Accelerate! The Evolution of the 21st Century Organization

[@dcostello21]

.Like many men in our age John is concerned about change and the rate of change in our society. He takes all he has, his education and experience, and brings his insight into the new fray. It is not enough. He talks about what smart people do to cope with this in this environment. The field he is talking about is often called “Organizational Development”. Others call it “Orgware”. I can only bring my education and experience in Computing or Information Technology and Management Consulting.

[@DrJohnKotter]

Today, I posted a new idea about how to succeed in our rapidly changing world. Please take a look and let me know your thoughts.

[@ariclawrence5574]

I really like the organizational structure example. Seeing that visually really made it sink in. Thanks!

[@phenyomolefe4162]

Thank you Prof. for the great insights shared in short and effective points.

[@arjandebont8428]

John does what he does best: revealing natural phenomena that we come accross in our daily lives yet fail to consciously observe. Organisations are groups of people in the first place; our increased emphasis on 'mechanistic' thinking of organisations is what has had us drift off. John simply reminds us of the essence.

[@AprilKMills]

There's joy in finding something so powerful hidden in plain sight. Thank you for sharing this with the world. I'm excited to participate in taking that 0.001% and helping it grow. The world is finally getting to see this and now is the perfect time.

[@dezjean44]

A most interesting video. Questions/thoughts: 1- What are the key characteristics of employees, managers and leaders to be able to work effectively in both structures? 2- What are the culture characteristics of an organization operating in both structures? 3- You cannot invest 100% of time available in both structures. Something has to give. Engagement has its limits. This is a leadership challenge in order for these communicating vases to work and for organizations to survive and WIN!

[@dcostello21]

What is more, even technologist of world class reputation can no longer review, absorb and integrate. The key point is that the variety of solutions being presented is so large and the need to interface with other systems and data bases and algorithms or processes is likewise so large that it can’t be done. What’s more, even if somehow you can plan, develop and change almost instantaneously when you finish there is a new wrinkle that comes into the environment that defeats you.

[@RolandSullivanMSOD]

I must make a video to respond. Loved the artwork. Loved the notion of the creative and innovative-networked organization. I laughed so hard when John said that it did not need to be that way. And then I yelled out NOW.... seconds before he did. I agree with Dr. K. 1000%. What he says is confirming for me because it does not need to be that way.

[@RussellRaath]

All true - and it requires leadership to make the "unknown" or the "new" less frightening! Love the "encourage a bit of risk" comment.

[@carysherburne5194]

Having spent a lot of time trolling around Xerox PARC back in the day (I was with Xerox but in a different group), I saw what you described happen in real time ... the hierarchical organization couldn't tolerate the entrepreneurial one and ultimately drove it into the ground. It's a cautionary tale, and the number of companies that were either spun out or escaped from Xerox as a result is startling. Fumbling the Future and In Search of Stupidity are two older books that document this phenomenon. I wholeheartedly agree with your proposition that you need both, and they must work together in harmony.

[@agileblacksmithmanfredmeye8912]

In Culture Change 4.0, the otto group came up with Dr. John Kotter implemented. It was a change that has been going on for 5 years now.

[@dr.samuelalexander2655]

These are trendsetting ideas. Great information!

[@AndreaMariaMara]

John, challenging is: 1. which parameters influence the tipping point from "systems work well" to network dies? I assume: definition of success & security, awareness of control reflex, size/ ratio, energy & connectedness. As long short term & benefitmaximizing are decisive, systems are burning/ hierarchying out. As long security, fear & control dominate, entrepreneurial spirit lose resonance and the focus will be on adding strategic pieces, less on confidence in people & risky creations.

[@TemaFrank]

Great video. I agree that we need to find ways to make companies more agile; big bureaucracy is failing fast. I'm inspired by companies like Semco and Whole Foods, which have gone to a zero hierarchy model, though there's no question that is still extremely rare, and convincing existing bureaucracies to change will be exceedingly difficult. That said, I'll need to read a lot more of Kotter's work to try to see how what he's proposing -- this blend of hierarchy and flexibility - can actually work.

[@sabahuddinsokout5417]

Dear Prof. Kotter. As-always an excellent idea on Change. I really like your thoughts as it adds much to our knowledge. The only question I would like to ask you is about the FACE of CHANGE on how to be shown to other people, when we act as a leader in an organization? Our environment is changing so fast and how can we adopt to those changes and adapt it to our own environment.

[@RolandWienen]

Really amazing! Exactly what I believe on: Companies that manage to remain permanently agile, will be the winners.

[@AndreaMariaMara]

2. What are the limits in size? 3. What is the energy level? which "energy forms" are best for each, hierarchy & network to co-exist and co-create? All these factors are extremely human-related! How works "playing around with crazy ideas, talking to customers, doing things with alloys..." if people have lost the capability to play, be crazy, to listen, to build trust? if people have lost access to the root of these capabilities, to their kernel? if people are burnt out?

[@michaelwagener1411]

I feel like Ricardo Semler would definitely approve... (Seven Day Weekend & Maverick)

[@petervanrheenen8441]

It is an interesting video. What I would like to discover is the way an organization can handle the different cultures within the organization. The characteristics and core values of somebody working for the process-departments differ from the creative departments. Or in other words process management/optimalisation vs project management and creativity. Mr Kotter, maybe you can develop a talk about your vision on these cultural differences. It would be interesting to know.

