What Does it Take to Be a Transformational Leader?
The Change Agent Playbook: Leading Through Resistance
Happy CX Day! 🎉
Every year on the first Tuesday of October, we celebrate CX Day, a global spotlight on great customer experiences and the professionals who make them possible. Across the world, people mark the day with webinars, events, awards, and community gatherings that showcase the growing impact of the field. Thirteen years after it began, I’m proud of how CX Day has evolved, and I’ll share a few reflections below.
CX professionals don’t just improve interactions; they often reshape how organizations work. They push through resistance, challenge entrenched ways of operating, and spark the momentum that carries their companies forward.
And that’s the thread I want to pull on this week. Because the leaders we celebrate on CX Day embody the demanding but essential role of the change agent. This week’s article, The Change Agent Playbook: Leading Through Resistance, looks at how change really happens through them: why people instinctively push back, the levers that move them forward, and the traits that define leaders who can make transformation stick.
Make sure to check out the latest episode of Humanity At Scale: Redefining Leadership Podcast: No Dickheads Allowed: Exploring All Blacks Winning Culture with James Kerr. We discuss the culture of the All All Blacks, New Zealand’s national rugby team, and probably the most successful sports team in the world. It’s available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
And before diving into the article, a quick note: the 6th wave of my Humanity at Scale Leadership Mentorship Program is now open for applications. You’ll find more information below.
I hope you enjoy this edition. If you do, please subscribe and share with others who care about building more human-centric organizations. Let’s dive in.
The Change Agent Playbook: Leading Through Resistance
Organizations are being pushed to change faster than ever. AI is rewriting workflows, customer expectations reset overnight, and business cycles that once stretched over years now collapse into quarters. But change doesn’t happen on its own. It takes a different kind of leader to make it real—a change agent.
Change agents don’t just push ideas; they steward trust. They step into the tension between the comfort of the present and the uncertainty of what’s next. They absorb the frustration, doubt, and fear that others project during times of disruption. They face skepticism and setbacks, often from the very people they’re trying to help. Without them, strategies stall. With them, organizations move forward.
When Satya Nadella took over Microsoft, the company was brilliant but stuck—bristling with rivalries and a “know-it-all” mindset. He didn’t start with a new org chart; he started with a new way of being. He told stories, admitted mistakes, and asked people to replace “know-it-all” with “learn-it-all.” That cultural pivot unlocked Microsoft’s next wave of innovation.
Nadella’s story is only one version. Change agents are needed in every corner of an organization—the division head who dismantles a dated sales strategy, the plant manager who brings nervous workers into the AI era, the program director who drags a paper-bound bureaucracy into the digital age. Whether it’s a CEO or a frontline manager, effective change agents create the scaffolding for transformation.
This article is a field guide for that work: why people push back against change, what actually helps them move forward, and the traits that distinguish effective change agents so you can build more of them across your organization.
People Are Wired to Resist Change
If we want to understand what it takes to be a change agent, we first have to get honest about why change feels so hard. Resistance isn’t laziness or stubbornness—it’s gravity. It’s the invisible pull of the familiar, baked into the way the human brain works. Unless leaders account for that, even the smartest strategies will stall before they start.
The brain clings to the status quo. Neuroscience shows that familiar routines fire the brain’s reward circuits, giving us a hit of safety and efficiency. Novelty, by contrast, triggers the brain’s threat detection system. That’s why employees sometimes defend a failing process with, “But this is how we’ve always done it.” Kodak invented the digital camera in 1975, then buried it to protect its profitable film business—proof that even visionary companies struggle to abandon the comfort of the known.
Losses hit harder than gains. Kahneman and Tversky’s research on loss aversion revealed that the pain of losing something feels about twice as powerful as the joy of gaining something equivalent. In practice, that means a new platform that promises efficiency can still feel like a net negative if employees believe they’re “losing” expertise, routines, or standing in the process. Leaders who ignore this bias underestimate the emotional math people are doing in their heads.
Change shakes our sense of self. Work isn’t just what people do—it’s part of who they are. When change threatens someone’s identity, resistance becomes visceral. Ask a veteran sales manager to rely on digital dashboards instead of intuition, and they may feel their years of judgment and relationship-building being dismissed. Blockbuster didn’t just reject streaming—it clung to the identity of being a retail giant, even as the ground shifted under its feet.
