Like most CEO’s and organisational leaders, I have spend the last 4 months dealing with the brutal impact of COVID 19 on our business and the lives of friends and colleagues. We have survived so far… a bit battered… sure… but now our attention is on rebuilding.
It has been exhausting, spending long hours making adjustments, weighing risks and introducing new ways of doing things. And throughout there has been the tension of having to confront the reality of the situation and retaining hope.
All leaders have been dealing with this one.
And there is hope. Some of it is based on all the work everyone has been putting in and some of is just simply a statement of who we are and the opportunities we see.
And we are committed to build the new… it is going to be different. Again this sense is shared with many, as we navigate uncharted waters. A fellow CEO said to me recently… ‘you know… in all this, I just don’t want to go back to the crap we had before… ’
So leaders are in a creative mood identifying ideas that will redefine the future, whilst looking out for the autumn storms.
And we are investing. We are building. We are moving ahead.
And here is a challenge for us.
Those redefined outcomes we are chasing have to be delivered by updated change practises and thinking. And here lies the heart of the challenge.
Credible research shows that few change programmes, fully deliver the intended outcomes. An IBM study says 20% are effective, delivering at least 75% of projects successfully. 35% have limited success and 45% miss by a lot. These figures echo the Change-Ability research. So the delivery mechanism as it stands currently, is not delivering advantage, anywhere near what is hoped for, or needed.
The old ways have not worked adequately for most and they probably wont work in the future. The reliance on current change management practices therefore needs re examination but there is much we already know.
- We can describe and measure Change-Able Leadership.
- We know it is critical to have robust, trusting and concordant relationships ensuring information flow and an ability to work the complexity.
- We can describe with precision Change-Able culture and know that the shift away from ‘departments’ and ‘divisions’ to ‘systems thinking’ is a critical move.
- We should know and be able to apply the 3 principles of navigation.
- Foresight should replace the excuse of hindsight. Predictive Analytics and modelling are critical activities.
And all of this has to be driven by capable people using robust data and enabling technology that has the capacity to transform.
So as a reminder to us all… we need to make sure our new goals and ambitions are not put in ‘the back of delivery vans’ that are on their last legs and may not make the journey. They have been selling us short. We need a system that will allow most of us to deliver our post COVID ambition driven by people who are highly skilled and resourceful navigators/ leaders.
Now is therefore a time for an honest assessment.
- Do you need the help of skilled mechanics to give your current change delivery vehicle an overhaul and upgrade?
- Do you need a new vehicle?
A conversation with us could help you answer these questions. Email me at chrislever@teleiosconsulting.com
I would appreciate your comments and insights and look forward to hearing from you.
