Rethinking Change Management

1. Rethinking Change Management

2. Some thought starters… • “I think there’s a world market for maybe five computers.” (Thomas Watson, Chairmen of IBM, 1943) • “There is no reason why anyone would want to have a computer in their home.” (Ken Olson, President, Chairman and Founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977) • “This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us.” (Western Union memo, 1876) • “We don’t like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out.” (Decca Recording Company rejecting the Beatles, 1962)

3. Change research The most significant challenges when implementing change are people-oriented 55% Changing mindsets and attitudes Corporate culture Lack of commitment of higher management Complexity is underestimated Shortage of resources Lack of motivation of involved employees Change of process Lack of transparency because of missing or wrong information Lack of change know how Change of IT systems Technology barriers 46% 29% 16% 16% 15% 11% 9% 8% 5% 5% IBM Making Change Work Study, 2008

4. Different levels of change Project Management Lead Change Complex Thoughtful Reaction Just do it Simple Predictable Unpredictable

5. The “traditional” approach Project Management Lead Change Complex Thoughtful Reaction Just do it Simple Predictable Unpredictable Design the change Execute the change Measure the change Communicate

6. Leading complex change Project Management Lead Change Complex Thoughtful Reaction Just do it Simple Design the change Execute the change Measure the change Is this sufficient? Predictable Unpredictable Communicate

7. The challenges and limitations • Organizational Déjà Vu • Haven’t we been here before? • A programmatic, linear approach in a perplexing world • The challenge of sustainability • Success rates – where perception and reality have met • 65% of major organization changes fail; Executives consider 11% successful • 67% of Total Quality Management Programs die after two years • One-third of the Fortune 500 companies from 1970 disappeared by 1983, and today, only 13% of the original top 50 Fortune 500 companies remain • The average lifespan for companies in Japan and most of Europe is 12.5 years

8. Learn to disrupt the system • Creative Disruption is… • The skill and willingness to ask targeted questions about possibility and change, and the patience in listening to the response • “Creating space” (physical and intellectual) for people to grapple with issues they care about • The initiative to take action within the momentum generated by an inquiry into possibility • A disruption of the “cycle of reaction”

9. It starts with inquiry • Asking the right question, or series of questions, is the seed for real organizational change • Inquiry is an exploration in understanding • It seeks to understand beliefs and assumptions underlying current practices, behaviors, or processes • It’s grounded in good intention and creativity • It is fundamental to any forward movement, in any institution • It’s contagious

10. Getting below the water line Events (who does what to whom) Reactive: What happened? What is seen Patterns (reoccurring patterns of behavior) Adaptive: What is happening over time? What is generally unseen Leverage Structure (how the parts of the system are organized) Creative Why is this happening? What are the relationships among the parts? Mental Models (assumptions or worldviews) Generative What assumptions, beliefs and values (mental models) are held about the system

11. Leveraging inquiry Events (who does what to whom) Reactive: What happened? What is seen Patterns (reoccurring patterns of behavior) Adaptive: What is happening over time? What is generally unseen Leverage Structure (how the parts of the system are organized) Creative Why is this happening? What are the relationships among the parts? Focused Inquiry Mental Models (assumptions or worldviews) Generative What assumptions, beliefs and values (mental models) are held about the system