I keep on coming back to this management model - and like it more every time I use it.
Time and again I encounter troubled programmes that have just started too far down the transformation track, and run into predictable difficulties as a result.
Rather than re-invent the wheel I would suggest you refer back to a tried and tested approach primarily attributable to John Kotter (renowned author, previously a professor at Harvard Business School). There are various versions and you can find more on his work here, including his book that will explain the article's name.
In short there are 8 key steps on 4 main stages:
MAKE IT ESSENTIAL
1. Create a Sense of Urgency.
Help others see the need for change and the importance of acting immediately.
Communicating the realities of the market and competition
2. Create a Powerful Guiding Coalition
Make sure there is a powerful group guiding the change-one with leadership skills, bias for action, credibility, communications ability, authority, and analytical skills.
MAKE IT READY
3. Develop the Change Vision and Strategy.
Clarify how the future will be different from the past, and plan how you can make that future a reality.
Mobilise the necessary resources.
MAKE IT HAPPEN
4. Communicate the Vision.
Make sure as many others as possible understand and accept the vision and the strategy.
Use every vehicle possible to communicate the new vision and strategies.
Teach new behaviours by the example of the guiding coalition.
5. Empower Others to Act.
Remove as many barriers as possible so that those who want to make the vision a reality can do so.
Encourage risk taking, non traditional behaviours and actions.
6. Produce Short-Term Wins.
Create some visible, unambiguous successes as soon as possible.
Recognise and reward those involved in enabling the quick wins.
7. Don't Let Up.
Press harder and faster after the first successes. Be relentless with instituting change after change until the vision becomes a reality.
MAKE IT STICK
8. Create a New Culture.
Hold on to the new ways of behaving, and make sure they succeed, until they become a part of the very culture of the group.
Ensure the means to ensure leadership development and succession.
Avid Kotter fans will note I have changed a few of the words. For example he tends to use "set the stage" more than "make it essential" but I like the urgency and clarity of the latter phrase.
