What do you think?
Rate this book
That's Not How We Do It Here!: A Story about How Organizations Rise and Fall--and Can Rise Again
What’s the worst thing you can hear when you have a good idea at work?
“That’s not how we do it here!”
In their iconic bestseller Our Iceberg Is Melting , John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber used a simple fable about penguins to explain the process of leading people through major changes. Now, ten years later, they’re back with another must-read story that will help any team or organization cope with their biggest challenges and turn them into exciting opportunities.
Once upon a time a clan of meerkats lived in the Kalahari, a region in southern Africa. After years of steady growth, a drought has sharply reduced the clan’s resources, and deadly vulture attacks have increased. As things keep getting worse, the harmony of the clan is shattered. The executive team quarrels about possible solutions, and suggestions from frontline workers face a soul-crushing response: “That’s not how we do it here!”
So Nadia, a bright and adventurous meerkat, hits the road in search of new ideas to help her troubled clan. She discovers a much smaller group that operates very differently, with much more teamwork and agility. These meerkats have developed innovative solutions to find food and evade the vultures. But not everything in this small clan is as perfect as it seems at first.
Can Nadia figure out how to combine the best of both worlds—a large, disciplined, well-managed clan and a small, informal, inspiring clan—before it’s too late?
This book distills Kotter’s decades of experience and award-winning research to reveal why organizations rise and fall, and how they can rise again in the face of adversity.
“That’s not how we do it here!”
In their iconic bestseller Our Iceberg Is Melting , John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber used a simple fable about penguins to explain the process of leading people through major changes. Now, ten years later, they’re back with another must-read story that will help any team or organization cope with their biggest challenges and turn them into exciting opportunities.
Once upon a time a clan of meerkats lived in the Kalahari, a region in southern Africa. After years of steady growth, a drought has sharply reduced the clan’s resources, and deadly vulture attacks have increased. As things keep getting worse, the harmony of the clan is shattered. The executive team quarrels about possible solutions, and suggestions from frontline workers face a soul-crushing response: “That’s not how we do it here!”
So Nadia, a bright and adventurous meerkat, hits the road in search of new ideas to help her troubled clan. She discovers a much smaller group that operates very differently, with much more teamwork and agility. These meerkats have developed innovative solutions to find food and evade the vultures. But not everything in this small clan is as perfect as it seems at first.
Can Nadia figure out how to combine the best of both worlds—a large, disciplined, well-managed clan and a small, informal, inspiring clan—before it’s too late?
This book distills Kotter’s decades of experience and award-winning research to reveal why organizations rise and fall, and how they can rise again in the face of adversity.
176 pages, Hardcover
First published June 7, 2016
155 people are currently reading
1526 people want to read
About the author
John P. Kotter
130 books497 followersJohn P. Kotter, world-renowned expert on leadership, is the author of many books, including Leading Change, Our Iceberg is Melting, The Heart of Change, and his latest book, That's Not How We Do It Here!. He is the Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership, Emeritus at the Harvard Business School, and a graduate of MIT and Harvard. He is co-founder of Kotter International, a change management and strategy execution firm that helps organizations engage employees in a movement to drive change and reach sustainable results. He and his wife Nancy live in Boston, Massachusetts.
http://www.kotterinternational.com/ab...
http://www.kotterinternational.com/ab...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 173 reviews
June 6, 2018
So while I didnt particularly love this book, this was only because I understood the content ahead of time and the book didnt really present anything new. That is not to say that the content is not particularly good. I also mentioned in one of my previous updates that I dont like fables, which this book further increased my dislike for. Thankfully the fable wasnt constantly interrupted to explain what the user was supposed to be getting out of the story, though this may leave readers/listeners that are not familiar with management principals wondering what is being contrasted.
The post fable narrative was reasonably well presented and to the point which is good as it worked well as a summary and provided some guiding advice for the reader going forward.
While this book didn't really bring a lot of information to the table for me at this point in my life, I think a younger me may have benefited more from it. Likewise, I think more junior people just entering the working world may befit more from this book as it lays out some of the whys around the roadblocks they may encounter
The post fable narrative was reasonably well presented and to the point which is good as it worked well as a summary and provided some guiding advice for the reader going forward.
While this book didn't really bring a lot of information to the table for me at this point in my life, I think a younger me may have benefited more from it. Likewise, I think more junior people just entering the working world may befit more from this book as it lays out some of the whys around the roadblocks they may encounter
June 9, 2016
I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and Penguin Group, the publisher. It was with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my review blog. In addition, I posted reviews to my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Plus pages.
I requested this book because I have read all of John Kotter's books and found them thoughtful, informative and engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed his (and Holger Ratheber) other animal group based book "Our Iceberg is Melting".
This book did not disappoint in any way. The subtitle is clear about what the book is all about: A Story About How Organizations Rise and Fall - and Can Rise Again. In their first animal parable the authors used penguins. This time they used Meerkats searching for a better way for their colony to thrive and survive. I will not give away the story line, but I will say that they have a most interesting journey.
In the last few chapters the authors discuss the differences between management and leadership and how they work together within an organization.
I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in how organizations can thrive and also enjoys an entertaining read!
I requested this book because I have read all of John Kotter's books and found them thoughtful, informative and engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed his (and Holger Ratheber) other animal group based book "Our Iceberg is Melting".
This book did not disappoint in any way. The subtitle is clear about what the book is all about: A Story About How Organizations Rise and Fall - and Can Rise Again. In their first animal parable the authors used penguins. This time they used Meerkats searching for a better way for their colony to thrive and survive. I will not give away the story line, but I will say that they have a most interesting journey.
In the last few chapters the authors discuss the differences between management and leadership and how they work together within an organization.
I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in how organizations can thrive and also enjoys an entertaining read!
