I typically do not use the term “change management” (unless I’m working with a partner who wants or needs to use it).
“Managing” change implies order, planning & stability; the ability to forecast, direct & deliver outcomes. Yet very few change or transformation plans deliver what they set out to deliver, in the predicted timescales. We no longer operate in a stable world where we undertake a change project and move back to equilibrium. Our environment moves faster, acts in more interconnected ways & is full of ambiguity. Change is relentless & continuous. We need to focus on building adaptive capacity & creating a collective process, not on "managing" change as a discrete, manageable task.
Michael Hudson talks about shifting from “change management” to “change fitness”. He sets out three core leadership practices for enabling change:
1. Continuous sensemaking: This involves incorporating five minutes of sensemaking into existing team routines, understanding what is different or changing. Over time, this practice builds "complexity capacity" & the ability to hold onto multiple, often contradictory realities without becoming overwhelmed.
2. Strategic energy management: Treating people’s energy as a finite resource that needs to be deliberately managed, like any other resource.
3. Learning from navigation, not just success: Shifting from an outcome-focus to process-focus builds the ability to prevail in situations where the path forward is unclear.
forbes.com/sites/michaelhuds… Via
@Forbes.
Graphic from
@corp_rebels.