Technique 7.20 Sustainable Change Capacity Assessment
Introduction
Sustainable change capacity is used to assess an organisation’s ongoing ability to initiate, absorb and sustain change across people, systems and culture. It can be used as:
- a self-assessment
- a leadership team conversation
- or a baseline–to–target maturity assessment.
Rate each statement on a 1–5 scale
1 = Strongly Disagree
2 = Disagree
3 = Mixed / Inconsistent
4 = Agree
5 = Strongly Agree
- Discuss evidence before scoring.
- Patterns matter more than individual scores.
Scoring Statements
DIMENSION 1: Individual & People Capacity (Micro Level)
| Statement | Score (1–5) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | People understand how change typically unfolds (emotionally and practically). | |
| 1.2 | Employees feel psychologically safe to question, challenge, and experiment. | |
| 1.3 | Resistance is explored and worked with, not suppressed or ignored. | |
| 1.4 | People have the skills to adapt (learning, sense-making, problem-solving, etc). | |
| 1.5 | Staff feel they have influence over changes that affect their work |
Subtotal (Micro): ____ / 25
DIMENSION 2: Structural & Process Capacity (Meso Level)
| Statement | Score (1-5) | |
|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | Change initiatives are prioritised and sequenced to avoid overload. | |
| 2.2 | Decision rights and governance for change are clear and efficient. | |
| 2.3 | Systems (HR, budgeting, performance, etc) support learning and adaptation. | |
| 2.4 | The organisation has repeatable methods and language for change. | |
| 2.5 | Internal change capability exists beyond reliance on consultants. |
Subtotal (Meso): ____ / 25
DIMENSION 3: Leadership, Culture & Strategy (Macro Level)
| Statement | Score (1-5) | |
|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | Leaders’ role-model adaptability and learning during change. | |
| 3.2 | Strategy provides clear direction but allows flexible pathways. | |
| 3.3 | The organisational culture encourages experimentation over blame. | |
| 3.4 | People understand why change is necessary and meaningful. | |
| 3.5 | The organisation regularly reflects and learns from past changes. |
Subtotal (Macro): ____ / 25
DIMENSION 4: Change Approach Agility
| Statement | Score (1-5) | |
|---|---|---|
| 4.1 | Leaders consciously choose change approaches based on context. | |
| 4.2 | Directed change is used appropriately (e.g. crisis, compliance, etc). | |
| 4.3 | Planned change is used for predictable improvement. | |
| 4.4 | Guided/emergent change is used in complex or uncertain contexts. | |
| 4.5 | Teams can shift approaches as conditions evolve. |
Subtotal (Approach Agility): ____ / 25
TOTAL CHANGE CAPACITY SCORE
Overall Score: ____ / 100
Change Capacity Maturity Levels
| Score Range | Capacity Level | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0–30 | Fragile | Change is exhausting, resisted and crisis-driven. |
| 31–55 | Reactive | Change happens but relies on heroics and compliance. |
| 56–75 | Developing | Capability exists but is inconsistent across the organisation. |
| 76–90 | Adaptive | Change is embedded, manageable and increasingly self-sustaining. |
| 91–100 | Change-Capable | Change is a core organisational strength and identity. |
Some Reflection Questions
Use after scoring:
- Where is our strongest capacity—and why?
- Where are we most vulnerable during change?
- Which dimension most limits our overall capacity?
- What one improvement would most increase our ability to handle future change?
- What would “one level higher” look like in practice?
Some Typical Capacity Gaps This Technique Reveals
- Strong leadership intent but weak systems
- Good project delivery but poor learning
- High engagement but change overload
- Clear strategy but low psychological safety.
(main source: Elda Dollija et al, 2021)