Immunity to Change: Transforming Leaders Who Drive Results (Without the Wake of Disaster)

Why is it so hard to change—even when we know it’s essential? That’s the question Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey set out to answer in Immunity to Change. Their four-step framework offers leaders a practical way to overcome internal barriers, align their behaviours with their intentions, and create meaningful, lasting change.

As a former Olympic athlete and now a coach to high-performing leaders, I’ve witnessed both incredible transformations and painful stumbles. The Immunity to Change model offers actionable tools to ensure the former. Let’s dive into the framework with real-world examples and questions that can help leaders—not just perform but thrive sustainably.

The Four Steps of the Immunity to Change Framework

1. Identify the Goal (What You Want to Achieve)
This step starts with clarity. What is the big improvement you want to make? This goal must be compelling—aligned with your values, urgent, and specific.

Powerful Questions to Ask Yourself or Your Team:

Case Study #1: The Engineer in Atomic Energy
I worked with a senior leader in the energy sector whose goal was to create a more cohesive, innovative team. On paper, he was successful—delivering results for years. But he drove his team hard, leaving a wake of burnout and high turnover. His Immunity to Change process began with the recognition that his “results at all costs” mindset was unsustainable. His goal? Foster innovation, paradoxically, by rejecting innovation. He created an environment of trust and collaboration within his team by showing his dedication, and the organization's dedication, to reducing risk and diligent processes that drove systems accountability.

2. Explore the Competing Commitment (What Holds You Back)
This is the heart of the model: uncovering the hidden fears or beliefs that keep you stuck. Kegan and Lahey call these competing commitments because they often oppose your stated goal.

Powerful Questions to Uncover Your Competing Commitment:

Case Study #2: The Senior Government Bureaucrat
A deputy minister I once worked with in the Federal government sought to delegate more effectively to free up time for strategy. Yet, his competing commitment was a deeply ingrained belief: “If I don’t control everything, people will see me as incompetent.” This fear sabotaged his delegation efforts, leaving him overworked and his team underutilized. He stayed over-involved at the beginning of this leadership growth experiment and did not observe any initial results.

3. Identify the Big Assumption (What’s the Root Cause?)
Competing commitments are fueled by big assumptions—unquestioned beliefs we hold about ourselves, others, or the world. These assumptions keep us locked in old patterns.

Powerful Questions to Challenge Big Assumptions:

Returning to the engineer in the energy sector, his big assumption was, “If I don’t push people hard, they won’t respect me or meet deadlines.” Testing this assumption (by loosening control over one project at key pints in the timeline) showed him that his team not only delivered but felt more motivated and engaged. Pressure at the right time works. Pressure at all times? This hurts results.

4. Test the Assumption (Experiment with Change)
This is where transformation happens. Leaders design small, low-stakes experiments to test their assumptions. Over time, they gather evidence, adjust behaviours, and reframe beliefs.

Powerful Questions to Design Experiments:

For the government leader, an experiment was delegating a high-profile report to his deputy team without micromanaging. When the team delivered high-quality work, it challenged his assumption and built his confidence in their abilities.

Why Leaders Must Act Now

When leaders fail to examine their big assumptions, they risk driving their organizations into a cycle of burnout and resentment. The Immunity to Change model isn’t just about personal growth—it’s about creating organizations where people thrive, innovate, and deliver sustainably.

Closing: The best leaders aren't immune to change—they embrace it, one small step at a time.