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Leading the Organization into Change Organizations, like all living things, grow and mature over time. Successful organizations recognize this and plan for orderly transitions. These parallel human growth phases:
Transition Planning Consider these critical areas as you make your plans: Organization structure: What form does the company need to have? Assess the legal format, management and information systems, and how they all flow together. Human Resources: What skills and abilities do you need for the future? How will you get them? How will jobs and tasks change? What do you need to do to keep the best and attract more? Market: Who will you be selling to and how will you reach them? What add-on products or services do you envision? What direction is the market taking, and can the company follow? Financial Resources: How much money will the transition cost? Where will it come from? Don't forget hidden costs like new employee training, equipment installation, moving, new regulatory requirements, etc. Regulations: Will the company be subject to new government regulations as it grows? At what point do you need to add safety committees, conform to ADA regulation, add new agencies to your reporting? How much will it cost? Who will do it? These are the major categories of transition planning. They have to be done together because each affects the other. If you spend all your time on one without bothering with the others, you can create a very lopsided picture. Your business will change. Markets will shift. Competition will appear. New technologies will affect everyone. How well you understand this and make it work for you will determine how well you make the transitions. |