Change Management

/Change Management

It doesn’t have to be this way

While most of us prefer to stick to what we know, even if we are not satisfied with it, there are a few that tell themselves ‘it doesn’t have to be this way’.  More usually, however it is an external observer that makes this claim. And while I have spent much of my working life, trying to invent new ways to tackle recurrent issues, I have come to the conclusion that the most important first step, even before the ‘why’ question, is to believe that an improvement that can be made. This week, I was presented with a number of [...]

2018-11-03T09:05:40+00:000 Comments
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Dominant Groups

If I were to ask whether you felt you belong to a dominant group or a non-dominant group, what would you reply? Perhaps this little test can help?  According to classical sociological definition, a dominant group is one with the upper hand, power, social status and / or certain privileges. The dominant group is often the one which sets out and controls the values system, i.e. what is considered right and wrong. Billy Jean King once said “Dominant groups know little about non-dominant groups, while non dominant groups tend to know a lot about dominant groups.” And hearing her say [...]

2018-10-08T12:22:46+00:000 Comments
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Sorry to let you down

I hate letting people down, I guess we all do?  But if you are like me, someone who takes on too many activities and always broadens the scope of things to deliver better results, then it will be of no surprise that from time to time I have to let someone down. A forgotten meeting, a double booking in my agenda, the need to cancel a lunch that sits awkwardly in my planning, these are just the easy ones. When I had a PA, I never really saw the full consequences as it was her sent the ‘sorry’ emails or [...]

2018-09-14T17:45:05+00:000 Comments
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How to unlock a narrow-minded person

I like to think that I am open minded, but I know that there are certain areas where I am far from being so. Take music for example.  From the days of Focus and German electro pop, right through the nineties and up to yesterday morning, I was not at all open to any kind of music that was not played on conventional instruments. But last night I was listening to a podcast about a musician called Richard David James, or ‘Aphex Twin’ as he is better known by many.  I gave it a few minutes, decided I was too [...]

2018-07-13T08:45:59+00:000 Comments
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Identifying with the team

With the World Cup well under way, it is fascinating to witness participating nations getting behind ‘their’ teams.  In seems that in victory and defeat there is a common understanding and appreciation that goes deep into our psyche. However, this allegiance and loyalty only works when there is a clearly defined competition, one team against another.  Wouldn’t it be great if, in our organizations, a similar allegiance could be achieved for a project team delivering internal projects? Just imagine how effective and powerful the team could be. It is the role of the Change Manager to try and ensure that [...]

2018-06-28T07:47:50+00:000 Comments
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