Context

Nine Feet Tall was approached by Harrods as they prepared for a multi-million pound upgrade from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA ERP platform. The existing system was approaching end of life, and the programme represented a significant operational and cultural shift for the business. While the organisation had assigned internal change resource to support the programme, it became clear that the effort was focused on programme delivery rather than connecting with the people and teams who would ultimately adopt the new system.

Harrods recognised several challenges emerging across the business. Senior managers and Executives had limited understanding of the value of change management or the role they personally needed to play in enabling successful transformation. At the same time, operational teams were struggling to keep pace with the programme activity, creating a disconnect between the ERP implementation and day-to-day business functions. The result was a growing risk that the programme would deliver the technology but fail to fully embed the change across the organisation.

Delivery

Drawing on our expertise in change and transformation, Nine Feet Tall was engaged to design and deliver a training and development programme aimed at strengthening change capability across Harrods’ leadership community. The objective was to equip leaders with the practical tools and mindset needed to lead change effectively, while using the sessions to engage them more deeply in the ERP programme itself and its objectives.

Nine Feet Tall worked closely with Harrods’ internal change managers to co-create and deliver the training. This collaborative approach ensured that real business context and examples were embedded within every session. The teams co-facilitated workshops that translated change management from a theoretical concept into something practical and implementable for leaders and operational teams.

The programme included bespoke training packs for both managers and super users who would play a key role in supporting adoption within their teams. Over the course of the engagement, Nine Feet Tall delivered 13 full day sessions, training approximately 160 members of staff.

Regular reviews throughout delivery allowed Nine Feet Tall to refine and adapt the materials in response to feedback to ensure each session remained relevant and impactful. Questionnaires were used to measure improvements in understanding and confidence, while a training tracker and governance framework enabled progress to be reported back to the leadership team.
To reinforce accountability and encourage ongoing application of the learning, participants captured personal commitments at the end on postcards. These were later posted back to them as reminders of the actions they intended to take to support change within their teams.

Outcome

Through the support of Nine Feet Tall, Harrods developed a stronger foundation for leading and embedding change across the ERP programme. Post-training survey results demonstrated a clear improvement in participants’ understanding of change management principles and their confidence in applying them within their roles increased by 25%.
The programme helped demystify change management for leaders, showing how simple, practical techniques could have a meaningful impact on programme success and day-to-day operations. Managers and super users left the sessions with the confidence to apply these approaches independently.

By creating space for cross-functional discussion during the sessions, Nine Feet Tall helped break down silos and encourage greater collaboration between teams, an outcome that directly supported the wider transformation goals.
Our engagement with Harrods has supported to breakdown silo’s and encourage more cross functional relationships which was a key objective for the programme overall. These connections opened the door for continued collaboration and knowledge sharing.