Mommy, They're Movin' My Cheese Again!

Dr. Gabriel Weisskopf, CEO of Softair AG, has wryly observed  "change is inevitable - except from a vending machine."  And, so it is, which brought Spencer Johnson's 1998 mini-classic Who Moved My Cheese? to mind.

The little book has been much abused, sometimes being handed out during periods of turmoil as a managerial way of saying, "Get over it, and get back to work."  Difficulty in dealing with change is not confined to a rabble of knuckle-dragging mouth-breathers, though.  It afflicts us all in some degree, no matter how enlightened we may think we are.

And, it's not a challenge confined to individuals.  Organizations - and their operating relationships - struggle with change.  Wheteher we are inclined to be reactors or proactors, continuous change stresses our capablilities and the quality of our business relationships.

Weisskopf maintains that we collectively live on a planet called Comfort Zone.  I'll add that the planet is ringed with the Moons of Denial.  Nevertheless, change is a constant in our business lives, and winners will be facing change and taking action.  But, it's not as easy as a motivational book might lead you to believe.

By the way, it's perfectly okay to challenge the premises of change, as long as the challenge is healthy and not a smokescreen for the warm fuzzy option of inaction.  At the end of the day, though, management by hope is not a workable strategy in a universe of change, especially when tightly linked supply chain performance is at stake.