When Operating Models Meet Human Reality

I recently read up on a McKinsey framework that identifies 12 elements of effective operating models—from purpose and structure to talent and rewards. It’s comprehensive, research-backed, and intellectually satisfying. There’s just one problem: like most organizational frameworks, it tells us what to build without addressing how people actually change under pressure.

We’ve seen this pattern before. Organizations spend months redesigning operating models, only to watch them crumble when quarterly targets loom or crises hit. The issue isn’t the design—it’s that even brilliant operating models require human beings to execute them, and human beings don’t function like organizational charts.

The Missing Element: Behavior Under Pressure

McKinsey notes that high-performing companies still leave 30% of their strategy’s potential unrealized. Our research suggests this gap exists because operating model redesigns typically assume people will adopt new behaviors through awareness and mandate. They won’t.

Consider their financial services example—shifting from a matrix structure to an enterprise agile approach. The framework identifies the need for leaders to shift from “decisive” to “empowering” styles. But decades of practicing command-and-control don’t disappear because someone drew a new org chart. When stress peaks and quarterly results matter, executives revert to what’s automatic: the very behaviors the new model was designed to change.

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Bridging Design to Reality: Three Practical Additions

• First, build micro-habits into the operating model itself. Instead of declaring “leaders will empower teams,” design the actual behaviors: one three-minute check-in per team member weekly, tracked and modeled by executives. When leaders practice these micro-habits for 18-24 months under progressively increasing pressure, empowerment becomes automatic—not just aspirational.
• Second, diagnose problem types before implementing solutions. McKinsey’s framework doesn’t distinguish between operational challenges (insufficient resources), behavioral issues (toxic individuals), structural barriers (inequitable systems), and cultural misalignments (theory-in-use gaps). Without this diagnosis, organizations apply the wrong element of the operating model to the actual problem—like redesigning governance when the real issue is individual accountability.
• Third, measure leading indicators, not just outcomes. The framework emphasizes clarity, speed, skills, and commitment as key outcomes. But these manifest after success or failure. Instead, track connection quality before isolation becomes turnover. Measure psychological safety through disagreement frequency before innovation stagnates. Monitor whether midnight emails during “balance” initiatives reveal theory-in-use gaps undermining your carefully designed culture.

Making It Stick

McKinsey correctly notes that organizations adopting emerging structures (e.g., enterprise agile, product platforms) outperform traditional hierarchies in handling AI, digitalization, and innovation. But structure alone doesn’t determine readiness. Our work with organizations shows that the same structure produces radically different results depending on whether leaders have built the capability to prioritize relationships when operational pressure demands shortcuts.

The airline example succeeds not just because it made intentional choices across 12 elements, but also because those choices created systematic practices that enable consistent execution. The integrated footprint works because the company built relationship infrastructure—not just designed it.

Operating model redesigns fail most often at the implementation phase, which McKinsey acknowledges but doesn’t fully address: the 12-month transition where “hard” elements (structure, processes) meet “soft” realities (leadership style, culture, talent). This is where our frameworks complement theirs—by providing the progressive practice protocols, equity-aware design considerations, and behavior measurement systems that help people actually change how they work when it matters most.

The McKinsey framework offers an excellent map. Our contribution is the navigation system for actually making the journey.

McKinsey & Company. “How to Create an Effective Operating Model.” McKinsey & Company, https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/a-new-operating-model-for-a-new-world.