Thinking Harder: Being Smart About Transformation

Project Managers who have been involved in organizational change initiatives may realize some of the deficiencies of the traditional approach to change in the fast pacing and evolving business environment of the 21^st century. Changes are difficult, slow, uncertain, and often regress to the initial state or remain only on paper.

Duncan Bury and Jane Buick are directors of the Edinburgh consulting firm Miascape that helps organizations get through change. Observing that “most change initiatives failed to deliver what was expected”, five years ago they set out on a mission to find out why. 

Their book “Thinking Harder” is the result of the authors’ socio-anthropological observations and presents their bespoke approach to transformation. The central theme of the book is that transformation in an organization occurs not when you change behavior but when thinking transforms. The book reveals the limitations posed by mental models and the importance of individual context that dictates everyone’s reaction to transformation. The Authors explain psychology of transformation process and its four phases: reaction to the change; reframing of strategies to deal with change, alignment to the new circumstances, and finally the embedding of the new models.

The book challenges several dogmas in the traditional business management theory. People do not resist change; they just react to it. Emotions that traditional management and leadership styles regard as a weakness are in fact very important and vital for the success of every endeavor. There is no such thing as a “right” or “wrong” reaction. Inputs from “negative” people can be extremely valuable as they are full of passion and their reactions are usually based on past experience. Language is elusive and words have different meanings to different people. It is not enough that management just “tell” people what to do.

‘Think harder’ is not an easy call. Most of us involved in transformation projects are probably convinced we think hard enough already. Is there a sense to put yet more efforts in? The book answers to this question explaining what means to think at a deeper level as opposed to today’s culture of “quick-fire decision-making”. The authors’ approach to transformation does not promise to be easy, it takes effort to adapt and apply. But, on the other hand, doing the right things and doing them right is much more productive and frees up time - “the best leaders we know come across as having all the time in the world”.

“Thinking Harder” is a book written with a sense of humor and in an easy to read style. It is based of real-life stories and examples from authors’ own experience. The book will be very useful for people leading transformation initiatives. It suggests new ways of doing things and is easy and fun to read.

-- Reviewed by  Stanislav (Stan) Yanakiev, PMP

ABOUT THE REVIEWER: Stanislav (Stan) Yanakiev, PMP, has around 9 years of IT project management experience in software and business transformation projects. He is a member of PMI Bulgaria Chapter and founder of the software company Semanit.

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