Transformations don’t fail because of slide decks – they fail in the messy middle, where people are stressed, alignment drifts, and hard problems finally make their way to the top.

In this episode, Jakub sits down with Allan Sampson, Executive General Manager – New Zealand at Gentrack, who has spent more than two decades leading large-scale software and business transformations in the energy and utilities sector.

Allan shares what really makes transformation programmes hard: complex vendor–client dynamics, misaligned expectations, fragile governance, “watermelon” reporting, and the human reactions to sustained pressure. He talks through how he thinks about leaders, steady “followers”, and detractors on a programme, and what it takes to build trust and psychological safety without turning work into a comfort zone.

You’ll hear practical ways to:

• Read what’s really going on beneath the project reports

• Build authentic leadership that people trust under pressure

• Navigate escalations, conflict, and clashing personalities

• Use the forming–storming–norming–performing model in real teams (including the often-ignored “adjourning” stage)

• Recognise and manage stress in yourself and your teams, and help people find what’s actually in their control

• Close out a big programme in a way that captures learning and honours the relationships you’ve built

This episode is sponsored by Wires Uncrossed.