Managing change can be frustrating – especially for technology folks. Why don't “users” see the obvious advantages of the new solution we're proposing? Why can't they come out and say what's really freaking them out about change, rather than trying to poke holes in our proposals? And so on.
I don't believe people are scared of the future. I think people are, by and large, optimistic and oriented toward improvement. But I think we are – all of us – defined by our current context. The “as-is” is us. When we are confronted by a proposed future that takes no notice of our context, we instinctively reject it. It seems alien. The “not invented here syndrome” means “we are not a part of this”. We can't break with our past – but we can develop from the present. Our present.
Change, therefore, must be presented as continuation. Evolution not revolution. There are no greenfield sites, no blank sheets. Whenever we seek to act, we are actually joining the action. Organizations in every field are turning to standards, architectures, and components. Some are more advanced than others. But the change process, if it is successful, rarely rests on a business case. Or a heroic, against-all-odds leader. Or a sudden burst of revolutionary spirit. The key to succeeding is rather this simple truth: What we are proposing is what you already do.
You already avoid doing the same piece of work more than once. You already make agreements about what business items mean, how they are to be presented, where they are to be kept, who gets sight of them. You already interact with other parties who have different ways of doing things. You already seek to identify and replicate best practice.
You are already smart. Standards, architectures, components – these are smart in the same way. They're not fundamentally different to what you already know. They're just better. Tech President
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