Background 

Sage Group is a global technology company providing software and solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. By 2018, however, the company was in crisis. New SaaS competitors were reshaping the accounting software market and Sage’s legacy on-premise model had fallen behind. A failed cloud pivot had eroded confidence, steady decline hit the share price, raising serious concerns over the firm’s future, and employee engagement dropped to -20 eNPS.

Collaboration between regions was weak, and trust in leadership had collapsed. Under a new CEO Steve Hare and Chief People Officer Amanda Cusdin, Sage recognised that technological transformation would only succeed through cultural renewal. The goal was to build a culture that supported the shift to SaaS: one that was customer-led, collaborative, innovative and accountable. The ambition was simple but bold– to become “a great SaaS business for customers and colleagues alike.”

Approach 

Culture and business transformation ran in parallel, jointly sponsored by the CEO and CPO, with culture led by EVP Talent & Capability Jorge Aisa Dreyfus and Senior Director of Culture Jenny Johnstone in partnership with ZRG Consulting.

The first step was defining Sage’s target culture. Using ZRG’s SaaS Culture Maturity Profile and insights from 3,700 employees across 25 offices, the company co-created three Culture Goals– Start with the Customer, Together We Succeed and Innovate to Win. Each was underpinned by specific behaviours, forming a blueprint for a new, unified Sage.

“From steady decline to a category leader, Sage’s cultural reset powered one of tech’s most impressive turnarounds”

Activation followed through immersive leadership engagement, HRBPs were developed as culture coaches and policies and systems were aligned, from hiring and learning to recognition and performance management. The Culture Goals became part of everyday work and decision-making, reinforced by continuous listening via pulse surveys and open feedback loops.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck the new culture was immediately tested. Leaders drew on the Culture Goals to guide decisions, maintain connection and prioritise customer and colleague wellbeing, cementing belief in the new way of working.

Outcome

Sage’s cultural and business reinvention has delivered sustained success. Revenue grew 28% between 2019 and 2024, with 80% now recurring subscription income. Cloud-native product sales increased 220% to £732m and the share price has doubled since 2019.

Voluntary attrition dropped to 7% (compared with a tech sector average of 13%) and Sage earned Great Place to Work certification and a place on Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work list. CEO Steve Hare was named a Top CEO by Glassdoor.

Sage’s journey shows how aligning culture, leadership and talent can turn crisis into long-term growth and transform on-premise technology into a global SaaS success story.

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