Meredith Bennett-Smith writing for Quartz:

On the flip side, there are plenty of reasons to embrace grumpiness for grumpiness’s sake. Indeed, research suggests that while positivity may make us more productive, irritation and cynicism have plenty of benefits as well.

Amen.

Claire Lew:

Empowerment means you’re transferring power to someone else. You think someone else needs you — your permission, your influence, your talents — to do something. And I don’t ever believe that’s the case.

A counterpoint to yesterday’s post. On reflection, I dislike the word ‘empowerment’ too and what it implies.

Brent Gleeson writing for Forbes:

While I normally try to stay away from overused business buzz words, I do think that in today’s ever-changing and more complex business environment that giving a broader range of people more power to drive organizational change is tantamount to success. Inspiring the team is one thing, but physically and psychologically giving them more autonomy to participate in the transformation process is critical.

I couldn’t agree more. I would argue that engaging people has always been crucial to the success of organisational change. As the old adage says: people support what they help to create.

Chris Corrigan:

A culture is emergent and is the result of millions of interactions, behaviours, artifacts and stories that people build up over time. It is unpredictable and results in surprise. The idea that a “culture change initiative” can be rolled out from the top of an organization is not only a myth, it’s a hidden form of colonization. And worse, the idea that people need to be changed in the way the boss determines if we are to become the kind of place that we all aspire too is cruel and violent.

Some fantastic notes and practices from Chris. Essential reading for those of us working with groups and organizations to address ‘culture change’.

Patrick Hollingworth:

At its most abstract level, this contrarian approach to organisational transformation is about working from where you already are, rather than aiming for where you want to be. It is about working with what you’ve already got, rather than what you’d like to have. It is about quietly going-about an ongoing transformation with minimal energy expenditure, rather than loudly going-about a finite transformation with massive energy expenditure.

This is a great read. The contrarian approach to organisational transformation (or change) that Patrick outlines makes an awful lot of sense.

Via Kevin Bishop.