John Kotter Leading Change: What Most Leaders Get Wrong

Change is a nightmare. Honestly, most people hate it. You’ve probably sat through one of those "transformation" town halls where the CEO talks about synergy while everyone else just wonders if their favorite coffee machine is getting moved. It's awkward, it's messy, and according to the data, about 70% of these big ideas fail.

Back in 1996, a Harvard professor named John Kotter decided to figure out why. He wrote a book called Leading Change, and it basically became the Bible for anyone trying to fix a broken company without burning it to the ground. But here’s the thing: most managers treat his 8-step process like a grocery list. They check off the first three boxes, get bored, and then wonder why the office culture feels like a cold war by month six.

Why John Kotter Leading Change Still Matters in 2026

We live in a world that moves ridiculously fast. If you aren't changing, you're becoming a footnote. Kotter’s core argument was that "change management" isn't the same as "change leadership." Management is about keeping the trains on time. Leadership is about deciding where the tracks should actually go.

When people talk about John Kotter leading change, they usually jump straight to the steps. But the philosophy is deeper. It’s about the fact that human beings are hardwired to prefer the "devil we know." To break that inertia, you need more than just a PowerPoint; you need a strategy that hits people in the gut.

The 8-Step Process (The Real Version)

Kotter didn't just guess these steps. He watched hundreds of companies succeed and fail. He realized that transformation is a marathon, not a sprint. If you skip a step to save time, you’re basically trying to bake a cake without the flour.

1. Create a Sense of Urgency. This is where 50% of companies fail immediately. You can’t just say "we need to grow." You have to show that the status quo is a burning platform. Kotter once suggested that 75% of your management needs to be honestly convinced that staying the same is more dangerous than jumping into the unknown.
2. Build a Guiding Coalition. You need a "dream team." This isn't just the C-suite. It's the influential people from all levels—the ones people actually listen to at the water cooler.
3. Form a Strategic Vision. If you can’t explain the future in five minutes and get a reaction that signifies both understanding and interest, you’re in trouble.
4. Enlist a Volunteer Army. This is the 2021 update to his original "communicate the vision" step. You need a massive number of people who actually want to help, not just people who are told to help.
5. Enable Action by Removing Barriers. This is the "get out of the way" phase. If your new vision requires speed but your approval process takes six weeks, the process is the problem.
6. Generate Short-Term Wins. Humans need dopamine. If the change takes three years to show results, everyone will quit. Find something you can fix in 90 days and celebrate it like you won the Super Bowl.
7. Sustain Acceleration. Don't declare victory too early. This is a classic trap. You hit one goal and everyone relaxes, then the old habits creep back in like weeds.
8. Institute Change. You have to anchor the new way of doing things into the culture. It has to become "how we do things around here."

The "Dual Operating System" Shift

Around 2014, Kotter realized the world was getting even crazier. His book Accelerate introduced a tweak: the Dual Operating System.

Basically, he argues that traditional hierarchies (the org chart) are great for efficiency but terrible for rapid change. He suggests running a second, network-like structure alongside the hierarchy. Think of it like a startup living inside a corporate giant. The hierarchy handles the daily "keep the lights on" work, while the network focuses on the big, scary, "John Kotter leading change" style moves.

It sounds complicated, but it’s really just admitting that the same person who excels at auditing expense reports might not be the best person to reinvent your entire product line.

Real World: When It Worked (and When It Didn't)

Look at British Airways in the 80s. Sir John King took over a state-owned mess that was bleeding money. He didn't just cut costs; he followed the blueprint. He created urgency by being brutally honest about their survival. He replaced half the board (removing barriers). He focused on customer service as a "short-term win" to prove they could be a premium airline.

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On the flip side, look at many retail giants that saw Amazon coming and did... nothing. They had no urgency. They had "change committees" that met once a month to discuss "synergy" while their market share evaporated. They treated change like a project with an end date rather than a permanent state of being.

Common Pitfalls That Kill Momentum

• The "Victory" Trap: Celebrating a 10% increase in efficiency as if the job is done.
• The Top-Down Monologue: The CEO sending one email and assuming everyone is now "aligned." Spoiler: they aren't.
• The "Frozen Middle": Middle managers who feel threatened by change and quietly sabotage it. If they aren't in your guiding coalition, they'll be your biggest roadblock.
• Ignoring the Heart: Kotter is big on "Head and Heart." If your case for change is 100% data and 0% emotion, nobody is going to stay late to help you finish it.

Actionable Steps to Lead Change Today

If you're in the middle of a shift right now, stop looking at the end goal for a second. Look at your urgency levels. If you asked ten random employees why the company is changing, would you get ten different answers?

1. Audit Your Urgency: Run a "pre-mortem." Ask your team: "If we go out of business in two years, what was the cause?" Use that fear to fuel the "why."
2. Identify the Skeptics: Don't ignore the people who hate the plan. Bring them into the coalition. If you can win over a respected skeptic, the rest of the office will follow.
3. Find a "Micro-Win": What is one annoying, small process you can kill today to show people that things are actually moving?
4. Kill the Jargon: Stop saying "transformation." Start saying "We are doing X so that Y stops happening."

Leadership isn't about having the best ideas. It's about having the stamina to push those ideas through the messy, human reality of a workplace. Kotter's model isn't a magic wand, but it is a very good map for a very dark forest.

Next Steps for Implementation

• Map your Guiding Coalition: Identify three people outside of leadership who have "social capital" in the office.
• Draft your 5-minute Vision: Record yourself explaining the change. If it's boring or confusing, start over.
• List the "Barriers": Ask your team what one rule or process makes their job hardest right now. Aim to remove it within 30 days.