{"id":3186,"date":"2017-10-24T07:26:49","date_gmt":"2017-10-24T12:26:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/?p=3186"},"modified":"2017-08-09T14:54:25","modified_gmt":"2017-08-09T19:54:25","slug":"the-natural-evolution-of-things-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/the-natural-evolution-of-things-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Natural Evolution of Things (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: The Natural Evolution of Things is an in-depth is a 5-part series that describes 13 the catalysts of Organizational Change and Competitiveness, based on the theme of Michael Porter\u2019s Five\u00a0Forces. To read the full series, take a look at the\u00a0author\u2019s profile page found here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

* * * *<\/p>\n

Continued from part 1…<\/a><\/p>\n

\"pexels-photo-325185\"So let\u2019s have a \u2018brief\u2019 look at each of the 13 Catalysts that we think you need to assess your organization against in terms of how you are already trying to address or will soon have to address each one because for sure they are all coming at you \u2013 some have already arrived but may not be at full strength yet such as the impact of the millennial generation in your workforce. These are the pseudo-change agents and motivational forces at work<\/em><\/strong> which we think will influence how you will shape your organization in the future (future shaping) and what as well as how you will have to compete in that bold new future that lies ahead. These 13 Cataysts will all test your organization\u2019s systematic approach to adaptation. Insights Paradigm, by the way, recommends an easy, practical relevant 6-Step process<\/em><\/strong> if you don\u2019t have one for dealing effectively with change. And as we know from reading a quote from Arnold Glasow, noted American author and philosopher, \u2018The only problem with the future is that it is usually here before we are ready for it\u2019<\/em><\/strong>. We suppose too that you can consider that some of these catalysts are more \u2018internal<\/em><\/strong>\u2019 in nature while others are more \u2018externally<\/em><\/strong>\u2019 oriented. Let\u2019s have just a quick look.<\/p>\n

Business Model Evolution<\/h2>\n

Any senior executive who believes you can design an organization\u2019s business model and then push the \u2018autopilot button\u2019 is in for an unpleasant surprise especially given that we know clearly that the only constant has become change; that change is happening faster all the time; and the impact of that change is growing in intensity over time. The consequence, of course, is that your business model quite conceivably could become a dinosaur soon to be extinct.<\/p>\n

A business model can be very much like a brittle piece of metal which when stressed too much, cracks or breaks. In this same way, some senior executives try to design and build their business models so robust to hopefully withstand any \u2018pathogen\u2019 that they are, in fact, rigid. This leads, as the research on anti-fragility clearly indicates, to stress fractures and often significant reductions in performance in response to these stresses \u2013 one major stress clearly being \u2018change\u2019.\u00a0 This is why we believe every organization needs to be aware of the 12 vulnerabilities<\/em><\/strong> that most organizations have in times of rapid or unexpected change \u2013 vulnerabilities that lead to performance deterioration under such stress. These need to be clearly identified and then these points of vulnerability need to be strengthened to prevent future unpleasant surprises and performance decline.<\/p>\n

The business model must be pliable or flexible and it needs to contain an element we refer to as \u2018renewal<\/em><\/strong>\u2019 which keeps the business model evolving<\/em><\/strong> \u2013 re-energizing itself over time to always be in alignment with the operating environment and withstand any of the dynamics of that operating environment that could threaten the organization\u2019s competitive performance.<\/p>\n

Social Innovation and Societal Well-Being<\/h2>\n

Any organization that soft pedals these issues is not acting responsibly \u2013 period. Every organization, no matter how large or how small should have in its strategic plans some elements related to answering the questions: \u2018What are we doing or what should we be doing to bring about social innovation and improve the social well-being of at least the communities in which we do business?\u2019 To do any less, as stated above, in our opinion would be to shirk your responsibility as an organization \u2013 an entity which is a vital part of that social setting in one or more communities.<\/p>\n

