Why Communicating the Why Is Critical for Successful Change with Liz Hutson of EGH, LLC 3-22-26

Summary

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Episode Summary: "Why Communicating the Why Is Critical for Successful Change"

Podcast: Becker Business
Host: Chanel Bunger (standing in for Scott Becker)
Guest: Liz Hudson, Principal Consultant & Owner, EGH LLC
Date: March 22, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Chanel Bunger speaks with Liz Hudson, founder and principal consultant at EGH LLC, about the critical importance of clearly communicating the "why" behind organizational change. Drawing from extensive experience in healthcare consulting and private equity, Liz outlines why effectively communicating the rationale for change—both at the organizational and individual team member level—is essential for achieving successful and lasting transformation.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Role of "Why" in Navigating Change

[01:31 – 03:17]

• People React to Change in Three Main Ways:

  • Excitement: "Let's go, this is great."
  • Confusion and Paralysis: Not sure what it means or what to do next.
  • Frustration: Resistance or moving in the opposite direction.

• Leaders’ Common Mistake:

  • Leaders often assume employees see the big picture they've spent months planning.
  • Failing to explain the background and context leaves others in the dark.

Quote:

"One mistake that leaders often make is assuming that everyone else already sees that same picture. We as leaders... spent hours, sometimes months, thinking about it. But the rest of the organization hasn't gone on that same journey with us yet."
— Liz Hudson [01:57]

• The Essential Action:
  • Leaders must "showcase the why" to bring everyone along and reduce resistance.

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2. Impact of Clarity: The "Here to There" Concept

[03:29 – 05:19]

• The Framework:

  • Here: Current state, including what isn't working and the pain points.
  • There: Future state, why it's better, and what positive change will look like.

• Visualization Matters:

  • Clearly painting the vision makes the change more tangible and relatable.
  • People are more likely to rally behind change when they can understand and see the benefits.

Quote:

"When people understand the reality or the pain of their current situation, it helps to build context. ... The more clearly we can paint the picture of 'there'... the easier it is for people to visualize that path forward."
— Liz Hudson [04:06]

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3. Making Change Personal: "What's In It For Me?" (WIIFM)

[05:26 – 07:05]

• The Next Step:

  • Beyond broad buy-in, individuals need to connect change to their own circumstances.
  • Ask: How does this affect my work, my role, my daily experience?

• It's Not Selfish—It's Human:

  • Leaders should not view this focus as selfish, but rather as necessary for true engagement.

• Practical Strategies for Leaders:

  • Help each person see how the change benefits them or their clients.
  • Tailor communication to individual perspectives for deeper commitment.

Quote:

"People become much more specifically open to change when they can connect the why to their WIIFM—that stands for ‘What’s In It For Me.’ ... When leaders do a good job of helping people connect the broader why to their own vantage point, the change for the individual becomes so much more tangible."
— Liz Hudson [05:37]

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4. Liz’s Closing Advice to Leaders

[07:13 – 07:50]

• Dual Approach to Communicating the Why:

  1. General: Explain the journey from "here" (current state) to "there" (desired future) for the organization.
  2. Specific: Help individuals see what the change means for them personally.

• Outcome:

  • When both levels are addressed, organizations are far more likely to achieve successful change.

Quote:

"When people in the organization understand both, they’re so much more likely to move forward with the leader."
— Liz Hudson [07:40]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "As leaders, we spend a lot of time planning... But one mistake that leaders often make is assuming that everyone else already sees that same picture."
  Liz Hudson [01:57]

• "Here to there—when people understand the reality or the pain of their current situation, it helps to build context."
  Liz Hudson [04:06]

• "People become much more specifically open to change when they can connect the why to their WIIFM... When leaders do a good job of helping people connect the broader why the company why to their own vantage point, the change for the individual becomes so much more tangible."
  Liz Hudson [05:37]

• "When people in the organization understand both, they’re so much more likely to move forward with the leader."
  Liz Hudson [07:40]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & Liz’s Background – [00:53 – 01:18]
• Why communicating the why matters – [01:31 – 03:17]
• "Here to there" and painting the vision – [03:29 – 05:19]
• Making change personal: WIIFM – [05:26 – 07:05]
• Liz’s final advice to leaders – [07:13 – 07:50]

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Summary Takeaways

This episode underscores that successful organizational change is impossible without consciously and consistently communicating the "why" behind it. Leaders should:

• Guide teams from current reality ("here") to aspirational goals ("there") with context and specificity.
• Make the case for change both at the organizational level and the individual (WIIFM) level.
• Recognize that buy-in is driven by understanding, making clarity and personal relevance central to change communication.

Liz Hudson’s practical insights give leaders a clear, actionable approach to sparking engagement and overcoming resistance in any major organizational transformation.

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Transcript

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[Chanel Bunger]

to the Becker Private Equity and the Becker Business Podcast. My name is Chanel Bunger and today I'm excited to speak with regular guest Liz Hudson, principal consultant and owner at EGH llc, who joins us today to discuss the importance of showcasing the why. Liz, thank you as always for joining me.

