Sustaining Change - Winning Hearts; Owning Minds

Please enjoy the thoughts and musings of our friend, supporter, and long-time contributor Art van Bodegraven Jr., who passed away on June 18, 2017. Art was a prolific writer and had amassed a collection of unpublished blog posts he had planned to run well into the future. To honor his memory, we will continue to post these remaining blogs as he had intended. If you’ve been a fan of The Art of Art blog, check out our tribute.

 

There's contemporary interest in the subject.  But, we learned in Viet Nam that, if one wins the heart, the mind will follow.  Actually, despite current research, Mark Bonchek reminded us in 2014 in the HBR that the seminal insights came from Ignaz Semmelweiss in the 1840's.

In summary, it's not new ideas we need; we have a surplus of those.  And, simply more explanation is more of a turn-off than a turn-on.

Somwhow, we need to develop new thinking - the ability to build mental models that help us see how to leverage the tools that others take such pride in developing.  But, to be direct, I am sick to death of solutions wandering the halls of SCM in search of problems - all generating pleas for greater understanding, more open minds, increased study (and enhanced intelligence) to realize the full benefits of the latest breakthroughs.

Never mind that the core business model is flawed beyond saving, but will be pursued relentlessly based on the singular focus of the originator.

Not that this is easy, even on a good day.  And, there are multiple perspectives to be fleshed out.  The mental adoption we require is to consider where we are now - tools, outcomes, resource requirements.  Then, if we are inclined to become believers, we must, with clear eyes and criticality, make the same assessment for the future.  What will we be able to do?  How will results change? Why?  Is there a next level after the initial whack at a future view?

All this is more or less academic without the final phase.  But, there must be a transition period (and plan) to get from the present to the future - and to consider what lies beyond.

So, to summarize, the critical first step is to identify the shift in thinking required, then ifentify and create remedies for sticking points that will make acceptance and adoption feasible.  Then comes the pick-and-shovel work of building constructs for changes in state and transition.

Beats jaw-boning and commands from abstract, distant leadership . . .