With shifting social and economic cycles, things happen unexpectedly that can help or hurt an organization. I’ve talked in the past about “facing the elevator door,” as a way of thinking about opportunity and change. You need to prepare yourself to seize an opportunity (the elevator door opening) regardless of where your organization may be in its lifecycle or in implementing its strategic plan.
As a leader you need to be out front, thinking ahead of the game. By staying attuned to the broader forces that can impact your organization, you’ll be ready to move when the momentum shifts, the door closes, and the elevator changes direction.
Gary Burnison, the CEO at organizational consulting firm Korn Ferry, has a weekly newsletter that I follow, called Special Edition. In a recent issue he made several points that address opportunity and change.
When it comes to seeing what’s next, Burnison advises that you should “anticipate a future grounded in today’s reality.” As he notes, the more clearly you perceive the here and now, the better you can project what might be around the next bend.
And how can we manage change? “Navigate in the moment,” is Burnison’s catchphrase. “Course-correct in real time,” he continues. Then he makes a point that I think is essential, a willingness to change plans that aren’t working: “Sometimes a decision is a good decision — until it’s no longer a good decision,” he writes.
I’m on the same page with Burnison. After all, change is the medium of opportunity!
You can subscribe to Burnison’s newsletter here:
https://www.kornferry.com/subscribe/special-editions
- Do you have a process in place to identify developments that could impact your nonprofit?
- How do you manage the changes already taking place?