CN Intelligence

Research.
Intelligence.
Thinking.

Original research and practitioner thinking on change programme performance, operating model design and the analytics of transformation delivery. Not content — intelligence.

Research & Data4
Thought Leadership3
Sector Intelligence6
Programme Diagnostics3
CN Research Snapshot — 2026
Change programmes failing post go-live67%
OM redesigns with embedded change management23%
AI transformation programmes operating at scale11%
Benefits cases verified at month 1218%
CN practitioner analysis and published industry research · 2026
£12bn
UK change & transformation market annually
70%
of transformation programmes fail to deliver projected benefits
£420bn
wasted globally on failed change programmes per year
12
months — the real measure of whether change held
Four original research studies on transformation performance, operating model maturity, AI readiness and government outcomes.
View full research hub →
Type
Topic
Thought Leadership
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● Thought Leadership
"Change management has become very good at managing meetings. It has become significantly less good at managing what happens when the meetings end."
Change Management All sectors 12 min read
Change Fails in the Corridor.
Why change management is designed for the wrong room — and what designing for the right one looks like. The manager 1:1. The Monday morning conversation. The corridor ambush. Four informal moments that determine whether change holds — and how to design for each one.
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● Thought Leadership
Change Management
Change Fails in the Corridor
The informal network determines whether change holds. Most change programmes brief the room and ignore the corridor entirely.
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📊
● Research
Change Management
Change Programme Performance Index 2024
Original CN research. 47 programmes. What separates the 22% that achieve their benefits from the 78% that do not.
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🏛
● Sector Intelligence
Government
The State of AI in Government: From Pilot to Production
Why most government AI pilots never reach production — and what the ones that do have in common.
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🛡
● Sector Intelligence
Defence
Digital Modernisation in UK Defence
The strategic imperative for digital transformation in UK defence. Why most programmes fail before they start.
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🧬
● Sector Intelligence
Pharma
The 90-Day Window: What Determines Pharma Launch Success
Launch success is determined before launch. The operating model decisions made in the 90 days prior are the ones that matter.
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● Sector Intelligence
Government
Winning Public Sector Contracts Under the Procurement Act 2023
What the Procurement Act 2023 changes, what it does not, and how consultancies should adapt their approach.
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🚀
● Thought Leadership
Scale-up
The Scaling Inflection: Why the Model That Got You Here Won't Scale
The operating model that worked at 50 people fails at 200. The scaling inflection is predictable. Most founders miss it anyway.
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🛒
● Sector Intelligence
FMCG
AI-Driven Demand Planning in FMCG: Why Most Programmes Fail
Most FMCG AI demand planning programmes fail to deliver sustained accuracy improvement. The problem is rarely the algorithm.
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📐
● Research
Methodology
The Evidence Base: Why the CN Approach Works
The research and data behind the CN methodology. APQC, Hackett, Prosci and CN's own programme performance data.
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📈
● Research
All sectors
Research & Data — CN Intelligence
The quantitative foundation for CN's operating model and change management approach. Data, benchmarks and findings.
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● Reference
All sectors
The CN Crib Sheet: Key Terms & Definitions
The language CN uses. Definitions for operating model, change management and programme delivery terms. No jargon.
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Research & Data
Full research hub →

Original analysis from CN practitioners — programme performance benchmarks, operating model maturity data and transformation outcome measurement. Methodology notes published with every piece.

