The most general lesson to be learned from the more successful cases is that the change process goes through a series of phases that, in total, usually require a considerable length of time. Skipping steps creates only the illusion of speed and never produces a satisfying result. A second very general lesson is that critical mistakes in any of the phases can have a devastating impact, slowing momentum and negating hard-won gains.
Perhaps because we have relatively little experience in renewing organizations, even very capable people often make at least one big error.#1564•
Why? Kotter maintains that too many managers don't realize transformation is a process, not an event. It advances through stages that build on each other. And it takes years. Pressured to accelerate the process, managers skip stages. But shortcuts never work.#1568•
Change, by definition, requires creating a new system, which in turn always demands leadership.#1575•
Bad business results are both a blessing and a curse in the first phase. On the positive side, losing money does catch people's attention. But it also gives less maneuvering room. With good business results, the opposite is true: Convincing people of the need for change is much harder, but you have more resources to help make changes.#1600•
A vision says something that helps clarify the direction in which an organization needs to move.#1601•
Employees will not make sacrifices, even if they are unhappy with the status quo, unless they believe that useful change is possible#1604•
Helping people see the right connections requires communication#1593•
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When a company is teetering on the brink of ruin, most turnaround leaders revamp strategy, shift around staff, and root out inefficiencies. Then they wait patiently for the payoff—only to suffer bitter disappointment as the expected improvements fail to materialize.#1580•
To avoid facing challenges in their core business, some managers look to new products, new services, and new lines of business. At times, such diversification is healthy. But all too often these efforts are merely an avoidance tactic that keeps tough problems at arm's length.#1597•
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The more things change, the more they stay the same.#1591•
Managing change is tough, but part of the problem is that there is little agreement on what factors most influence transformation initiatives.#1598•
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The most effective way to change behavior, therefore, is to put people into a new organizational context, which imposes new roles, responsibilities, and relationships on them. This creates a situation that, in a sense, "forces" new attitudes and behaviors on people.#1614•
When one program doesn't work, senior managers, like the CEO at U.S. Financial, often try another, instituting a rapid progression of programs. But this only exacerbates the problem. Because they are designed to cover everyone and everything, programs end up covering nobody and nothing particularly well.
They are so general and standardized that they don't speak to the day-to-day realities of particular units.
Buzzwords like "quality," "participation," "excellence," "empowerment," and "leadership" become a substitute for a detailed understanding of the business.#1613•