getting stuck in quicksand its kust luke

Kodak executives couldn’t recognize the significance of their changing context because they were blinded by their assumptions about the business. People unfamiliar with the company’s history are surprised to learn that The Eastman Kodak company held the first patent for digital cameras. In 1975, it was a Kodak engineer who invented the digital camera. It would be tempting to conclude that the company failed to notice the emergence of digital photography. In 1976, Kodak had an 80% market share in camera sales and a 90% market share in film and film processing. HR leaders would be well-served by keeping these generational shifts in mind as they develop new talent strategies.Īs you think about transforming the business, how will you keep an eye out for changing environmental factors that might become sources of both opportunities and threats? Challenge out-of-date ASSUMPTIONSĪfter decades of decline, the Eastman Kodak company filed for bankruptcy in 2012. Millennial and Gen Z workers are less interested in staying put and moving up the corporate ladder to fill the vacancies. If it’s outside your control and could have an influence on the success of your transformation efforts, it’s worth your attention.Ĭonsider, for example, the potent combination of social trends and demographics.

Still, you may want to give some thought to contextual factors closer to your organization’s operating environment. Given the relentless headlines about the lingering impacts of the pandemic, disruptive technological innovation, and deteriorating trust in institutions and governments, context has become hard to ignore. The best laid plans are still subject to unpredictable and uncontrollable conditions. In the same way that weather matters to the success of an outdoor wedding, an organization’s business context matters to a change effort. Leaders imagine that clear goals and a well-designed plan will create the reality they envision. On paper organizational transformation provides an illusion of control. If you don’t want orders backing up, don’t answer the phone.īefore initiating an organizational transformation, spend some time identifying systems, habits, and routines which will preserve status quo priorities and behaviors. If too many orders came in, things backed up in the kitchen, and the managers’ bonuses suffered. The point-of-sale system tracked how long it took from an order being placed until the order was plated or packaged. The managers received bonuses for getting food out quickly. We discovered that restaurant managers were instructing their team members to ignore the phone if the restaurant was getting overwhelmed with orders. Because the company did a lot of delivery and take-out business, the main customer interactions occurred during the phone call to place an order (this was in the 1990s, before online ordering).Īfter the training programs and updated processes failed to improve service ratings, we decided to investigate. I worked for a restaurant chain that was looking to improve its customer service. Keep an eye out for entrenched STRUCTURES To remember the four forces, we use the acronym SCAN, which stands for Structures, Context, Assumptions, and Needs. By paying attention to four hidden forces of organizational transformation You can, however, improve your chances of a successful journey. It is unrealistic and possibly counterproductive to expect smooth sailing if the goal is to undergo a transformation. While organizational transformation is less perilous, it can feel just as daunting. Some of their encounters along the way were fortuitous, others were fatal. Odysseus and his crew spent ten years at sea. Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey, tells the story of Odysseus’ journey home after the fall of Troy.

Getting stuck in quicksand its kust luke