All too often, corporate change initiatives fall short of expectations or fail outright.
- Everyone is convinced of a bright future-state with an upcoming sales force transition. Rep selection and on-boarding have ensured the organization top talent. But as time marches on, results prove to be sub-optimal and tension has emerged among regional manager ranks.
- The chief executive and his staff carefully develop a new vision and ideals for the company with the goal of increasing market share. This vision is communicated to all employees at every level. New corporate slogans are advertised to existing clients and to the general public. A kick-off celebration officially sees these new ideals implemented at the beginning of the fiscal year. Six months later the CEO learns that not only is market share slipping but there is no turnaround in sight.
What is it that causes a seemingly well-planned project to break down?
The two scenarios described above are all too common at organizations that assume new technology, new people, or new ideas are equivalent to new culture. One of the primary reasons change initiatives fail is because the organization doesn’t properly recognize them as such. People persist in conforming to old norms – the old culture.
Culture is embodied by the invisible guideposts that tell people how to behave. It expresses the shared set of values, norms, and perspectives that draw members of the organization together into a tight-knit, smoothly operating team dedicated to common purposes. Culture pre-disposes the behavior of an organization’s employees.
Stay tuned for upcoming blog articles where we’ll discuss the change drivers necessary to lay the foundation to create changes in behavior within sales organizations and organizations like your own.
