovative companies leverage tech to outperform” (2023).
- BCG, “It’s Not a Digital Transformation Without a Digital Culture” (2018).
- McKinsey, “Five moves to make during a digital transformation” (2019).
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