How to Manage in Times of Crisis - Part 2

This is a continuation of the previous article with quotes from Ichak Adizes. He continues on with why change causes problems.

Everything, your company & even you as a person, is a system, and sub-systems comprise it. When there is change, sub-systems do not change at the same rate; therefore gaps are created. Gaps create problems, because there is misalignment. If you are age 47, but 17 years emotionally, 30 years spiritually & 70 years intellectually, these conflict. Similarly, with your company, perhaps sales changes direction very fast, but accounting is much slower, and H/R may hardly exist. Problems; disjointing/disintegration happens.

The faster the company grows, the less information top management has. With incomplete or inaccurate information, management may make flawed decisions. Meanwhile, H/R is hiring tomorrow the people needed yesterday; the company's sub-systems are operating at different speeds. Problems turn to crisis.

More innovations were made in the 20th century than cumulatively in the history of civilization.

If change causes disintegration, and disintegration causes problems, what is the solution? Integration. And the most effective way is to integrate proactively, not reactively.

THOSE WHO FREEZE, DO NOTHING, & ALLOW THE CRISIS TO TAKE OVER THE ORGANIZATION, CAUSE ITS DEMISE. Worse, they may disguise the problems with actions that make the organization look good only delay the inevitable crisis. Some organizations do nothing because they are waiting for the storm to pass. WRONG.

Success is not about how rarely you fall down, it's about how quickly you get up.

I am not smarter than anyone else; I just identify my mistakes faster and correct them faster.

In a badly managed company, people do not trust one another; it is easier to attack each other than the competition. What happens? The enemy has a better opportunity to kill us all. So, in times of crisis, more than anytime else, trust is critical.

If you're falling apart, how can you take care of others? Take care of yourself. Keep together by 1) Slow down, meditate or pray. 2) Keep your family together, give hope. 3) Call your friends; help them & ask for their help. 4) Address the fears your employees have; be honest. 5) Call your clients; help them. Remember, if your clients go bankrupt, so will you.