[@mcbfernandes]

Excelent. I am very suspect as a fan of John Kotter work. My first contact was Sense of Urgency book and got amazed as I figured out what has been happening in the organization wher I have been working for the las 20 years and realized we were not alone in the universe of corporations.

[@jona457]

Good info.

[@dcostello21]

The good, consultant today doesn’t ever say that they have the solution or a set of solutions that will work for you. The good consultant wakes up every morning and takes two humility pills and like a physician says God help me to “Do No Harm”.Once a year that consultant reads or sees Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and maybe even rewrites the lines so that Willy Loman and his family can better deal with the Future Shock that is knocking all of us to the mat.

[@RussellRaath]

The pull back to the established hierarchy is very powerful and you're right in that this is one of the key questions. From my experience, it is probably one of the largest derailers. Overcoming it involves leadership not thinking of it as a threat to their turf/strategy/etc., but as a compliment to it. And then resetting established organizational norms like appointing the usual suspects who get to be a part of the new dynamic organization, etc. Constantly challenge norms and assumptions.

[@rajeevshrivastava4488]

Great video!

[@herms7]

I saw in this video the traditional, hierarchical org structure and the flat network of cross-functional teams.There is a big push today for the "Facebook/Twitter for the Enterprise". However you can't just chuck a new app in the mix and see it happen. There must be the drive from all parts of the organisation to make it happen. Fears need to be addressed; people need encouragement to participate; rewards, incentives. Encourage a bit of risk!

[@Success7106]

Very interesting and logical presentation (I will be waiting for the book release). Growing an organization from the center definitely makes sense.

[@RolandSullivanMSOD]

Note my model on my Linkined profile page where Agile is the core word in my blue Accelerate Organization Change Model. My client, Airbus, is using my model. The ITC function this year will have “FAST and Urgent” as the theme in their annual large group interactive event Summit. As I wrote Kotter yesterday, I sent them twenty five links to his videos.

[@mortenlind1]

Hi John. Excellent. Keeping the rigid organization and the "entreprenurial system" in "a very solid way" sounds difficult. Any examples of how that is done in practice.

[@momadeamade2841]

I t makes sense what John says. The problem is to believe that it works putting together the two types of organization. Why others failed? How to be successful?

[@charlesspeidel8676]

very interesting as we are experience and a small execution on this approach @ Sony in the US with a few colleagues...

[@ognyanv]

Great,as everything delivered by Mr. Kotter! Just my two (euro)cents - the leverage point seems to be the top management ability to develop "positive schizophrenia" of maintaining both systems in a parallel, non-contradictory way. So it is up to the boss. Sounds familiar - doesn't it?

[@donidsiswanto]

Great!!! Deep thoughts

[@arjunbalakrishnan1515]

Large Corporations are inherently complex. Complexity is inversely proportional to Simplicity, Agility and Reliability. Dr. Kotter's pathbreaking work offers a way to realize the trade-offs in an optimal fashion. It is intellectually powerful enough to bring about the soul / spirit of a small enterprise (Ref: H. Schumacher) and the ability to make Elephants Dance (Ref: Lou Gerstner). The challenge as always will lie in bringing about such paradigm shifts, which is in the realm of leadership. ab

[@dcostello21]

He ends with a sales pitch for a systems approach through a firm that he says can lead us. I am skeptical.I am skeptical because even the most informed organizations I have dealt with are burdened with executives that at best can talk about technology but have almost zero experience in developing technology. A few believe that they have the ability vicariously to absorb others experiences so that they really know what is going on. My experience is that they can’t.

[@mercedesbiehl4172]

Great Vidéo. Great man.

[@VladimirKuryakov]

Very interesting post from prof. Kotter, thank you for sharing. If you need my output, I would like to be very specific and brief: The greatest invention should be an organization with people working towards a common goal. Because organization can achieve results that are far beyond anything from individuals and the sum efforts of them. Of course people are expected to be the right ones the same as the goal. The peace of change in business is increasing faster than ever providing the great challenge that could result in success or another. The main problem is to build high effective and efficient organization i.e. “best-in-the-class”. Can organization have both structures presented by prof. Kotter? Yes, it can, but should be managed in different way for existing structure (satisfying existing demand for present customers) and new structure (expected to satisfy new demands, some of them could be even unknown to customers). For varied environment (predictable markets and future) best fit is functional configuration with goal for efficiency and Defender strategic type. For local stormy environment (few factors to monitor on the relatively predictable markets) best fit is divisional configuration with effectiveness goal and Prospector strategic type. For each of mentioned configuration the appropriate leadership style, task design, organizational climate, informational systems, incentives, knowledge exchange system types, etc are developed and misfits could be managed separately. Best regards, Vova

[@ruubieedmund1857]

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[@dcostello21]

Read what follows in reverse order

[@busbyassociates6687]

address the DNA of intra-organizational complexity as well as change phenomenon. Failure to address complexities or align human behaviors with processes, procedures, and effective methodology leads to statistical data cited in your video. An inquisitive nature compels a personal exploration of accelerated strategy.com. Do proposed strategies align with adaptable winning resolutions or tool kit solutions?

[@grcarini]

Far too simplistic - nothing compelling about the panacea that John has proposed. Metric: .001% successful. Again, not compelling. Connecting the same, old dots.