Making Change Stick: Twelve Principles for Transforming Organizations

Making Change Stick: Twelve Principles for Transforming Organizations, Richard C. Reale, Positive Impact Associates, 2005

It is easy for the head of any company, large or small, to decree Change Is Necessary. It is much harder to actually do it, and make it stick, from top to bottom. This book, written for executives, is meant to make that process of change not so difficult.

The first principle is to know where you are going. Dust off your company's mission statement and start putting it into practice (if your company does not have a mission statement, why not?). Do not be afraid to challenge your thinking. Just because the executive suite has successfully "changed," do not assume that all parts of the company will be as successful. There is no such thing as too much internal communication about the change. Silence from the top will invariably be filled with rumor and innuendo from the bottom, usually negative.

Take a hard look at your company culture. If you are a strict, by-the-book company, any change may have a hard time being implemented. Perhaps cultural alterations should come first. Some people will have a real problem accepting change, not just because they like the present system, but they will treat it like a funeral, mourning the "death" of the old system. Even partial improvement toward the company goal is better than nothing, so do not fixate on 100% improvement. Be honest when it comes to measuring progress toward the goal, because numbers can be fudged in any direction. When people are caught doing something right, be sure to reward them.

This is a much-needed book for executives of any size company. The chapters are short, in keeping with short executive attention spans, it is mercifully light on the buzzwords, and even non-business people can get it. It is very much worth the time.