Uncertainty triggers fear. The amygdala—the brain’s threat sensor—fires hardest when the future is unclear. Research shows people often prefer a guaranteed negative to an ambiguous outcome, which is why rumors during a merger spark more panic than official announcements. Ambiguity shrinks bandwidth; people stop imagining opportunities and start scanning for threats.
Social cues steer adoption. Humans are social learners. We glance sideways before we step forward. If respected peers roll their eyes at a new initiative, resistance spreads faster than any top-down memo. In sports, when a new coach installs a system, a single veteran’s skepticism can sour the locker room. But the opposite is also true: one respected early adopter can flip the narrative entirely.
The Levers That Overcome Resistance
If resistance is wired in, the job of a change agent is to flip the script—helping people see possibility where their brains see only threat. That doesn’t happen through pressure or pep talks alone. It happens when leaders tap into the levers of human motivation that calm fear and spark belief.
Clarity cuts through the fog. The brain despises ambiguity; it sends the amygdala into overdrive. Change feels less like a threat when people can see where they’re headed and why it matters. When New Zealand’s All Blacks rugby team rebuilt their culture after a slump, they didn’t start with tactics—they rallied everyone around a single mantra: “Leave the jersey better than you found it.” That clarity turned an abstract rebuild into a daily compass.
Agency flips compliance into ownership. People support what they help create. Even a sliver of control boosts commitment. Toyota hardwired this principle into its production system by giving every worker authority to pull the andon cord and stop the line if they spotted a flaw. That one act transformed employees from passive executors into guardians of quality—and turned hesitation into pride.
Connection makes courage contagious. Humans glance sideways before they step forward. Social learning theory shows that people adopt behaviors they see modeled by trusted peers. Peloton didn’t grow into a global brand through ads—it grew through communities cheering each other on. In organizations, the same thing happens: when respected colleagues embrace a new way of working, skepticism melts and momentum spreads.
Credibility builds the bridge. No one follows a leader into the unknown if they doubt the leader’s integrity. People need proof that the messenger walks the talk. Satya Nadella’s cultural reset worked because he embodied what he asked of others—humility, empathy, collaboration. By contrast, leaders who preach change but cling to old habits signal that the shift is optional.
Quick wins fuel momentum. Big transformations stall if they only promise distant payoffs. Behavioral economics shows people stick with new habits when they get early rewards. That’s why small, visible wins matter more than grand declarations. IBM seeded belief in its cloud transformation through pilot projects that delivered fast, tangible results. Those wins reassured skeptics and gave supporters a story to tell.
Six Traits of Effective Change Agents
If resistance is predictable and the levers of progress are known, what makes certain people effective at leading others through change while others falter? It’s not titles or charisma. It’s a set of personal qualities that shape how they show up when guiding people through the difficulty of change. Together, these traits create the credibility people need to follow them into the unknown. And because change agents carry the weight of other people’s fears, doubts, and frustrations, these traits are also what keep them from burning out.
Empathetic. Change agents don’t dismiss pushback as laziness; they recognize it as fear, loss, or identity threat. An empathetic manager rolling out a new system doesn’t just talk about efficiency—she acknowledges that people feel anxious about losing competence. By naming those emotions, she lowers defenses and makes progress possible.
Inspirational. Change drains energy; doubt creeps in. Inspirational change agents rekindle belief by linking the work to something bigger. A team lead might frame a new process not as “extra work” but as the way the company fulfills its purpose to serve customers better—lifting the task from burden to mission.
Observant. Resistance doesn’t always shout; it whispers. It shows up in silence, side comments, or body language. Observant leaders catch those signals early. A department head notices influential employees have gone quiet about a new initiative and steps in before disengagement spreads.
Deliberate. Driving change is as much about pacing as direction. Deliberate leaders don’t rush to crush every objection or force every issue. A project sponsor may pause a rollout to let early adopters share positive stories, knowing peer proof carries more weight than another presentation. By pacing change with care, they build credibility as leaders people can trust to guide them through uncertainty.
Resilient. Every change journey has turbulence—failed pilots, skeptical employees, wavering leaders. Resilient change agents act as shock absorbers, absorbing the hit without losing credibility. When setbacks come, they steady the team: “This is part of the process—we’ll learn, adjust, and keep moving.” Their steadiness not only reassures others but also keeps their own energy from collapsing under pressure.
