Last Updated on 17. December 2025
It’s a cold December evening. Fairy lights stretch across the square like a promise, the scent of cinnamon and cloves hangs in the air, and somewhere, cups clink together. The Christmas market is open and has a few lessons to teach us about digitalisation and transformation.
Because if you take a closer look, you’ll see that a Christmas market is surprisingly similar to a company undergoing change.
The mulled wine stand: the big digital projects
Right at the entrance is the mulled wine stand. Large, brightly lit, crowded. Everyone is talking about it, some come exclusively for it. It is expensive to run, logistically demanding and shapes the reputation of the entire market.
This is also how large digital projects behave: ERP implementations, platform strategies, cloud migrations or new core processes. They tie up budgets, attention and expectations and quickly become symbols of ‘digitalisation itself’.
If the mulled wine is lukewarm or the stand is poorly organised, disappointment remains. If a large project is implemented poorly, not only IT suffers, but also the trust of the entire organisation.
The mulled wine stand is important, but it alone does not make a good Christmas market.
Mantra: Large digital projects are like mulled wine. Everyone talks about them – but in the end, what counts is whether they really warm you up.
The Kipferl: Artificial intelligence in everyday life
A few steps further on, they are laid out: Kipferl. Small, inconspicuous, often overlooked. No one comes just for them, and yet something is immediately missing when they are not there.
This is how artificial intelligence works in companies. It rarely makes a grand entrance, but works in the background: in forecasts, recommendations, automations, text suggestions or quality checks.
Good Kipferl don’t stand out – except in that they make the evening more enjoyable. The same goes for good AI: it improves processes, speeds up decisions and makes work easier without constantly demanding attention.
Bad croissants are dry. Bad AI is annoying. You notice both immediately.
Mantra: AI doesn’t impress by putting on a show, but by being missed when it’s not there.
The market plan: the transformation roadmap
A Christmas market without a plan ends in chaos. Paths, squares and landmarks ensure that you arrive and don’t leave annoyed.
In transformations, the roadmap takes on this role. It shows what is happening now, what is coming next and what is still waiting to happen. Not every stall has to open at the same time. Not every idea has to become reality immediately.
A good roadmap creates calm amid the hustle and bustle. It makes progress visible and gives people the feeling that they are part of a journey and not victims of an experiment.
Key point: Transformation needs a route that people want to follow.
Visitor flows: acceptance is decisive
Some stalls are constantly surrounded by people, while others remain empty. Not out of malice, but because they are poorly located, seem unclear or simply do not convey a good feeling.
The same applies to digital solutions. They do not unfold their value simply by existing, but because people use them voluntarily. Acceptance arises where solutions are understandable, helpful and pleasant.
No one voluntarily stays long in a place where there is a draught – not even in the digital space.
Mantra: Digitalisation is only successful when no one has to be forced to use it.
The right amount: data-based decisions
If you want to keep track of things at a Christmas market, you pay attention to visitor flows, the popularity of the stalls and the demand for mulled wine or croissants. This is the only way to plan adjustments sensibly.
The same principle applies in companies: data-driven change means basing decisions on sound data. Analysis of processes, user behaviour, KPIs and feedback shows where action is needed, which measures are effective and where adjustments are required.
Without data, you often navigate the market – or the project – blindly. With data, you can react agilely, set priorities and steer transformation in a targeted manner.
Key takeaway: Those who base their change on data do not stumble in the dark, but make the right decisions at the right time.
Cold feet: change fatigue
At some point, your feet get cold. Not because the market is bad, but because it has become too much, too loud or too exhausting.
In organisations, this is called change fatigue. Too many initiatives, too few breaks and too few visible successes cause people to switch off internally.
Good transformation therefore plans for warmth: small successes, recognition, moments of pause. Sometimes a bench on the sidelines is enough – or another sip of mulled wine.
Mantra: Change without breaks does not lead to progress, but to exhaustion.
Lights: Communication creates atmosphere
What makes the Christmas market really inviting are the lights. They provide orientation, security and a desire to stay.
In transformations, communication is exactly that. It explains why something is changing, where the path is leading and what that means for the individual. It removes uncertainty and creates trust.
The clearer and more consistent the messages, the warmer the change feels.
Key point: Communication is not background music, but the lighting of the transformation.
Tradition and change: no contradiction
Christmas markets are highly traditional, yet they change every year. Card payments are replacing cash, sustainable materials are being added, and vegan offerings are appearing alongside the classics.
They work because the familiar remains while new things are introduced. Not radically, but gently.
This is exactly how transformation succeeds in organisations: not by breaking with the past, but by developing it in line with the times.
Mantra: Change succeeds when the new remains familiar enough.
A last look across the square
At the end of the evening, when the lights seem warmer than before and the cup is empty, one feeling remains: it was worth it. This is exactly the feeling that should remain. Not overwhelm. Not coldness. But orientation, usefulness and a little bit of enthusiasm.
Perhaps, in the end, transformation is exactly that: a well-designed Christmas market. Familiar enough to arrive. New enough to stay.
We are happy to support you in successfully designing your own transformation projects – with or without mulled wine.
