Overperformance is a decision, not a secret
Connection makes work work: from idea to impact. An enormous amount of time, money and talent is wasted on technology. The cause is rarely the technology itself, the individuals or governance. It is the organization's Connection: to its customers, between its people, from idea to impact, and as a whole. Two hundred findings and two hundred thousand data points agree on what Connected organizations do differently, and explain why AI makes it more urgent. Raedhelm helps to build Connection and improve commercial outcomes.
A problem, a cause, and a deadline
Structural waste survives good people and good intentions
88% of business transformations fall short. 80% of software features are rarely or never used. Major projects run 45% over budget and deliver 56% less value than promised. Sources: Bain; Pendo; McKinsey and the University of Oxford.
Organizations spend huge amounts of time, money and talent building technology that is not used, redoing work that was already "finished", that doesn't change the metrics that matter, and wondering why. The root causes are consistent: cultural resistance, the most cited barrier at 33%; organizational silos, which executives rank first among cultural obstacles; and leadership and transparency gaps, where a clear change story and open information predict success ahead of talent, tools or funding. What is not on the list? Technology. The organizations struggling are not under-governed. They are under-connected.
Connected organizations win, by multiples
Four solved problems. Twelve connected practices. Better results. Evidence, not opinion. More than 200 findings from peer-reviewed research, large-scale surveys and practitioner evidence: Harvard, MIT, Google, McKinsey, Gallup and DORA.
Total shareholder returns
McKinsey
Revenue growth vs. peers
McKinsey
Profitability
Gallup (183,806 units)
Higher quality
DORA
Customer engagement
McKinsey
Brand awareness
McKinsey
More innovative teams
McKinsey (110 teams)
Faster time to market
McKinsey
More likely to meet organizational goals
DORA (39,000+)
Comparisons are top quartile against bottom quartile, or against industry peers; sources and populations vary.
What the evidence tells us: Connection is a system, not a menu. Individual interventions disappoint. Holistic improvements deliver. Breadth beats depth. Experts from unrelated fields agree.
Connection to customers
The organization builds what people actually need, because it is in continuous contact with them and measures success by outcomes rather than features shipped. Without this, the organization is busy but detached from its market.
Connection to each other
People can speak up, challenge and admit mistakes; information flows to where it is needed rather than being hoarded; teams own their work rather than waiting for instructions to travel up and down a hierarchy. Without this, talent is present but unable to act.
Connection from idea to impact
The path from insight to delivery is short, visible and continuously improving: small batches, few handoffs, fast feedback, honest measurement. Without this, good ideas stall in queues and feedback arrives too late to matter.
Connection as a whole
Business and technology operate as equals rather than as requestor and provider; leaders create conditions rather than direct activity; problems are treated as systemic rather than individual. Without this, the other three never compound.
Every claim traces to a published source you can read. The twelve practices themselves, and how to use them, are in the book.
AI rewards strong foundations. It punishes weak ones.
Disconnection just got really expensive. AI runs the organization's operating system at a faster pace, amplifying both strengths and shortcomings. Connected organizations watch their investments scale at rates that were not possible before. Disconnected organizations fail faster, as their weaknesses are multiplied.
96% of executives expect more from AI, and 77% of their people are working harder to give it to them. Output is up 98%. The difference to results, delivery or customers: zero. Stability is down 7.2%, and 74% of initiatives never leave the pilot.
Upwork, 1,250 executives and 1,250 workers; Faros AI, 1,255 teams; DORA 2024; BCG, 1,000 CxOs in 59 countries.
See where your organization stands, in five minutes
The Connection Snapshot asks what actually happens in your organization, not how you feel about it, across the twelve practices. The answers are evaluated against the evidence in The Case for Connection and reported. One person, one point in time, free, and confidential, showing:
- Your Connection Status, and its impact in your organization
- The organization's ability to achieve its AI ambitions
- Your organization's operating system and why it matters
- Your strengths, weaknesses, risks, priorities and where to start
- Real-world evidence of the costs and the benefits, throughout
The Case for Connection
The Case for Connection brings together the ideas of thirty-six independently respected experts from engineering, the military, marketing, mathematics, product management, the social sciences and business leadership. It sets out the twelve connected practices and the evidence behind each: more than 200 findings, 180,000 business units, 40,000 contributors, and peer-reviewed research in leading journals.
For senior leaders in technology-dependent organizations who want proof, not opinions. The argument above is the case; the book is the method.
From a Snapshot to a plan, and beyond
Raedhelm helps technology-dependent organizations become Connected, and improves their commercial outcomes by closing the gap between the practices the evidence supports and the organization as it is today. Every engagement starts with a conversation; most start with a Snapshot.
Free, and useful on its own
Connection Snapshot
Your Connection Status, its impact on your organization's outcomes and AI endeavors, scored against the evidence, in a report you keep. It doesn't consider mission, alignment, symptoms or your goals, and it doesn't give agreed priorities or a plan. That's what the steps below are for.
From your own view to a plan, and into practice
The Snapshot is one person at one point in time. To become actionable it needs context, alignment with the organization's mission and goals, a range of perspectives, communication, priorities and a plan. Each step below adds more of those.
Individual Connection Assessment
A few daysFull evaluation and report; validated one-to-one with the author against your context
Team Connection Assessment
2 to 4 weeksLeadership team; perspectives compared; agreed priorities
Connection Diagnostic and Plan
4 to 8 weeksMission, alignment, goals and current symptoms; priorities turned into a plan
More context, more of the organization, more of the plan.
Connection Implementation: First Quarter
One quarterFirst moves from the plan; measured by results
Working with Raedhelm after the Diagnostic, or in its own right
Advisory
Ongoing advisory for leadership teams changing outcomes: growth, AI transformation, reorganization, before and after investment. Evidence-led, and honest about what works.
For CTOs, CPOs and CEOs leading cross-functional change.
Board
Board and non-executive advisory where technology, AI investment and commercial results meet. The questions a buyer or investor will ask, answered earlier, with evidence and commercial practice behind them.
For boards navigating technology strategy and AI investment.
Leadership
More than advice: hands-on fractional or interim leadership through growth, change or transition. Building a Connected organization, AI adoption that changes outcomes, and the conditions for both to last.
For scaling companies and portfolio businesses.
Speaking
Keynotes, executive briefings and workshops: the Case for Connection, the Twelve Connected Practices, cognitive diversity, and why AI rewards Connected organizations and punishes the rest.
For conferences, board away-days and leadership offsites.
Selected engagements
Engagements that show the services in practice: advisory, leadership and board work, and the outcomes each produced.
Long Term Growth Advisory
Comprehensive review and ongoing advisory for a growing financial technology consultancy across strategy, value proposition, go to market, sales, marketing, finance and service delivery. Handling surprise, Covid included.
Corporate Recovery
Turned around a healthcare technology startup aiming to reduce women's health inequalities. Engaged a new technology team to build the core platform and implemented it at the anchor client.
Board Advisory & Alignment
Strategic advisory for a scaling financial technology business, bridging the gap between a technical founding team and investor expectations, and aligning strategy with commercial priorities and execution.
Every engagement starts with a conversation
Whether you have a Snapshot in hand, are planning a change, optimizing the returns from AI, or want to talk about Connection, do get in touch. No pitch decks, no pressure. An honest discussion about where you are, where you want to be, and whether we are the right fit to help you get there.
Based in
London, United Kingdom