As an organisation matures it develops a way of working that is typically borne out of progressive trial and error. In a young organisation, change occurs often and changes are often big. But as time progresses changes become smaller and smaller and less frequent until eventually the organisation settles into a steady state. Of course, change for change's sake is a bad thing. But without continued effort to undertake change that specifically brings about improvement, and enables the organisation to be responsive, innovative and competitive in a rapidly changing business world, the steady state becomes a lacklustre default. Sure it works. People are working and managers are managing. There's not really a 'buzz' anymore and it's unlikely to produce 'eureka moments' resulting in product breakthroughs that will take the market by storm. But it's plodding along nicely, shareholders seem reasonably happy, people are in their comfort zone and they don't see anything wrong.
In a more critical light, I might say that the default state is stale and fails to push the boundaries. Managers are often leading the inevitable. They spend their time managing plans and events that, in all likelihood, are going to happen anyway. There's little invention and practically no investment in continuous improvement. If problems are identified - "what we have here is a communication problem" - they're simply talked about. Action is seldom taken to identify and deal with the root cause. It's simply enough to label the problem, perhaps make some superficial changes to address some of the symptoms, and then basically ignore it, hoping it will go away. It doesn't go away and so people learn to live with it, accepting it as 'just the way it is'.
What happens when someone realises the market is leaving the organisation behind, and fast? Executives become nervous and request more effort, managers become pushy and people become stretched. Processes that worked in the default state now either hold things up or cause failure. And all the while the pressure is building. The default state doesn't cater for innovation and responsiveness. It isn't geared to take the organisation to a new level of success.
Real change is required. A tweak to the organisation chart won't cut it. Extraordinary results require extraordinary ideas from extraordinary people using extraordinary processes. Everyone sees that the company is broken and that people are miserable, but nobody has the courage on their own to start changing things. Change is seen as too painful and too disruptive. It's going to get painful anyway whether change is attempted or not. Pain is inevitable. Misery is a choice. And change doesn't have to be disruptive. Don't be too busy chopping wood to sharpen the axe. Set things up for success. Create a sense of urgency. Focus on achieving behavioural change and be sensitive. Communicate intent clearly, openly and up-front to neutralise uncertainty and anxiety. In parallel, start working with people to define a shared vision and strategy while empowering more people to take action to bring about the changes they feel are required to improve how they work. Look for quick wins. Success is addictive and motivating. Build momentum. Share experiences and knowledge. Initiate a culture of continuous inspection and adaptation and improvement.
The greatest obstacle to transforming the world is that we lack the clarity and imagination to conceive that it could be different.
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