How to turn on a dime, make a change
THE ability to make changes,
even fundamental transformations,
quickly and effectively
is a vital survival skill in the
business jungle.
As Behnam N. Tabrizi,
the author of “Rapid Transformation?
observes, “The
organizations that can most
quickly respond to the marketplace,
particularly those
that adapt faster than their
competitors, are the ones that
make it to the top.?
The miraculous survival of
Apple Computer, Inc in the
1997 crisis illustrates.
That year, when Apple
cofounder Steve Jobs, who
was thrown out of the company
in 1985, returned to the
company, Apple was on the
brink of bankruptcy.
No sooner had Jobs regained
de facto control than
he undertook a fundamental
transformation.
He reduced research and
development divisions from
50 to 10. He shifted direction
and reoriented the company
towards the rapidly developing
home computer market
instead of the business computer
market. He launched
iMac, the home computer that
became highly successful.
The structural changes were
carried out within several
months and, with a series of
other marketing strategies and
innovative campaigns, Apple
was brought back on track.
Apple’s revival, as Tabrizi
sees it, lies in its “all-encompassing,
fast, integrative?
transformation.
By cit ing real-world
examples from other
companies, including Hewlett-
Packard, Nissan, and
VeriSign, he argues persuasively
for the importance of
rapid and successful business
transformation.
Despite the subtitle, “A
90-Day Plan for Fast and Effective
Change,?the author
doesn’t believe companies
can complete organizational
transformation within only
three months.
Rather, it offers a way for
companies to draw up a plan
for fast and effective transformational
change within 90
days. That’s not easy either.
Tabrizi emphasizes extensive
preparation before a
change.
The preparation phase, or
“pretransformation?period,
as Tabrizi calls it, usually
lasts for one to three months.
During this period, it is
important for leaders of the
change initiative to effectively
communicate the driving
need for change among all
employees, not just leaders at
high levels.
Tabrizi separates the 90-
day plan into three 30-day
stages: diagnosing needs,
envisioning the future, and
“paving the road?to change.
The third stage is likely
to be the most interesting to
organizations.
Having finished the first
two stages, defining organizational
needs and identifying
feasible solutions, it’s time
to plan how to announce its
transformation.
This is essential as the evaluation
of a company’s successful
transformation depends largely
on public acceptance.
A company’s earlier
troubles may have tainted its
image. So it’s a critical moment
to restore public faith.
The book may give the illusion
that managing a major
change of a company is not
as difficult as it has been
supposed. That’s obviously
untrue.
Yet it at least offers a helpful
alternative for leaders
who are guiding an organizational
change.
--Wu Jiayin |
