Change Is Coming…

New year. New people. New business dynamics. And new business results that will require you and your organization to make some changes in how you think and act in order to achieve them. Today, the ability to successfully enact strategic organizational change has become the single most important criterion for evaluating leadership competency. Knowing how to accelerate organizational change is the new “must learn” skill set for business leaders. So, what are your new year’s resolutions for getting better at managing change? Do you have a plan of action, approach, methodology, or strategy in mind?

Consider the following story of Dave Schlotterbeck, CEO of Alaris Medical Systems-a case study of one leader who learned to master change in his organization and bring impressive results to the bottom line. Several years ago, Dave realized that he needed to change the organizational culture at Alaris Medical Systems. People were avoiding risks and shrinking from opportunities out of fear of failure. Almost everyone in the organization was more worried about protecting themselves and finding another job than getting the results the company needed. Dave recognized that in order to change the results, he would need to change the way people went about doing their work; he would need to change the culture. That’s when Dave went in search of a proven approach to culture change-a search that eventually led him to The Results Pyramid,^® the central model in our latest book Change the Culture, Change the Game: The Breakthrough Strategy for Energizing Your Organization and Creating Accountability for Results.

Dave Schlotterbeck used The Results Pyramid to transform the Alaris culture and literally change the game in the medical systems industry (Click here to watch a short video segment and hear what Dave Schlotterbeck has to say about The Results Pyramid and its impact on Alaris). In just three years, Alaris increased its share price from $.31 per share to $22.35 per share, growing as much as 15% a year in a market where competitors were achieving no more than 3%. Soon thereafter, the company was acquired by Cardinal Health, a Fortune 20 company, and later spun out as the nucleus of CareFusion. Today, CareFusion is one of the largest medical device suppliers in the world. Dave describes the culture change at Alaris as the “most difficult job” he had to perform during his distinguished 40-year career, but it’s also the one he takes greatest pride in. Learning how to change your culture, and change it quickly, is a vital part of the new leadership skill set.

For more information on The Results Pyramid or to pre-order a copy of Change the Culture, Change the Game, go to www.partnersinleadership.com. Learning to manage and change your culture can have an enormous impact on your organization’s results. Get started today, change is coming!