Is Your AI Rollout Built to Fail?

Kristy Ellmer and Julia Dhar, co-authors of How Change Really Works and founders of BCG’s Behavioral Science Lab, explain why so many transformations fail and what the science says separates success from failure. They break down the “messy middle,” why people resist being changed rather than change itself, and how giving employees real agency turns resistance into momentum.What You’ll Learn:Why “false alignment” among leaders, not resistance from employees, derails most transformations before they start.Why giving employees real ownership, not just participation, turns resistance into momentum.What makes AI transformations distinct from other kinds of organizational changeLearn More:Read How Change Really Works: https://on.bcg.com/3SpBPzdYour AI Change Is Actually a People Change: https://on.bcg.com/3RKUp4JThe False Alignment Trap: https://on.bcg.com/45R9ULHCEOs Are Betting Big on AI Transformations. Science Is How They Win: https://on.bcg.com/4bGy1jGWe Found the Real Reason 70% of Transformations Fail: https://on.bcg.com/4xqmOMqChapters(0:00) What Is Transformation?(1:54) Why Leaders Need a New Playbook for Change(3:42) Where Do Most Transformations Fail?(5:37) What Does the “Messy Middle” Look Like?(6:28) What Makes AI Transformations Different?(9:25) Where Is the "End Point" in an AI Transformation?(11:51) Why “Just Get on the Bus” Isn’t Good Advice for AI Change(13:03) When to Walk Away from a Change Effort(15:42) What Should Leaders Do When Momentum Fades?(16:49) Why Giving Employees Ownership Matters(21:06) What Should Leaders Do in the “Messy Middle”?(22:37) How Do You Make Change Successful?Meet the Experts Kristy Ellmer: https://on.bcg.com/4xvpgBgCo-Author, How Change Really WorksBCG Managing Director & PartnerNorth American Leader, BCG’s Transform PracticeCo-Founder, BCG’s Behavioral Science Lab:https://on.bcg.com/4z9WhVsJulia Dhar: https://on.bcg.com/45ec8VjCo-Author, How Change Really WorksBCG Managing Director & PartnerNorth American Leader, People and Organization PracticeCo-Founder, BCG’s Behavioral Science Lab: https://on.bcg.com/4z9WhVsListen to Other Episodes of The So What from BCG podcastYouTube | https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMJgyXjV5gMI9JV-GcF_D1Y6zyf1Eab_0&si=plXqe7-YNzbG56U8Apple | https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-so-what-from-bcg/id1591194141Spotify | https://open.spotify.com/show/2NSVR7qrAyZ4CaGsnknbBk?si=1d846c2af8784923Other platforms | https://lnk.to/so-what-general-show12Follow BCGhttps://www.bcg.com/LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/company/boston-consulting-groupThis podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp