Be the change you so desperately seek!

[Gerry]

Be the change you so desperately seek!

I love the idea of this quote, attributed to the wise man Mahatma Gandhi this simple quote is profound because it strikes right at the heart of human behavior.   In every part of our lives, there is change, and most of it is outside of our control; change happens, and we must adapt. 

So why is it so many people shy away from change, what is it about change that people don't like?  

The most common idea I have heard is that people fear change, they fear the unknown and are happier doing what they are currently doing, just like that saying I have heard so many times "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", and that seems like a rational philosophy on the face of it.   The problem is though; change is essential because change is the mechanism of evolution, the only way you can make something better is to change it; otherwise it will always remain the same, and innovation is born out of the idea that nothing is perfect, it can always be better. 

In the world of IT, the world is changing fast, and we do not have time to procrastinate.  Organisations need to not only keep up, but they need to step up and embrace the changes before them.  Digital transformation is a real thing and its happening now, and the most significant barrier to moving forward is the fear of change.  Technology and consumer engagement is driving these changes. This environment is not a problem for IT as its often seen, it is making IT in business is a more powerful force now than it has been for the last decade or more.  

Digital Transformation is what the market has labeled it, and it is probably the best opportunity for "IT" since the idea of "IT" was conceived.  Digital Transformation sounds big, but there is nothing fancy or clever here, figure out ways of applying technology to give your organization cost savings, a meaningful competitive advantage or a stronger future vision to help attract new customers, if you can achieve all three then expect a place at the strategic table.

Don't let your executive outsource IT to the cloud because cloud companies are more innovative or offer more hope for the future, stand up and lead your organization into their next IT revolution. Your executives want to be innovators, future seekers, and visionaries, so if you're working in IT, grow some leadership b***s show them how. 

The bottom line is this.  Don't just complain about something not working or moan that something should change, make the change happen, do whatever you can in your power to entice, encourage, coerce or act to drive change, make change happen.  If you genuinely feel something needs to change and you cannot effect change, try really hard, and if you fail that's fine, walk away defeated, but knowing you have done everything in your power to do the right thing by your organization, and go and find somewhere else where you can actually make a difference. The harsh reality is, not every organization will survive the speed of change. 

Everyone can effect change, don't give up, be the change you so desperately seek!

[Dan Munns]

This. +100

[Gerry]

@Dan Munns

Thanks for the feedback  I can see from the work you are doing over there you get this 100%, I just want more IT people to see the opportunity before them.

Gerry

[Dan Munns]

@Gerry I do get it, I just wish it was the case that everyone did. 

The amount of push back I can get for the simplest of things can be a little off putting and makes pushing forward that little bit harder but once the worth of the changes are proven then it all makes it worthwhile. 

I also find that some of the hardest people to convince are the very people who will benefit from the changes and mostly are IT teams.

Outside IT seems to be the opposite and certainly once it has been proven in a couple of instances it suddenly becomes easy and everyone wants to do it. Most of the non IT adopters came to me with 'I saw the portal and wondered if we could do x' or 'I heard that Y team is going to move to SM, could we move Z process there as well?' I suppose that as they have no prior knowledge of ITSM software, as long as I can surpass whatever they are using at the moment they are happy. And using SM I tend to be able to give them options they haven't even thought of.

Hence why we now have 11 non IT teams across 6 departments either completed or currently on boarding with our SM instance (hopefully with +1 team and PM to follow). Compared with the 5 IT teams we started with 18 months ago our instance has come on leaps and bounds (21 teams total)

 

[Gerry]

@Dan Munns

I would not underestimate the importance of leadership here.  The thing most people don't understand about leadership is you do not have to be an appointed leader to lead, most people have a lot more power to effect change than they realize, but most people do not naturally stand up and put yourself out there.  I am delighted to see what you have been doing, you demonstrate exactly what is possible, people really just need to be shown the way, and that means helping them to be better, to do better. You appear to do that quite naturally which must give you a hell of a lot of job satisfaction.  Beats resetting printer queues and freeing up space in peoples mailboxes all day don't you think

Would you say that by helping those other departments/teams improve the way you work has helped your success personally? Do you feel like you have done more for your organization as a result of being able to help them? and do you think your organization has recognized you for the work you have done?

I sincerely hope then answer to at least some of those questions is yes, you have clearly done some good stuff there and you deserve to be recognized for it. 

Gerry