Rarely, however, do we see discussions of change capacity.
Change capacity is the ability of an organization to absorb change. Companies that have a high change capacity have typically earned that ability by going through many change initiatives. There is a certain point at which any organization has reached its limit and staff will declare "enough!" This limit is the change capacity of the organization.
While some organizations cannot absorb even one minor change in a year, others can easily absorb three, four or more of varying degrees of severity.
What are the factors that lead to increased change capacity?
1) Organizational "fitness". Ability to change is an ability that, like long distance running, is gained only by doing it. Organizations that are constantly improving and asking tough questions are those that are likely to be able to easily absorb change.
2) Leadership ability. Change capacity is driven by the organization's leaders. Their ability to conceive of change (vision) and to communicate it effectively (best to communicate via metaphor or story), develop a reasonable implementation plan with all resources accounted for and finally the persistence to keep on communicating, reinforcing, measuring, adjusting and correcting as the process ensues.
3) Organizational culture. A culture that easily absorbs change is one that is used to thinking in the big picture, is aligned with organizational objectives and strategies and is comfortable with the threats and benefits of a rigorous measurement system. A culture of measurement is one which is clearly focused on its outcomes and which typically rewards teams for achieving targets and milestones.
The message is that organizations that do not currently have a high change quotient, need to start small, gain easy wins, and build up change capacity over time. Just like a long distance runner does not begin their training by running a marathon on the first day, organizations need to start slowly and build competence over time. The returns on this investment will compound as the organization becomes change-friendly.
