Right now, there is a never-ending supply of organizations that are trying to reinvent themselves. Right now. Everywhere I go, I hear people talking about the changes they want to make. My clients talk about the transformation they’re embarking on. My colleagues talk about the adjustments we need to make to… “get to the next level.” Everything I read is about the dynamic world we live in and how those organizations who can innovate fastest, smartest, and for the least cost, will “win” in the next decade (I’m not sure how different that concept is today than, say, 50 or 100 years ago).
And this addiction began long before the recent financial meltdown. It has been going on for at least as long as my career. In earnest, it probably began in the early 90s with the advent of IT as an enabler of our businesses.
I do not use the word addiction lightly though… I believe we are addicted to change. I think we are obsessed with tossing out the other guy’s model in favor of implementing our own… with very little regard to the fundamentals of good decision-making and sound investment. And that’s a huge problem… for your employees, your customers, your partners, the communities you serve and support, and your shareholders.
Why is that a huge problem? Because most of us suck at implementing change. Yeah, I said it. We, collectively, are horrible at it. Don’t believe me? Look around… How many articles are out there talking about the percentage of projects that fail? It’s in the order of 2/3 to 3/4. That is a staggering number. And it should worry all of us… as shareholders, customers, employees, … even as taxpayers.
Don’t believe the hype? It’s all propaganda right? I don’t think so but fine. Take a look around your own company. How many changes have been attempted and either shelved, completely failed, or simply ended up like so many – in an ocean of mediocrity? That’s all the evidence you should need to care.
The fact is… we’re addicted to ‘different.’ We don’t always know what we want or where we want to be… but we know it’s somewhere or something else. And our addiction leads us down dark paths that often don’t end well (or don’t end at all). So let’s do ourselves, our colleagues, our customers and our investors a favor. If being ‘something’ or ‘somewhere’ else is important, then make it happen. But make sure it sticks. Because change that sticks creates value. And change that doesn’t stick… well… I think you already know the answer.
Ambiguity is your friend 