🔬 Research & Data
Change Programme Performance Index 2026
Analysis of 200+ transformation programmes across UK public and private sectors. Adoption rates, failure modes, benefits realisation and the corridor factors that differentiate programmes that hold.
Programmes achieving >80% adoption at month 631%
Programmes with manager enablement (not briefing)22%
Benefits verified at 12 months post go-live18%
CN Analysis · 2026 · Methodology availableDownload summary →
🔬 Research & Data
Operating Model Maturity Benchmark — UK 2026
Where UK organisations actually sit across the six operating model layers — and what separates high-maturity organisations from those stuck in design-document mode.
Avg maturity: People & Organisation layer2.9/5
Avg maturity: Performance & Data layer2.2/5
Organisations with fully integrated OM design14%
CN Analysis · 2026 · Methodology availableDownload summary →
🔬 Research & Data
AI Transformation Readiness Index — UK 2026
Measuring the gap between AI ambition and AI reality across UK enterprises. Technology readiness, change capability maturity and the organisational factors that predict successful AI adoption.
Executives citing AI as top priority89%
Organisations with AI programmes at scale11%
AI change readiness vs tech readiness gap3.7x
CN Analysis · 2026 · Methodology availableDownload summary →
🔬 Research & Data
Government Transformation Outcomes Study 2026
What actually happens to government digital and operational transformation programmes at month 12, 24 and 36. Benefits realisation data and the programme factors that predict long-term success.
Gov programmes meeting business case at month 2424%
Programmes with formal benefits baseline41%
Civil service change capability rated strong19%
CN Analysis · 2026 · Methodology availableDownload summary →
📑 Reference
The CN Crib Sheet
Plain-English definitions of every major change management, operating model and transformation term. ADKAR, Kotter, RAID, benefits realisation and more. One line each. No padding.
Terms defined30+
Categories covered5
CN practitioner take on each term✓
Filterable by category · Free to useBrowse the Crib Sheet →
📊 Evidence Base
Why the CN Approach Works
Eight transformation failure modes. The research that explains each one. What CN does in response. Kotter, Prosci, McKinsey and CN's own 140-programme data.
Failure modes covered8
External research sourcesKotter, Prosci, McKinsey, PMI
CN programme data140 programmes
Research-backed methodologyRead the evidence →
Programme Diagnostics
Self-assessment tools — free to use

Structured diagnostic frameworks for senior leaders and programme teams. Use them to assess where your programme or operating model actually stands before you commission external support.

🔍
🎯 Diagnostic
Is Your Change Programme Designed for the Corridor?
A 12-question diagnostic that reveals whether your change programme is operating in the formal layer only — or whether it has been designed to reach the informal spaces where change is actually decided.
Are your managers enabled for specific corridor conversations — not just briefed?
Do you know what is being said about the programme in informal channels right now?
Can you name the three most influential informal leaders in each affected team?
Coming Q2 2026Request early access →
🏗
🎯 Diagnostic
Operating Model Maturity Self-Assessment
Rate your organisation across all six operating model layers. Identify where integration is weakest and where redesign would have the highest impact.
Are your processes designed around outcomes, or around the org chart?
Does your technology serve your operating model — or did the model follow the technology?
Is your MI framework driving decisions or reporting for its own sake?
Coming Q2 2026Request early access →
🤖
🎯 Diagnostic
AI Transformation Readiness Check
Ten questions that reveal whether your organisation has the change capability to make AI adoption hold — not just the technology. The gap between AI ambition and reality is almost always a change problem.
Does your AI programme have a named change lead?
Have your managers been equipped to lead teams through AI-driven role change?
Do you have a baseline for measuring AI adoption at month 12?
Coming Q2 2026Request early access →
Sector Intelligence
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What is happening in specific sectors right now that affects transformation programmes. Short, specific, regularly updated.

🏛️ Government
AI in Government: From Pilot to Production
Why the gap between AI ambition and AI reality in the public sector is narrowing — and what separates organisations building lasting capability.
2026→
🛡️ Defence
Digital Modernisation in UK Defence
A strategic framework for navigating technology change inside one of the world's most complex change environments.
2026→
🏛️ Government
Procurement Act 2023: What Changes for Suppliers
How the new procurement legislation reshapes the route to government contracts and what boutique consultancies need to do differently.
2026→
💊 Pharma
Launch Excellence in Pharma: The Operational Gap
Why pharmaceutical launch programmes consistently underperform against forecast — and the operating model factors that determine which ones hold.
2026→
🛒 FMCG
AI-Driven Demand Planning: The People Problem
FMCG organisations are investing in AI-powered demand planning. The limiting factor is not the algorithm — it is the commercial team's willingness to trust it.
2026→
🚀 Scale-up
The Scaling Inflection Point
What happens to high-growth companies when the operating model that got them to £10m stops working at £50m — and how the best founders navigate it.
2026→
CN Intelligence Briefing

Research before it is published.
Intelligence before it is obvious.

CN publishes original research and sector intelligence quarterly. Subscribers receive full research reports, data summaries and early access to diagnostic tools — before they appear on the site.

Full research reports — not just the summary. Methodology, data and practitioner commentary.
Sector intelligence — what is happening in your sector right now that affects your transformation.
Early diagnostic access — use CN's programme assessment tools before public launch.
No volume, no noise — one briefing per quarter. Worth reading every time.
Request the briefing →