Towards a culture of change or towards a change of culture?
One of the most recurring phrases in business conferences and meetings has to do with organizational change, it is addressed as an urgency and a necessity, however sometimes these are phrases that only serve as an introduction or excuse for the presentation of different contexts to those announced.
Organizational daily life leads us to recognize a series of situations that include a variety of events in which we are immersed; from the technological innovations that force us to learn new ways of relating to the tools and machines that will help us fulfill and develop our management, through the mandatory learning of management trends in topics such as Competency management, Balanced Scorecard, Systems of Indicators, etc., until the recognition of new organizational trends that force us to design highly remembered experiences for our clients or to implement systems such as environmental protection and education programs, social responsibility and the respective and necessary certifications of which every day a new one is born.
In other reflections I have differentiated the terms change of transformation, so in order not to stay in the semantic discussion and move on we will leave it as two words with different meanings but that in general points to similar results oriented to new ideological and conceptual schemes for organizations.
Many authors have worked on the importance of change and the reasons why many of these processes fail. I want to make a brief mention of three of them and based on this I propose my own reflection that I hope will be of interest to those who must face the challenge of generating alternatives to survive in competitive and demanding business contexts every day.
The first author is J. Daniel Duck who in his book "The monster of change" mentions the route to be followed in a process of organizational change, the dangers that lie in wait, the best way to tackle them, the temptations that arise in the process and the ability to generate alternatives to achieve the goal. The monster that appears as a threat that can paralyze leaders who seek to drag the organization into new contexts that ensure its sustainability.
For its part, the book "Change the Chip, how to deal with changes that seem impossible" is a book by the brothers Chip and Dan Heat that leads us to imagine the change with three components, the rider, the elephant and the path where the rider us invites to understand that the goal makes sense and that it is necessary to design and follow a route that allows us to achieve the defined strategic purposes. The elephant, which represents the feelings that run through the organization, can be the best ally or the fiercest opponent of changes in the organization, therefore it is necessary to understand that strategy cannot be devoured by culture but must become a opportunity to understand that the future will always be better than the past, no matter how bright and successful it has been;Finally, the path in this metaphor represents the importance of creating organizational habits capable of recognizing, valuing and taking advantage of the talents and abilities of employees in the organization.
We cannot forget the importance that Peter Senge gives in “The Dance of Change” to the fact that change efforts are born at all levels of the organization, it is about finding allies capable of making the management's intentions and formulations come true regarding a profound change that does not stem from a top management directive but encourages the understanding that "the only competitive advantage that the company of the future has is the ability of its managers to learn faster than its competitors" (Arie de Geus, quoted by Peter Senge). Of crucial importance is a general mention of some, but not all, of the challenges of change that begin with:a) “Lack of time” as a perfect excuse to abandon change initiatives or to leave them in the hands of others who perhaps if they can take on the challenge to guide the organization towards calmer and safer waters. b) Lack of help or the recognition that training is essential to prepare those who will have the responsibility to achieve the successes that make the difference. c) Relevance or justification to ensure that the decisions made are correct, d) Fear and anxiety generated by insufficient communication of the process and its scope, the impact on the work environment and motivation can put at risk the most laudable of objectives. Other challenges presented by the author continue, but those already mentioned allow us to consolidate a principle of reflection on the subject.b) Lack of help or the recognition that training is essential to prepare those who will have the responsibility to achieve the successes that make the difference. c) Relevance or justification to ensure that the decisions made are correct, d) Fear and anxiety generated by insufficient communication of the process and its scope, the impact on the work environment and motivation can put at risk the most laudable of objectives. Other challenges presented by the author continue, but those already mentioned allow us to consolidate a principle of reflection on the subject.b) Lack of help or the recognition that training is essential to prepare those who will have the responsibility to achieve the successes that make the difference. c) Relevance or justification to ensure that the decisions made are correct, d) Fear and anxiety generated by insufficient communication of the process and its scope, the impact on the work environment and motivation can put at risk the most laudable of objectives. Other challenges presented by the author continue, but those already mentioned allow us to consolidate a principle of reflection on the subject.d) Fear and anxiety generated by insufficient communication of the process and its scope, the impact on the work environment and motivation can put at risk the most praiseworthy of objectives. Other challenges presented by the author continue, but those already mentioned allow us to consolidate a principle of reflection on the subject.d) Fear and anxiety generated by insufficient communication of the process and its scope, the impact on the work environment and motivation can put at risk the most praiseworthy of objectives. Other challenges presented by the author continue, but those already mentioned allow us to consolidate a principle of reflection on the subject.
Organizational daily life is surrounded by multiple situations that force us to make decisions that are in accordance with the challenge of turning what is expressed in the boardroom into a reality that comes alive in all areas and processes of the company. It means, for the leaders of change, to understand themselves as apostles of a mission that may never be officially handed over to them but that they will be responsible for if the expected impacts are not achieved.
The change in culture implies the recognition of the current components, in terms of rites, symbols, paradigms and beliefs of those who daily inhabit the offices and production plants of the company. Creating new models of strategic understanding for the company implies the conversion of those who dogmatized about the benefits of past times and stigmatized those who dared to travel new and unknown paths that ended up being mandatory for organizations that want to tell the story in the present time.
Taking the risk of innovating and suggesting creative alternatives that involve leaving the “comfort zone” can mean a culture of change, it is an invitation to look up at the environment and identify the way the competition makes its career, it is a way of valuing the good that is done inside but at the same time identify the urgency to adjust, change or improve the processes and procedures that can mean the difference between stopping or staying.
The experience of living in an organization that publicly recognizes and preaches that it is in the process of change, allows us to recognize that it is a company whose dynamics forces us to be alert, to improve its management systems and, above all, to understand that its contribution is a of the keys that will open the future writing as the vision that makes dreams come true that were written to be lived by a business culture that recognizes the importance of living change every day.
Bibliography
- J. Daniel Duck The monster of change. Activa Company 2001. Peter Senge. The Dance of Change. Editorial Norma. 2000 Chip and Dan Heat. Change the Chip, how to face changes that seem impossible. Management 2000. 2011.
