Cultural Change

Impossible is nothing

Posted by Constance Ward on June 18, 2012   |   Comments Off on Impossible is nothing

Larry Page, the Google co-founder, once recommended that people “have a healthy disregard of the impossible.”

Photo by Jim Hipps

Thought leaders would most likely agree with that general advice, but they would also recognize that it’s critical to know your own limits and those of your organization…especially when you’re making changes in the company and its culture.

How do you know you’re pushing your employees and your company as a whole just that wee bit too far?

Having good communications processes and practices in place will allow you to quickly and efficiently gather feedback so you can sense that limit before you reach it.

A good communications team can help you sense what’s happening in the organization so that you can respond appropriately. They can read the signals and clarify how employees are reacting to your messages, how change is being perceived and where –or whether — it’s taking hold.

Your communications team can be a barometer for you…by frequently tracking the”barometric pressure” during a change initiative, they can tell you whether a storm is brewing or whether there’s clear weather ahead for more change.

Is your “disregard of the impossible” healthy for your organization or are you stretching it beyond its limit? Ask, assess then act

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Transformational Leaders vs. Transactional Leaders – Which one are you?

Posted by Constance Ward on June 12, 2012   |   1 Comment

One of the best blogs on transformational change is written by Bob Tipton, who is part of the Thought Leader Zone partner network. His recent follow-up post, based on an earlier blog on the difference between transformational and transactional leaders, outlines “5 Essential Behaviors of Transformational Change Leaders.” He says that transformational leaders:

• Act courageously
• Are authentically optimistic
• Collaborate through empathy
• Operate from principles, not polls
• Radiate a passion for purpose

traits of transformational change leaders

For each of these descriptions, he contrasts the actions of transformational leaders with those of transactional leaders. He then makes the case clearly for building your transformational leadership skills so that these behaviors will come more naturally to you over time.

Are you what Bob Tipton calls a ‘transformational leader’ or do you get caught up in being too transactional? Ask, assess, then act.

A Culture of Learning and Unlearning

Posted by Constance Ward on March 21, 2012   |   Comments Off on A Culture of Learning and Unlearning

learning and unlearningThere’s a saying that goes something like this: “History is the best teacher, but we are the worst pupils.”

Have you ever found yourself repeating the mistakes of the past, even when you know what the outcome will be? It’s human nature to cling to old habits and thought patterns, and it’s not always easy to break such cycles of thinking.

But cultural change is more difficult when an organization has failed to learn from its past poor decisions and mistakes. That kind of blindness to the long-term impact of a lack of organizational learning can make a company resilient to change — even when it’s change for the better.

Guiding an organization through the usual rough waters of cultural change is a challenge for even the most determined leaders. These leaders have to help their teams learn the lessons that corporate history should have taught them…and they may have to help their organization “unlearn” some other lessons along the way before they launch a cultural change program.

As a thought leader inside your own organization, is it time to begin learning and unlearning before you sow the seeds of cultural change? Ask, assess, then act.

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Discussing Dystopia in Davos

Posted by Constance Ward on March 9, 2012   |   Comments Off on Discussing Dystopia in Davos

welcome to dystopiaWhat’s old is new again. One of my bright-young-whippersnapper colleagues was in Davos, Switzerland, during this year’s World Economic Forum and brought back with her the term “dystopia,” first used in the 16th Century to refer to an anti-utopian, pessimistic society.

This word was often used during the high-level WEF discussions in the context of how society is currently experiencing disruptive change. It describes a new world that is not a blissful, harmonious utopia but an unordered, unpredictable, pessimistic one.

In a world that is constantly changing, how do you prepare yourself and your company to adapt to the dystopia? Are you and your organization agile enough to make those changes with minimal disruption to your daily business of delivering what your clients need? Do you have the foresight as an industry thought leader to help your clients find new ways to thrive, even in a dystopia? Ask, assess, them act.

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