In 2010, John Hagel, John Seely Brown, and Lang Davison published a book called The Power of Pull. The core idea of the book was that in a world shaped by digital technology, the most powerful systems no longer push resources, plans, and instructions at people. They create conditions that allow people to pull what they need when they need it; knowledge, tools or relationships.
Pull systems work because people engage when something is useful and meaningful to them. Instead of trying to demand and control behavior, pull environments attract participation. They become magnetic. Over time, they outperform push environments because they enable faster learning, deeper commitment and sustained performance under uncertainty.
This idea doesn’t just apply to markets and platforms; it also applies directly to organizational change.
Most transformation efforts are still designed as push initiatives. Leaders define the target state, mandate behaviors and measure compliance. The assumption is that if the plan is clear enough and the incentives are strong enough, people will follow.
This only works when there is constant supervision. Once leaders stop pushing, the transformation effort stalls.
Pull-based transformation takes a very different view:
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Instead of asking; how do we get people to do what we want?
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Let’s ask; how do we create something people want to join?
Here are three ideas that connect the power of pull to making change actually work.
Pull beats persuasion
Pull-based change doesn’t start by convincing everyone. It starts by activating those who already see the value. Early adopters don’t need to be sold on our idea. They just need to be enabled. When people voluntarily engage and create visible progress, belief spreads far more effectively than any executive presentation ever could.
Storytelling creates resonance
Storytelling turns isolated actions into shared meaning. The early wins only create gravity when they are visible through shared narratives. Stories help people see themselves in the change, reduce uncertainty and signal legitimacy. They transform early progress into momentum by making participation attractive to the rest of the organization.
Communities matter more than plans
Hagel and his colleagues highlighted communities of practice as engines of learning and performance. The same is true in transformation. Change sticks when people learn together, solve real problems together, and build relationships around the work itself. Structure helps, but social energy sustains.
This is why pull-based transformations feel different. They don’t rely on pressure. They rely on attraction. They don’t create followers. They create buy-in.
The uncomfortable truth is that you can force compliance, but you can’t force commitment. And transformation without commitment eventually stalls. So if you want change to last, stop asking how to push it harder. Start designing it so people pull themselves in.
That’s where real momentum begins.