Most large transformations fall short of their original ambitions — execution is the dominant failure mode, not strategy.
Failure is the default state, not the exception, and the gap shows up in execution rather than ambition.
The execution gap
Most restructuring programs miss execution, not the plan
What restructuring is, why it fails in operations, and how to track execution from commitment to confirmed impact.
Restructuring is what happens when the plan and the operating result diverge. The board signs off on a savings target, the operators try, and six months later the result is half of what was promised. The majority of programs hit only partial savings. The gap is not in the strategy; it is in the execution between the plan and the people doing the work.
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Where it breaks
Initiatives stall in execution, not in planning
You set a savings target. The board approves. Six months later, you are reading a status update that says green on the slide and red on the operator's spreadsheet. The majority of restructuring programs miss their declared savings target. The pain is not in the strategy deck. The pain is in the lag between board commitment and operating reality, and in the absence of a shared view of what is actually happening this week.
Initiatives look green on a slide while the underlying maturity remains at L1 or L2
Excel spreadsheets become the source of truth, and three different versions circulate among workstreams
The bank asks for covenant reporting and the operating data is three weeks behind the steering deck
Without one single source of truth on initiative maturity, the steering committee debates last week's data instead of this week's decision.
By the numbers
The cost of execution failure, measured by the firms that price it
Restructuring failure is not theoretical. The same firms that advise on these programs publish what failure costs when execution slips. The numbers below come from the practices that price these mandates.
Programs run as three-month execution sprints consistently outperform calendar-quarter programs on declared savings.
Velocity, not scope, separates successful turnarounds from stalled ones.
Programs that realise operational quick wins in the first months reach their full target far more often than programs that do not.
The first months set the trajectory; programs without early wins rarely recover them later.
How ChangeMaker solves restructuring
Restructuring is execution discipline. ChangeMaker makes the gap visible.
Most restructuring programs stall because the operators and the board see different versions of the same initiative. ChangeMaker closes that gap with a behavioral-execution layer and the patented PerformanceMap — every initiative from L1 (idea) to L5 (impact confirmed), with the same Härtegrad view at operations, PMO, and board level.
Behavioral execution layer
Neuroscience-informed design that nudges operators to update Härtegrad weekly and surfaces stalls before they reach the steering committee. Not another PPM tool with new branding — the layer that actually gets adopted.
PerformanceMap (patented)
A visual maturity status across every initiative in one screen. The CEO sees what is L4 versus L2 without a slide deck or a weekly rollup. The L1-to-L5 Härtegrad model is the shared language.
From shopfloor to boardroom
The same Härtegrad view at all three levels — operators, PMO, senior management. Steering meetings stop being about whose Excel is current and start being about which initiative needs a decision today.
Ready from day one, full rollout in ten business days. 150x shareholder return versus license cost across the PM install base, validated over 20,000+ initiatives, 100 transformations, and €8 bn+ of EBITDA under management.
Before you book
Common questions buyers ask about restructuring
What is the difference between restructuring and turnaround?
Restructuring is the formal process of resetting the financial and operational structure of a business, often under bank or regulator scrutiny. Turnaround is the broader category of work, including operational, strategic, and financial elements, that brings a distressed business back to going concern. Restructuring is one tool in the turnaround toolbox, and the most common one for German mid-caps.
When does a restructuring need an IDW S6 plan?
If German house banks are at the table and the company needs new credit, refinancing, or covenant waivers, IDW S6 is the standard. The banks want an auditor-grade plan with a recovery thesis they can defend internally. Virtually every large DE restructuring involving house banks produces an IDW S6 document before bank approval.
How is ChangeMaker different from a PMO tool?
PMO tools track tasks. ChangeMaker tracks initiatives by Härtegrad (L1 idea to L5 confirmed impact). The board sees the same Härtegrad view as the operators, so steering meetings discuss the real maturity gap instead of debating whose Excel is current.
How long does deployment take?
Ready from day one. Initiatives can be imported from existing Excel files or entered fresh. Full rollout including training and management reporting takes ten business days; most teams reach L3 understanding in the first week of use.
What if our initiatives currently run in Excel?
Excel files are imported in the first one to two days of deployment. Existing columns for initiative name, owner, impact, and status map to the Härtegrad model. Most teams keep all historical data — they gain a consistent maturity view across every program, without a second source of truth running on the side.
Book a demo
See ChangeMaker applied to your restructuring
A 30-minute demo with your data shows you what L4 versus L2 looks like across your own initiatives, and how the Härtegrad tracker stops the green-on-the-slide pattern in your weekly review.
- Walk through how Härtegrad maps onto your existing restructuring plan
- See a worked example of the steering-committee view operators do not edit
- Get a deployment plan that has ChangeMaker live from day one — full rollout in ten business days