Strategic programmes for circular construction: lessons from three public clients

Strategic programmes are frequently employed by organisations to drive transformational change, particularly when sectors pursue systemic shifts, such as the circularity transition. However, despite their potential, these programmes often fail to effect lasting change within their parent organisations, with outcomes remaining disconnected. This study examines how programme integration mechanisms shape organisational transformation in circularity-oriented change programmes. Several mechanisms were identified through a comparative case study of Dutch public construction clients. The findings suggest that isolating such programmes from the parent organisation hinders organisational transformation. Instead, the early incorporation of integration mechanisms is essential to facilitate both learning and unlearning processes, ensuring the effective and sustainable adoption of circular practices. Moreover, findings show that temporal alignment emerges as a decisive factor in a programme’s transformative capacity, as mismatches between programme and organisational learning trajectories can limit systemic impact. These insights contribute to strategic programme literature by demonstrating how these programmes can, depending on their formal and informal mechanisms, promote or stall transformative change.