Yet, over time it seems to us that these issues have lost their \u2018steam\u2019 so to speak \u2013 they have just become something else which organizations guess they should do something about \u2013 whether they choose to or not or whether what they do is, in fact, of value. Some just throw money at it, never knowing if the money is being utilized properly or whether the actions taken as a result of that money spent are having any impact \u2013 there is no audit trail to follow and even if there is many aren\u2019t inclined to waste their valuable time following it. There is little accountability for achieving the best outcomes for society in the system.<\/p>\n

What is required, we believe, is to bring a whole new level of creativity and energy to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). In effect, we are saying it is high time to re-invent CSR. This new generation of CSR will also greatly enhance the brand strength and overall image or reputation of the organization and hence its competitiveness.<\/p>\n

Social issues aren\u2019t going away \u2013 they are growing. Your workforce is usually much more sensitive to these issues than you as senior executives. Many times your people wonder why you are doing little or nothing to help when there is such as great need and they themselves would be willing to make the necessary sacrifices of time, talent and creativity to help. They wonder if you are really the role models you should be \u2013 leading by example. This just chips away at the motivation, level of commitment, passion and the energy your people have to give their best consistently to help your organization be as competitive as possible. We say, don\u2019t take the risk \u2013 step up and do the right thing. As Peter Drucker has said, true leadership has always been more about \u2018doing the right things\u2019 than about \u2018doing things right\u2019.<\/p>\n

Human Performance Excellence and Generational Changes in the Workforce<\/h2>\n

If you read Dr. Marra\u2019s recent whitepaper on \u2018The Age of the Tool to Human Performance Excellence\u2019 which looks at the past 5000 years, you see that it has not really been until the past 35 years that some glimmer of hope in the way employees are valued and invested in has changed.\u00a0 Before that they were viewed simply as a tool to get a job done.<\/p>\n

Yet, even today in many organizations around the world we find organization after organization that is over-managed and under-led. Organizations where the \u20183C\u2019s\u2019 of management are still firmly implanted as the prevailing mindset of the senior executives. The \u20183C\u2019s\u2019 being command, control and coordinate. Basically, as management I\u2019m going to tell you what to do, when to do it, how to do it and who to do it with and all we want from you is for you to nod your head yes and get your feet moving!<\/p>\n

Clearly such practices which focus on obedience, diligence and expertise \u2013 the latter when reached being considered the route to greater efficiency and reduction of errors and rework, but still never breaking through to the next level we call human performance excellence<\/em><\/strong> where employees are allowed to take initiative with no fear of making mistakes because we all learn from mistakes; they are free to do what is in the best interest of the organization or the customer \u2013 they are empowered and lastly they are passionate \u2013 juiced up and energised about being the best they can be and helping the organization reach its full potential for success or competitiveness.<\/p>\n

On top of this, of course, we have the almost (in some organizations) gut wrenching impact of the generational changes in the workforce. Daily we see articles regarding the millennials and how their whole perspective on work and life style are so significantly different than previous generations. What they look for or want from an employer are not the same as those generations which have come before and many, many employers struggle to find out what that is and how to address it. Then, of course, there are the Type X and many other generations coming along behind as well each of which has their unique profile and unique requirements from an employer as well as from life in general compared to others. Diversity is a great thing \u2013 it used to be simple \u2013 men and women. Then we added cultural differences. Now we are adding generational differences. Yet if we as an organization wish to inspire all the generations, to make them the best they can be, to release their full energy and creativity to contribute and help their organization maintain its competitiveness \u2013 to be as successful as possible, organizations had better move quickly to figure it out or they will see their performance decline, not improve.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: The Natural Evolution of Things is an in-depth is a 5-part series that describes 13 the catalysts of Organizational Change and Competitiveness, based on the theme of Michael Porter\u2019s Five\u00a0Forces. To read the full series, take a look at the\u00a0author\u2019s profile page found here. * * * * Continued from part 1… So… The Natural Evolution of Things (Part 2)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":3187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[85,81],"tags":[4,603,216],"class_list":["post-3186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-organization","category-strategy","tag-business-model","tag-organizational-change","tag-porters-five-forces"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/100"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3186"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3188,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3186\/revisions\/3188"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}