Today I was reflecting on a chapter in “The Flawless Consulting field-book” around what are good paradigms to have when engaging in organisational transformations.

Here are my core beliefs:

  • When people get heard and understood they become more engaged.
  • For collaboration to occur, people need to really connect beyond the pure “task at hand”.
  • Democracy and consensus bring better results, even if they may seem slow at first.
  • Engaging a cross section of “the system” brings tremendous value in terms of perspectives and the energy that can be unleashed.
  • Bringing the whole system to the planning process makes it more likely to succeed and be a sustainable change.
  • Faster is better than slower. Try something out and see what happens (and share the learning, even if it goes well).
  • People are more knowledgeable and smarter than senior leaders often assume. Tap in to the whole workforce.
  • Don’t go with start small and get bigger. Go medium and engage the rest.
  • Velocity in transformation is crucial.
  • Communication is key and get a cross section of the system to figure out the best way (rather than comms or HR).
  • Organisations often do not wish to take risks, so fast “baby steps’ are a good idea.

What do you think of these? What do you have as your assumptions?

[Image credit: Meeting by Yosomono]