The past few years have seen the world undergo a significant increase in the pace and magnitude of change. As noted by the UN Secretary-General, change has become a consistent fixture.
This continuous state of flux needs to be better taken into account for working towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. It has spurred the implementation of the UN 2.0 vision and the Quintet of Change, where driving internal change in the UN is vital for greater external impact – to improve programmatic and operational support to Member States, enabling them to prosper in the twenty-first century and make faster collective progress towards the SDGs.
In parallel, the new change reality is also reflected in UN organizations. Among the 37 organizations surveyed in July 2023 new ways of working, digital transformation, business transformation and culture change were the most common types of transformation occurring. Many of these changes were occurring concurrently. These constant and overlapping changes are straining the UN system. A majority of survey respondents report insufficient change management budgets and high levels of change saturation.
The Quintet of Change has led to some change management activities, yet also reveals gaps in areas such as behavioural science. In addition to transforming the practice of change management, survey respondents say that the pandemic increased awareness of the importance of change management. But as they also report, this awareness by senior leaders and mid-level managers remains insufficient.