Optimising our buildings: transforming the Met Police through strategic change

The Metropolitan Police Service faced a complex transformation challenge that demanded fresh thinking and collaborative expertise. With a 40,000-strong workforce spread across 200+ buildings, the Met needed to revolutionise how their people worked while simultaneously reducing their estate footprint.

What kept them up at night:

The challenge wasn't just about real estate—it was about fundamentally shifting organisational culture and individual behaviours across one of the UK's largest public sector organisations. They needed to embrace technology and flexible working whilst maintaining operational effectiveness, all while ensuring their diverse functions could adapt to new ways of working together.

How we helped:

We joined forces with the Met to create a comprehensive change programme that brought strategy and delivery together in service of their vision for smarter working.

Our approach was built on collaboration from day one. We engaged senior leadership teams and managers across the Met's varied functions, identifying and analysing innovative best practice that could be disseminated throughout the organisation. This wasn't about imposing solutions but empowering teams to shape their own future.

Using the ADKAR change management model, we created sustainable change through:

Building a network of advocates who could champion transformation across departments
Delivering training to over 3,000 officers and staff on managing dispersed teams and maintaining wellbeing
Developing comprehensive learning resources across the Microsoft365 suite to enable seamless collaboration
Prototyping innovative solutions like a pan-Met room booking app using PowerApps

We also conducted a thorough policy review, assessing all 70 policy areas and recommending changes to 30 of them—ensuring alignment between working practices and organisational frameworks.

The difference it made:

The transformation delivered results that extended far beyond expectations. By embedding a culture of remote working and dispersed team collaboration, we didn't just help the Met optimise their buildings—we prepared them for the future.

When Covid-19 tested every organisation's resilience, the Met's back office function successfully relocated without any impact to productivity. Their business continuity plan, strengthened by our collaborative approach to change, proved its worth when it mattered most.

The programme achieved operational effectiveness through better use of workspace and technology while enabling the Met to reduce their estate footprint. More importantly, it created a flexible, adaptive organisation ready to tackle whatever challenges lie ahead.

Learn more

Our work in Justice & Security extends beyond this project. If you’re interested in hearing more about our wider experience, please get in touch.