Change Makers: A Closer Look at the Savills Change Management Team with Kelly Creighton

A team is like a mosaic. Each piece is different but brings an essential addition to the whole picture. The Savills Change Management team is a group of individuals with unique experience and credentials. Together, they bring their clients a well-rounded perspective on navigating and implementing change. Learn more about our team and the Savills approach to change management in our series, Change Makers.

Kelly Creighton: Viewing Change through a Wellness Lens

For over a decade, Kelly Creighton, a Director on Savills Change Management team, has carved out a unique career path at the intersection of health, people, and business.

A certified yoga instructor who also partnered with farmers to build local food supply chains in Philadelphia, Kelly never anticipated working with global corporations. But a chance job opening at Macro* made her see the possibilities of applying her knowledge of food, wellness, and the environment in a different context. More than seven years later, her background continues to provide valuable insight for her clients as they implement change.

Kelly views organizations as functioning similarly to human bodies and subject to the same checks and balances necessary to maintain good health.

“When you comprehend certain things about human health—anatomy, nervous systems, what happens when people are in ‘fight or flight’ mode—you realize that organizations have many similarities to people,” said Kelly. “I thought I could apply some of the lessons from my previous roles to how an organization experiences change.”

A healthy approach to change

After earning a bachelor’s degree in business and marketing communications at Temple University, Kelly combined her education with her passion for healthy eating and sustainable food systems. She worked for several Philadelphia-based organizations that connected the urban market with local farmers.

Her work in food systems dovetailed with her own personal wellness journey. She trained as a yoga instructor, studied permaculture and medicinal herbs, and even considered venturing into farming.

Kelly pivoted to the corporate world when she saw an opportunity to help clients implement wellness-related changes in the workplace, especially those looking to provide healthier, more productive environments for their employees.

“We spend such a huge amount of our waking time working. Because of this, it makes sense to me that organizations prioritize their employees’ health,” said Kelly. “Healthy individuals reflect healthy organizations and vice versa.”

With this philosophy, Kelly has helped clients such as Comcast and AmeriHealth implement workplace changes that accomplish vital business objectives while maintaining employee wellness, engagement, and satisfaction. Kelly thinks companies will see the most positive results by executing transitions responsibly and viewing change as natural and essential for sustaining organizational health.

In the change management process, Kelly believes there are three keys to a successful transition:

Slowing down

Any office worker knows that working at a hectic pace has many health implications, especially stress. Similarly, when leaders pursue change too fast, many factors that could diminish the outcome can be overlooked. For this reason, Kelly believes there is value in learning to slow down.

“It’s inspiring when an organization wants to pause and consider its approach. The old saying is true: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” Kelly said. “My advice to any organization would be to stay flexible and take the time to set the foundation before you implement anything.”

Moving full speed ahead without a plan for change puts organizations in a reactive rather than a proactive stance. While Kelly notes there are always unforeseen obstacles to react to in any transition, a road map better positions leaders and stakeholders to deal with the unexpected.

Prioritizing alignment

Just as systems of the human body must communicate to function harmoniously, business teams must communicate and be aligned for change to happen smoothly within an organization.

This is especially true at larger companies that may have a greater number of teams with colleagues split across offices. On a tactical level, teams need to talk to each other so work isn’t duplicated. This will also help ensure messaging to the broader employee population is unified and consistent.

“I think any organization could have a scenario where Team A doesn’t know what Team B is doing,” Kelly said. “For a significant change, like a technology roll-out, or a relocation, you will always have a range of internal subject matter experts, such as IT or HR, who need to weigh in regularly throughout the process. The only way to move everything forward is to make sure everyone is talking each other.”

Understanding impact on an individual level

Most people know that embarking on a course of treatment without understanding potential side effects is risky. Likewise, forcing a change without considering all likely impacts on employees can be short-sighted for an organization.

Kelly cites the example of a company considering relocation. “For employees, changes at work can impact every little aspect of their daily routine. It’s not just that their commute is changing. They may have less time with family, kids, and pets at home. What does that do to morale? And what does that mean for the company?”

One way of ensuring corporate transitions successfully translate from theory to action is to consider what changes may mean for each individual—both in and out of the workplace.

“Organizational change is about the company as a whole, but it’s also about the individuals that make up the organization,” said Kelly. “The way it affects one person could be totally different from the next. Understanding those nuances will empower employers to tailor their change strategy in ways that make the most sense for their workforce.”

*Macro was acquired by Savills in 2020.

Kelly Creighton is a Director at Savills, focusing on change management. She brings more than a decade of experience in managing projects, programs, and teams, large and small, to help clients assess their current space and plan ahead. Kelly’s experience in change management, communications management, and workplace strategy helps clients commit, connect, and bridge the gap from their present state to their future goals. Kelly is also a certified yoga teacher who is trained in permaculture design and medicinal herbal studies. With this expertise, she has planned and implemented corporate wellness programs, including food service, fitness, health clinics, and virtual health.

Get in touch with Kelly here: kcreighton@savills.us