Change Embodiment™ Methodology
Most change initiatives are declared successful. Most don't actually work. We make sure yours does.
The Uncomfortable Truth
88% of business transformations fail to achieve their original ambitions. And most of those "failures" were declared successes. The traditional playbook was followed. The boxes were checked. It still didn't work.
Here's why: Traditional change management stops too early and measures the wrong things.
It measures adoption when it should be measuring embodiment. It declares victory at go-live when it should be validating value six to twelve months later. It tracks whether the change was installed, not whether it's actually being lived.
Adoption asks: "Are people using it?"
Embodiment asks: "Is this how they naturally work now?"
There's a canyon between those two questions. Most organizations fall right into it.
Change Embodiment™ delivers everything traditional change management delivers: Communications, training, sponsorship, coaching, adoption tracking, reinforcement. All of it.
Then we add what's been missing: the frameworks, tracking, and validation that ensure change doesn't just get implemented, it gets embodied.
Only 1 in 3 change initiatives fully achieve their goals. Most of the failures were declared success. (Gartner)
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50% of leaders cannot confidently assess the success of recent organizational changes. (Gartner)
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Only 1 in 3 change initiatives fully achieve their goals. Most of the failures were declared success. (Gartner) 〰️ 50% of leaders cannot confidently assess the success of recent organizational changes. (Gartner) 〰️
Embedded vs. Embodied™
Embedded means it's been installed. The system is live. The training is done. The process is documented. From an organizational standpoint, the change exists.
Embodied means it's being lived. People follow the process because it's how they are naturally working now. The change isn't just present. It's absorbed.
Every organization has a gap between these two. Traditional change management focuses on embedding.
We focus on what happens after: the harder, slower, more human work of helping people actually internalize the change until it becomes simply how they work.
74% of leaders say they involve employees in change.
Only 42% of employees agree.
Source: Gartner
Traditional change management assesses readiness for a specific change. We track capacity: whether people can absorb ANY change right now.
MIA™ tracks three things:
Motivation: Do people see the purpose? Do they have the energy to engage? When motivation drops, you see cynicism and "this too shall pass" attitudes.
Intention: Do people have clarity on what's expected? When intention drops, you see confusion, conflicting priorities, and effort spent on the wrong things.
Attention: Do people have the bandwidth? When attention drops, you see overwhelm, training that doesn't stick, and change fatigue setting in.
When MIA™ is healthy, people can embody change. When it drops, they go through the motions at best. And 67% of workers are already experiencing burnout during change initiatives.
We measure MIA™ before, during, and after. Because you can't ask people to absorb more if you don't know what they're already carrying.
10 enterprise changes per employee in 2022. Only 2 in 2016. We're asking 5x more. Are we tracking capacity? Source: Gartner
Six Dimensions. One Goal: Change That Lasts.
Change Embodiment™ works across six dimensions, each one addressing a gap that traditional change management ignores. We start by diagnosing where friction actually lives before designing solutions. We activate with attention to human capacity, monitor what matters in real time, and adjust based on evidence, not assumptions. And we don't walk away at go-live.
We validate that the change is fully embodied, that it delivered the intended value, and that your organization is stronger.
DIAGNOSE
Understand friction before you act
DESIGN
Build for embodiment, not just adoption
ACTIVATE
Launch with protected attention
MONITOR
Track what matters in real time
ADJUST
Respond to reality, not the plan
VALIDATE
Confirm it worked and will last
Traditional change management focuses on whether the change happened. We focus on whether it worked, lasted, and at what human cost.
This isn't about throwing out what exists. It's about adding what's been missing.
What Change Embodiment™ Delivers
When you track what actually matters, protect human capacity throughout, and validate outcomes 6-12 months after launch, you get something different. Not just a project that launched. Not just boxes that got checked. You get change that people own, results you can prove, and an organization with capacity left for what comes next.
EMBRACED
Not resisted
PROVEN
Not Assumed
STRONGER
Not Depleted
54% of change fatigued employees are more likely to quit. We protect capacity so your organization is stronger, not depleted. Source: Capterra
Advisory Board
Engage3P Change Embodiment™ is guided by experts in behavioral science, organizational psychology, and transformation leadership.
National behavioral health leader whose purpose and passion is to identify solutions to wicked problems within the country's human and health systems by harnessing the knowledge, expertise and innovations of teams and communities.
Dr. Drennen is the Branch Chief for Disaster Behavioral Health and Community Recovery with 30 years of experience in clinical psychology, emergency management, and disaster behavioral health. He holds a PsyD in Clinical Psychology.
Operations and Response Branch Chief, State of ColoradoCurt Drennen, PsyD, RN
Catarina R. Dolsten, MD, MA is the founder and CEO at Aktum Group. Dr. Dolsten works with executives and CHROs to transform organizations.
Catarina brings extensive experience from executive and management settings in the United States, Europe and Africa. Catarina received a masters from Columbia University in Organizational Psychology, she is a Certified Coach from NYU and a Medical Doctor from Lund University, Sweden.
Catarina R. Dolsten, MD, MA
Founder & CEO, Aktum GroupReady for Change That Actually Works?
The Clarity Diagnostic assesses friction across People, Process, and Platform, establishes your MIA™ baseline, and identifies the gaps between what's embedded and what's embodied. Weeks to clarity before you commit resources.
Start with the Clarity Pulse Check.
It reveals your organization's Motivation, Intention, and Attention in minutes and shows whether your people have the capacity for what's coming next.