Our work:

Rebuild and Reimagine

When a $500M transformation investment was in trouble, we rewrote the playbook

Mission Critical but Misaligned

A $20B healthcare payer had committed to a high-stakes transformation: moving its core revenue platform and connected operations to a modern, cloud-based infrastructure. The vision was bold: simplify the tech stack, increase agility, and enable future BPaaS capabilities. But there was a problem.

 

The transformation partner, a longstanding managed service provider, was not delivering in a way that matched the client's expectations. In turn, the client organization was adding to the friction and contributing actively to missed expectations and complexity. Milestones were slipping. Communications were strained. And worse, trust was eroding at precisely the moment that both organizations needed alignment across business, technology, and operations.

 

Everyone recognized they needed help. Not more project managers. Not more status reports. They needed an independent partner who could uncover the root issues, create shared accountability, and help both sides execute with urgency and purpose. That’s when Yates was brought in.

Yates began by immersing in the environment not as a vendor, but as an embedded partner. We sat at the table with client executives, operational leads, and program teams. We asked hard questions. They listened deeply. And what emerged was not a simple delivery issue, it was a structural misalignment:

 

  • Different assumptions about roles and responsibilities
  • A governance vacuum, where decisions languished without clear ownership
  • Fragmented client and supplier stakeholder engagement across IT, business, and operations
  • No clear model for change readiness, impact, or adoption


The initiative was too important to stall. The clock was ticking. And both organizations were under pressure from boards and regulators to deliver. We knew this wasn’t just “project rescue,” it was a rearchitecture of the way both organizations worked together.

Inflection Point

Building Alignment

We activated two workstreams in parallel: one focused on governance and relationship remediation, the other on change management and transition assurance. This dual lens allowed everyone to stabilize the present while reimagining the path forward.

 

Rebuilding the Operating Model:  We co-designed a new governance framework that created real-time accountability between the client and the service provider. They didn't just document roles, they embedded decision rights, escalation paths, and executive engagement points.


  • Created a Joint Remediation Plan signed by both parties
  • Established a bi-weekly Executive Oversight Committee, co-chaired by senior leaders
  • Introduced risk registers and milestone heatmaps to ensure visibility
  • Defined “go/no-go” criteria for critical transitions

 

Driving Change from the Inside Out:  The cloud migration would fundamentally alter how business processes operated. Yates ensured the human side of change wasn’t an afterthought.


  • Mapped more 50 business processes to identify potential disruption
  • Assessed the impact on teams, vendors, and member experience
  • Developed a full-spectrum Change Impact Assessment, tailored by stakeholder group
  • Created communication and training plans as adoption tools

 

Enforcing Executive Alignment: One of Yates' superpowers is creating space for executive candor. They facilitated working sessions that broke down passive resistance, surfaced unspoken concerns, and aligned leaders around shared goals.


  • Brought clarity to previously ambiguous roles
  • Translated strategy into actions and outcomes for each function
  • Provided real-time coaching to leaders from both sides of the table
  • Created feedback loops to track change adoption and stakeholder sentiment

Outcomes:

A Renewed Path Forward

What emerged was more than a fixed project, it was a transformed relationship. The client and service provider moved from guarded compliance to collaborative delivery. The program regained momentum. And most importantly, the groundwork was laid for a future-ready enterprise platform that supports the client's strategic ambition.

 

  • $500M+ in investment and value preserved, with contract alignment and delivery acceleration
  • Risk exposure significantly reduced through visible governance and joint decision-making
  • Stakeholder trust restored, as leaders gained clarity and confidence
  • Adoption tracked in real-time, using dashboards and regular check-ins
  • Cultural shift, from project tension to co-ownership of outcomes

 

This wasn’t just a turnaround. It was a reinvention of how two complex organizations could move together at enterprise scale.

The Yates Difference:

Independent, embedded, and unflinching.

What makes Yates different isn’t just methodology, it’s mindset. We step in when clarity is elusive and stakes are high. We work alongside executives, not just above or below them. We ensure plans get executed. And we tell the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable, because that’s what unlocks transformation.


  • Neutral, embedded presence with no allegiance to internal politics


  • Relational fluency across business, technology, operations, and suppliers


  • Hands-on governance design that gets adopted, not archived


  • Change grounded in adoption, not activity


  • Executive coaching that turns alignment into a working model