We all know that change is constant. And we know that change can be addressed at many levels: continuous, discontinuous, transformational.

Any change response that can be self-created after the change expert has left the building can be considered generative change and is more useful (and less costly) than always hiring a consultant.

Those of us who have lived continuous change experiences have discovered that their downside is that everything begins to look like a problem! Over time, we begin to sink under the accumulating weight of anticipating where, when and how the next problem will surface.

Discontinuous change processes (like re-engineering) have proven to be cumbersome and costly, with ROIs rapidly diminishing with each replication. This is partly because the causal events that drive the need for discontinuous change tend to come from outside the system needing change. It is also partly because the processes involved stem from a Newtonian assumption that large, complicated problems require large, complicated solutions. Large and complicated do not lend themselves to self-replication, therefore, generativity is difficult to achieve.

Transformational Change has become the organizational holy grail being sought by increasing numbers of corporations. Much is promised. Far less has typically been delivered.

If questions are more powerful than answers, consider the following:

• To what extent is your willingness to change as an individual related to how much change your organization can achieve?
• Who needs to drive change? Is all influence downward…or can it occur laterally and upwards?
• How contagious is each of us as a thought virus for change?
• If there are perspectives out there that I don’t even know exist, how can I discover and explore them?
• Do my questions assume answers or are they designed for exploration and discovery?

Most organizations know that marketplace performance is directly related to customer and employee satisfaction, and that the quality of our relationships is a key driver of satisfaction.

• How do we recover lost ground?
• How do we move ourselves and our employees from fear responses (protection) to sustained growth?
• How do we invite the creativity we know is inherent in our employees?
• Who are we as organizational leaders?
• To what extent are our actions aligned with our value statements?
• What is it that we are communicating to our employees and customers?