Eight Errors Common to Organizational Change Efforts and Their Consequences

Common Errors
1. Allowing too much complacency.
2. Failing to create a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition.
3. Underestimating the power of vision.
4. Undercommunicating the vision by a factor of 10 (or 100 or even 1,000)
5. Permitting obstacles to block the new vision.
6. Failing to create short-term wins.
7. Declaring victory too soon.
8. Neglecting to anchor changes firmly in the corporate culture.

Consequences
1. New strategies aren't implemented well.
2. Acquisitions don't achieve expected synergies.
3. Reenergizing takes too long and costs too much.
4. Downsizing doesn't get costs under control.
5. Quality programs don't deliver hoped-for results.

from John P Kotter's Leading Change.