The SOM KOMPAS
- September 17, 2026
- min reading time
- Robin Schram
- Jan-Pieter van de Weerd
In the Netherlands, it is almost impossible for organizations to achieve their objectives without affecting the interests of third parties. Whether it concerns housing construction, the energy transition, or the reorganization of healthcare: your organization must also collaborate with other parties to execute its own plans. In short: you need others to achieve your ambitions. But how well is your organization actually equipped for that?
To answer that question, we have developed the SOM COMPASS. Using this tool, we conduct an organizational scan to determine how stakeholder-oriented each part of your organization operates. This allows us to map out where your organization Now state. From there, your organization can set an ambition and we determine what is needed to context-oriented working to further develop and secure as an organizational competence.
The 6 factors of the SOM COMPASS
The SOM COMPASS consists of six interrelated factors:
- Core values
- Organizational structure
- People & Skills
- Processes & systems
- Management & Leadership
- Strategy
Core values form the heart of the compass: they determine the organization's purpose, what it stands for, and how it wishes to relate to its environment. The remaining five factors give coherent substance to this.
Built for Lasting Success: A White Paper on Developing and Securing Environment-Oriented Working as an Organizational Competence
- Our publications
The change process using the SOM COMPASS
A change process using the SOM KOMPAS can look like this:
Phase 1: Diagnosis
We will start with a kick-off meeting to introduce the organization to the SOM KOMPAS and gather valuable input for the scan. Subsequently, using the six factors of the SOM KOMPAS, we will map out how stakeholder-oriented working is currently shaped within the organization. We will do this based on desk research, an online survey, and interviews with management and employees. For each factor, this yields a maturity score (1-5), ranging from ‘not or barely present’ to ‘integrally anchored throughout the entire organization.’ The results of the assessment will be shared during an interactive session. We will use the outcomes of this session to enrich and refine the assessment.
Phase 2. Positioning & Strategy Formulation
Depending on the sector and your organization's current circumstances, we jointly determine the ambition. The following question is central to this: what level should your organization score on each of the six factors to make context-driven working a reality and deliver a strategic advantage? By involving management and employees in this process, we ensure that this ambition aligns with your organization's core values, corporate strategy, and organizational model.
Phase 3. Implementation & institutionalization
We are translating the established ambition into a coherent change strategy and a concrete, integrated change plan. With this, you will work towards an organization that, within a jointly determined period, built for lasting success. This change plan is not a bulky report, but a workable step-by-step plan with clear milestones and measurement points that aligns with your type of organization and organizational culture. Our knowledge of change management ensures that the proposed interventions fit the organization and its change capacity. That way, every action has the desired effect.
Do you want to know how your organization scores using the SOM COMPASS, and would you like to take steps in this regard? Then take contact us.
