Continuous metamorphosis as a survival strategy to rebalance the dynamic equilibrium of stability and growth.
I’ve been fielding calls for months from business leaders seeking answers, reassurance, and guidance on any number of topics. From restructuring their company, deciding on a work-from-home policy, difficulties in recruiting qualified staff, or making strategic decisions that will decide on the direction their company takes in the coming years. These are experienced CEOs who are used to making decisions that will have far-reaching consequences, but they are facing additional challenges, as are we all.
How do we make strategic decisions in a time of instability?
Not just on an individual or organisational level but on a societal level, indeed on a global level, even experienced and level-headed leaders are finding it difficult to find the right path. They feel that the very basis on which they’ve made decisions in the past is lacking. How is one to decide on major investments? How does one deal with the ambiguous need to have a very flexible workforce and stability in working relationships at the same time?
The problem is that the business strategies and concepts that most companies have followed until now are no longer fit for purpose. These approaches can’t deal with the speed, the complexity, and the breadth of the changes we are facing.
And yet, even in times of crisis, there are always companies and individuals that don’t just survive. They flourish. But how?
The Metamorphosis Approach
Over the past months, I’ve been working on a concept that I’m calling the Metamorphosis Approach. It’s based on my conviction that leaders and entire organisations must adopt an attitude that allows for continuous metamorphosis.
Metamorphosis has been the name for a wide range of phenomena both in nature and biology and described in philosophy and literature that all involve massive change. Metamorphosis is not just a transformation if transformation is understood as something that can be planned and orderly executed. Its hallmarks are
- sudden onset
- a complete change of shape and characteristics
- the considerable speed at which it takes place
- often produced by radical environmental change – brought about by Gods (Greek mythology) or nature
The willingness and aptitude of leaders and organisations to consider metamorphosis as a business strategy at every turn has been a recipe for surviving and flourishing for a number of companies already. Think of Nokia. This company was known for mobile phones, which reinvented itself in a painful process, and is now a developer and provider of networks. So, what’s new, you may ask.
The difference between how companies have been adapting to changing circumstances all along and the situation now is that it isn’t just an individual company facing these unprecedented changes. It is every company. And this has far-reaching effects on the organisations, the people who work there, and society as a whole. That is why I believe we need an approach as unique as our current situation. The Metamorphosis Approach.
I’m going to share this concept with you via this LinkedIn Newsletter that will take you from the abstract theory, through the concept of dealing with the dynamic equilibrium between stability and growth, right down to the nitty-gritty of what to do next.
This newsletter isn’t a roadmap or a ‘how to’ set of articles. It doesn’t show you a blueprint you can blindly follow. Instead, it provokes debate and provides insight into what is standing between your company and significant, sustainable growth.
The Metamorphosis Newsletter is written by Dr Theresa Semler, Managing Partner and Executive Coach, Semler Company. Theresa and her team support businesses on their transformation journey.
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