[Liz Hudson]

Great to talk with you, Chanel. Excited to talk about this topic.

[Chanel Bunger]

Excited as well to get into things. But before we did, could you get us started out by giving a brief introduction for listeners that may not be acquainted with you yet?

[Liz Hudson]

Absolutely. I'm Liz Hudson. I'm the founder and the principal consultant of egh and we're a healthcare product and service consulting firm which is highly focused on private equity space. In particular, we specialize in change change management.

[Chanel Bunger]

Thank you so much for that introduction. Now, moving forward into the meat of the podcast a bit. When organizations are going through change, reactions can really vary. What role does clearly communicating the why play in getting people on board?

[Liz Hudson]

Yeah, exactly. So as I mentioned, we're an organization that focuses on change. We help lots of companies out there that are navigating, whether it be integrations, mergers and acquisitions, or just some kind of change in their organization. And when we're in the middle of change or transition, things often feel chaotic. And people typically respond to that change in one of three ways. Either first, they're excited. They're like, let's go, this is great. Second, some people respond with confusion and that leads to paralysis and they're not sure what it means or what to do next. And then third, it can lead to frustration. And that's when people dig their heels in, or sometimes they even start moving in the opposite direction. And as leaders, we spend a lot of time planning for thinking through the big picture. The strategy, the impact, the financials, where the organization needs to go. But one mistake that leaders often make is assuming that everyone else already sees that same picture. We as leaders, we spent hours, sometimes months, thinking about it. But the rest of the organization hasn't gone on that same journey with us yet. And oftentimes I see that leaders skip right past sharing that journey or they don't adequately explain it. But if we want people to move in that direction of change, of where we're trying to go, one of the most powerful things we can do is to showcase the why. So that's the context for this conversation.

[Chanel Bunger]

Got it, Got it. Thank you so much for giving us that brief outline. And now digging a little bit deeper, can you expand on that idea that people are more open to change when they understand the why? What shifts when that clarity is there?

[Liz Hudson]

Yeah, there's. There's two ideas I'd like to focus on and two real simple ideas. They're simple, but. But hard. The first is that people, the organization generally, are much more open to change when they understand the why. And one way that I like to explain this is this idea of here to there. Anytime I'm working with my own team or with our clients, or even with family and friends, I talk about the here to there. We start with here. That's our current state. That's where we are right now. And we think about, particularly in change in transition, what isn't working today, where are we falling short, what problems might we be experiencing? And when people understand the reality or the pain of their current situation, it helps to build context. So when we're here, then we talk about, let's move there. There being the future state, what could be better that might be serving customers more effectively? Maybe it's creating a healthier work environment. Maybe it's building a stronger or more sustainable financial position. The more clearly we can paint the picture of there, and the more specific that we are, the easier it is for people to visualize that path forward and understand that why behind the change. And when they can see that vision, when they can see the why really clearly, they're much more likely to rally around it. So that's that first idea of generally, how do we help people go there when they understand the why very broadly, that's a general movement forward.

[Chanel Bunger]

Got it. And now that we know how to generally connect people to the why, how would you do it at a specific or individual level?

[Liz Hudson]

Yeah, exactly. So the second part, so generally, organizations, people can go, okay, I get why the company, company wants to go there. I get why that's important to them or to the organization broadly. But people become much more specifically open to change when they can connect the why to their wism w I I f and that stands for what's in it for me. So when they can connect the why to their wisdom now they get really specific because every team member naturally ask this question. They want to know, how is this going to affect my role? How is this going to affect my work? How does this change my experience day to day? And I don't think that that's a selfish thing. I think it's human. I think it's personal. And when leaders do a good job of helping people connect the broader why the company why to their own vantage point, the change for the individual becomes so much more tangible. They can see how it might help, how it might improve their work environment, how it helps make their job easier, where it creates opportunities, where it helps the customer, or ultimately leads to a stronger organization that they're really proud to be a part of. So when people can connect a strategy to their own specific experience, they're even more likely to get on board. So that's how we get from general excitement for something to specific. And now this becomes personal. It becomes very specific to them.

[Chanel Bunger]

I love that. Well, Liz, I want to thank you for your time today. But before I let you go, is there anything else that listeners should know?

[Liz Hudson]

Yeah, just I guess to summarize that. Right. Is just when organizations are navigating change, I want leaders to really think and act on communicating the why in two ways. First, generally helping organizations understand their journey from here current state to their future state. And second, really specifically helping individuals in the organization see what the future means for their own perspective. Because when people in the organization understand both, they're so much more likely to move forward with the leader.

[Chanel Bunger]

That makes a lot of sense. Well, Liz, I want to thank you once again for your time today and for sharing your insights on the Becker Private Equity and the Becker Business Podcast. Thank you.

[Liz Hudson]

Thanks, Chanel. Great to talk with you.

[Alex Kantrowitz]

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