When a project is completed or an initial goal met, it is tempting to congratulate all involved and proclaim the advent of a new era. While it is important to celebrate results along the way, kidding yourself or others about the difficulty and duration of organizational transformation can be catastrophic. I met recently with a capable, intelligent management group that has begun to see encouraging results in a difficult initiative. Such talk is nonsense. They are far from where they need to be, and in danger of losing the ground they have gained.
People look forward to completion of any task.
The problem is, the results of a change vision are not directly proportional to the effort invested. If you settle for too little too soon, you will probably lose it all. Looking for villains in all the wrong places . The perception that large organizations are filled with recalcitrant middle managers who resist all change is not only unfair but untrue. In professional service organizations, and in most organizations with an educated workforce, people at every level are engaged in change processes.