When searching for literature about how to deal with change, the results are overwhelming: Amazon.com generates over 887’000 search results about “change”. Similarly abundant is the result of a web search about quotes related to change. Change management has become a key competence in local and global management. Yet it still remains the No. 1 challenge in all organizations. It seems like coping with change has always been and still is one of those big life topics that we keep being confronted with as humans. Individuals don’t like to change, especially not when forced to do so. The will to preserve is strong, be it material goods, relationships, opinions or circumstances – we usually want to keep what we have.

Within an organization, the necessity for change is often perceived differently and therefore addressed with variable persistence. 

Even though experience and competence in managing change has remarkably increased in the past few years, two thirds of all change projects still fail according to a recent study by McKinsey. That is a disaster, considering the related costs, let alone the collateral damage of such projects such as frustration with all those involved and friction loss through conflict.

Among the main causes for this unsatisfactory situation is an often excessive focus on the change process and methodology. Instead, a “walk the talk” attitude of the leaders and being a role model in constructively and positively coping with change is key, especially by showing a more solution and resource focused attitude rather than using a problem and deficit oriented approach. In addition to that, those affected from change are often not given enough opportunity to become involved – a basic rule of successful change management. In such a way, those affected would co-create their own change and therefore support it, affecting sustainability in a direct way.

In short: it is decisive to combine hard and soft facts in order to implement change in a successful and sustainable way. And it is much more about leadership than about tools and techniques.

Where do you get support for effectively leading change?

I look forward to our first conversation.

Yours

Thomas Gelmi