Adaptive. Change never unfolds according to plan. Adaptive leaders keep the destination steady but flex the route. If training workshops fall flat, they pivot to peer coaching. If one communication channel fails, they try another. By adapting visibly, they show people change is less about rigid scripts and more about learning together. Adaptability is also what protects them personally—helping them bend rather than break under the strain of leading transformation.
Sparking New Leadership Thinking
Even the best change agents can’t succeed if the environment works against them. Too often, organizations ask individuals to champion change while the system piles on complexity, overload, and mixed signals. Leaders who want more effective change agents need to do more than appoint them—they must condition the organization itself to make change easier. Here are five ways to do that:
Celebrate adaptability, not rigidity. People need to see that flexibility is valued more than clinging to old certainties. A leader might open a town hall by spotlighting a team that pivoted mid-project, learned quickly, and still delivered results—showing everyone that adjusting course is a strength, not a flaw.
Make room for the new. Change collapses when it’s stacked on top of overflowing workloads. A senior leader could review current priorities, shut down two legacy projects, and explain that clearing space is what makes room for the future. The act of pruning signals that change isn’t just extra work—it’s the work.
Elevate your change agents. Transformation sticks faster when respected insiders are visibly driving it. A leader might pull a frontline manager into strategy meetings and give her authority to pilot a new practice with her team—showing the organization that she isn’t just implementing someone else’s plan, she’s shaping it.
Show the future in living color. People don’t rally behind abstract goals; they move toward pictures they can imagine. Instead of listing technical features of a new system, a leader could describe how customers will soon get answers in seconds rather than waiting on hold—making the payoff vivid and human.
Be the change, every day. Nothing convinces people more than leaders’ own behavior. A senior leader promoting transparency could start every leadership meeting by sharing their own team’s failures alongside successes. By modeling the shift consistently, they prove it’s real, not optional.
The Bottom Line
As disruption accelerates, strategies alone won’t drive progress. Organizations need change agents to turn vision into reality, and executives to create the conditions that let them succeed. Without both, even the best plans will stall.
Thirteen years after launching CX Day, I’m proud of what it has become. If you’re interested in the background of this “holiday,” check out my article from last year’s CX DAY. It’s inspiring to see CX pros around the world hosting events, sharing their stories, and taking pride in their work. As I reflect on the day, three thoughts stand out:
How far we’ve come. When we first marked CX Day in 2012, the field of customer experience was fragmented. Many professionals felt isolated inside their organizations, unsure whether their work was seen, valued, or even noticed. Today there’s a global community, a shared language, established practices, and countless examples of CX professionals making a strong impact on their organizations.
What’s ahead. CX pros need to adjust to a world of ongoing uncertainty, rapid change, and the accelerating impact of AI. They can’t just track scores or fix touchpoints. To stay relevant, they must better align their efforts with outcomes that their organizations need, such as growth, innovation, and resilience. Done right, CX can become a key capability for navigating these turbulent times.
The power of celebration. CX Day has always been about shining a light on work that doesn’t get recognized enough. Those celebrations create real energy, giving CX professionals well deserved pride and visibility. Too often people rush from one initiative to the next without pausing to appreciate what they’ve accomplished. That’s why moments of acknowledgment, like CX Day, matter. They lift spirits, renew focus, and give people the drive to keep moving forward.
Applications are now open for the 6th wave of my Humanity at Scale Leadership Mentorship Program. This free program brings together a small group of professionals to build a community of leaders committed to creating more human-centric organizations.
Running from December 2025 through May 2026, the program offers the chance to learn with and from a dynamic cohort of peers, sharing insights, challenges, and practices that elevate leadership. Applications are due by October 10th.
👉 Click here to learn more and apply
Humanity At Scale: Redefining Leadership Podcast
Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Make sure to check out my podcast, where I reimagine leadership for today’s dynamic world—proving that true success begins with prioritizing people, including employees, customers, and the communities you serve. From candid conversations with executives to breakthrough insights from experts, Humanity at Scale: Redefining Leadership Podcast is your ultimate guide to leading with purpose and empathy.
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Bruce Temkin is a globally recognized thought leader who has spent his career transforming how organizations engage their stakeholders. Known as the “Godfather of Customer Experience,” he has shaped how companies worldwide approach purpose, trust, and empathy. Today he leads the Humanity at Scale movement, empowering leaders to build human-centric organizations that achieve lasting success. He is available for keynote presentations that challenge conventional thinking and inspire leaders to drive meaningful change.