Leading Australian Building Material Giant’s Tech Overhaul
A leading Australian building materials company successfully transitioned over 7,000 employees across 300 sites from Microsoft to Google in just 18 months by investing in a tailored change management process. Despite challenges such as diverse tech skills, a scattered workforce, varied departmental needs, and an initial underestimation of the change’s impact, the organisation overcame these hurdles with a people-first approach. Leaders engaged directly with staff to understand concerns, co-created an inclusive and empathetic change plan, secured executive buy-in, and built a network of “change champions” to deliver peer-led training and on-the-ground support, particularly for remote sites. The rollout was customised to each team, with practical adjustments—like moving the Gmail icon to replace Outlook shortcuts—helping employees adapt more smoothly. The results were significant: 85% adoption within six months, stronger cross-department collaboration, higher staff satisfaction, reduced IT costs, minimal downtime, and increased remote work productivity. This case demonstrates that knowing your workforce, growing internal champions, tailoring solutions, and providing hands-on support are critical to making large-scale digital transformations successful, even with limited resources.