Transformation isn’t something you can schedule in your calendar or tick off a to-do list. It’s a continuous state of being, sometimes painful, often uncertain, but always necessary for organizations that want to stay future-ready. That’s the core message from the latest episode of On Point, where our CEO Serhan Ili sits down with seasoned CEO, board member, and Business Angel Joachim Drees to explore what real transformation looks like: How do you drive meaningful change when security often takes priority over progress?
This On Point podcast episode with Joachim Dress is conducted in German.
The insights shared below reflect the key takeaways from this conversation about Change Management and Digital Transformation.
Change isn’t a Goal – It’s a Mindset
What we once called “Change Management” has become nearly impossible to plan in today’s complex reality. Drees draws an important distinction here: transformation means embarking on a journey without knowing the final destination. This uncertainty is precisely what creates resistance, because people naturally crave direction and stability.
The solution lies in relentless, clear communication. Not once, but repeatedly, until it becomes second nature.
Reflecting on a transformation he led at MAN, Drees recalls a moment of brutal honesty:
I couldn’t stand hearing myself anymore. […] It wasn’t enough to say it ten times. I had to tell it thirty times a week.
This persistence is exactly what builds trust, even when there’s no finished blueprint to follow.
Leadership Means Leading the Way, Even When It Gets Lonely
The conversation between Serhan and Joachim makes it clear: transformation demands real leadership. But leadership here doesn’t just mean crafting strategy or holding meetings. It means demonstrating unwavering conviction, especially when the path gets uncomfortable.
“Companies are not democracies,” Drees states with characteristic directness.
This reality requires making tough decisions, setting clear directions, and yes, sometimes parting ways with people who actively resist change or refuse to move forward with the organization.
Yet leadership in transformation isn’t meant to be a solo performance. It’s inherently lonely, but it doesn’t have to be isolating. For Drees, coaching, trusted sparring partners, and regular exchanges with fellow leaders aren’t luxuries but necessities. The goal isn’t to delegate responsibility, but to carry it with greater awareness and purpose.
Personal Transformation: From Control to Creative Agency
A central theme of the sixth episode of On point is the personal side of change, whether that’s transitioning from leadership roles to new challenges or stepping away from secure structures entirely. For Drees, transformation fundamentally means maintaining your agency. Instead of waiting passively for things to happen, you actively shape your own direction.
“You must describe your own path,” Drees says, a philosophy that has guided his entire career.
This mindset isn’t something you’re born with, it’s something you develop. Through building resilience, learning to sit with uncertainty, and cultivating genuine independence. It’s a call for greater self-responsibility that doesn’t just benefit individual leaders, but transforms entire organizations.
Communication Is More Than Just Information
What particularly stands out: Transformation doesn’t fail due to lacking methods, but due to insufficient communication. Drees emphasizes that it’s not enough to announce change once. Leaders must continuously provide context, explain the reasoning, and offer direction, even when it starts to feel monotonous. This consistency is exactly what creates the trust teams need to embrace uncertainty and move forward together.
The Hard Truth: Not Everyone Will Make the Journey
When organizations transform, everything changes, relationships with people, structures, existing roles and established processes.
Drees encounters this challenge repeatedly: the expectation to bring everyone along, regardless of the cost. But genuine transformation also requires the courage to let go of what no longer serves the vision.
Leadership in this context means more than just inspiring and motivating people. It means making decisions. Respectfully, clearly, and with genuine purpose. Sometimes the most difficult choices are exactly what the organization needs to move forward.
Transformation Needs Courage, Not Perfection
This On Point episode with Joachim Drees provides an unfiltered look at what transformation really demands and why it’s never comfortable, yet always essential for organizations that want to thrive.
Four critical insights emerge from this conversation:
- Transformation is fundamentally a mindset shift rather than a project with defined milestones, it requires a deep willingness to embrace ongoing change.
- Communication becomes the most underestimated tool in any leader’s arsenal, requiring continuous, clear messaging to build the trust teams desperately need.
- Real leadership means demonstrating conviction even when decisions are unpopular or create discomfort.
- Reflection isn’t a luxury but an absolute necessity, successful transformation demands exceptional self-leadership before you can lead others through uncertainty.
The ILI Approach: From Breaking Molds to Breaking Through
Drees’s insights reflect what we’ve discovered at ILI: transformation isn’t about implementing better systems, it’s about cultivating what we call a “sense for opportunities.” Just as some see obstacles where others see raw potential, successful transformation requires leaders who can reframe their entire reality.
We’ve learned that the most profound changes don’t come from having the right tools or the perfect strategy. They emerge when organizations develop the mindset to see beyond what’s been handed to them. It’s about breaking the mold, not just following new blueprints. This shift from passive acceptance to active reshaping is what separates organizations that merely survive change from those that thrive in it. At ILI, we’ve seen that organizations often get trapped in the mechanics of change while overlooking its psychological foundation. Having courage isn’t just individual bravery, it’s a collective shift in how teams think about possibility, risk, and growth. This is why our work focuses less on traditional change management and more on helping leaders and organizations develop the internal capabilities that make transformation feel natural rather than forced.
We believe the future isn’t something that arrives, it’s something that asks to be created. This philosophy of “loving the future by shaping it” is at the heart of everything we do, and it’s the foundation we’ll explore in depth in our upcoming piece on “Mindset At ILI”, where we’ll share how this perspective transforms not just individual leaders, but entire organizational cultures.