January 13, 2020
This book is a must read for basically anyone working in a large corporation or a rapidly growing company. An interesting and readily applicable book that will make you think of so many instances and people that you work with and for.
March 25, 2023
Takeaways from reading the book:
- On page 51, I learned about the frustration of Nadia: I am tired of seeing some of us seeming to care only for ourselves. I am tired of listening to endless talk of who is to blame. I am tired of noone listening to those who have ideas to make things better that go beyond what you all seem to see as the best and only way. I am sick of watching those, who want to help, get pushed back into their place and told to shut up and wait for orders.
- On page 65, I read about the power of brainstorming. First, everybody develops ideas. Then, everybody votes on ideas they want to try out. Then people who want to help try out ideas say what they are going to do.
- On page 75, I read about people who come together regularly to talk about what they stand for and who they want to be.
- On page 51, I learned about the frustration of Nadia: I am tired of seeing some of us seeming to care only for ourselves. I am tired of listening to endless talk of who is to blame. I am tired of noone listening to those who have ideas to make things better that go beyond what you all seem to see as the best and only way. I am sick of watching those, who want to help, get pushed back into their place and told to shut up and wait for orders.
- On page 65, I read about the power of brainstorming. First, everybody develops ideas. Then, everybody votes on ideas they want to try out. Then people who want to help try out ideas say what they are going to do.
- On page 75, I read about people who come together regularly to talk about what they stand for and who they want to be.
May 11, 2023
An interesting fable about a fictional clan of meerkats that learned to address challenges by combining skilled technical management and visionary leadership. A nice quick read!
June 27, 2016
For fans of the Spencer Johnson ("Who Moved My Cheese") and Ken Blanchard ("One Minute Manager" and many others), this book is of a similar vein, particular with the former. We follow a fable based on the meerkat society of the Kalahari desert. Where a pair of meerkats, Nadia and Ayo leave their established group because of how it is being led, inflexibility and lack of new ideas to make things/life better for all. They run into several other group of meerkats, one completely dysfunctional and another one highly functional, but considerably smaller. They learn a lot of what works and what doesn't work as well. Eventually they return to their own original group to introduce what they have learned.
The book is ultimately about the balance between management and leadership, why some organizations fail and others succeed, and how an organization can aim to fall into the latter group.
While the book as a whole is enlightening and the story well-written, the meerkat part of the book is tad to lengthy. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book and its message.
[The ARC for this review was generously provided by the publisher through Netgalley]
The book is ultimately about the balance between management and leadership, why some organizations fail and others succeed, and how an organization can aim to fall into the latter group.
While the book as a whole is enlightening and the story well-written, the meerkat part of the book is tad to lengthy. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book and its message.
[The ARC for this review was generously provided by the publisher through Netgalley]
January 18, 2020
That's Not How We Do It Here! by Kotter and Rathgeber employs a fable about meerkats to teach about organization management and leadership, and why both are important to the success of businesses.
I really, really have to wonder - was a fable the best way to elucidate the authors' ideas about management and leadership? And while meerkats are cute, and the pictures in the book are adorable (though like it felt like a quarter of the pictures were of meerkats drawing organizational charts in the dirt), the fable just fell flat with me. While nominally entertaining, the simplicity of the fable felt both condescending and insulting to me, as it's presupposing the reader needs to have the concepts of management and leadership styles boiled down to this kind of analogy. I understand that fables are useful in teaching a moral lesson, using it for business organization strategy didn't seem to like the best tactic, as at least questions about morality are more profound. The concluding part of the novel, the explanation of the ideal combination of management and leadership, was probably the strongest part of the book, and seemed almost encumbered by the fable.
Overall, I generally agree with the ideas purported by the book. In the past I've enjoyed reading business books that use a fair amount of anecdotes to illustrate points or concepts. Here, the fable falls flat, perhaps because it's so transparent in its intent and akin to just hitting me over the head with the same ideas for an extended amount of time. Perhaps the problem is that I am not currently employed at a workplace that is suffering from overbearing leadership or stifling management, and therefore the fable would be much more relevant to me.
In summary, read this book is you want to look a really cute pictures of meerkats or work at a company that needs to reevaluate its management or leadership. Else, I think there are better business books out there.
I really, really have to wonder - was a fable the best way to elucidate the authors' ideas about management and leadership? And while meerkats are cute, and the pictures in the book are adorable (though like it felt like a quarter of the pictures were of meerkats drawing organizational charts in the dirt), the fable just fell flat with me. While nominally entertaining, the simplicity of the fable felt both condescending and insulting to me, as it's presupposing the reader needs to have the concepts of management and leadership styles boiled down to this kind of analogy. I understand that fables are useful in teaching a moral lesson, using it for business organization strategy didn't seem to like the best tactic, as at least questions about morality are more profound. The concluding part of the novel, the explanation of the ideal combination of management and leadership, was probably the strongest part of the book, and seemed almost encumbered by the fable.
Overall, I generally agree with the ideas purported by the book. In the past I've enjoyed reading business books that use a fair amount of anecdotes to illustrate points or concepts. Here, the fable falls flat, perhaps because it's so transparent in its intent and akin to just hitting me over the head with the same ideas for an extended amount of time. Perhaps the problem is that I am not currently employed at a workplace that is suffering from overbearing leadership or stifling management, and therefore the fable would be much more relevant to me.
In summary, read this book is you want to look a really cute pictures of meerkats or work at a company that needs to reevaluate its management or leadership. Else, I think there are better business books out there.
May 10, 2019
I didn't much care for the fable trying to convey the ideas here. It almost felt like the epilogue had enough of an explanation to discard the whole fable.
Doing the audiobook, I severely disliked the narration. This might have been due to trying to deliver it in an "African" tone/accent? Which detracted from the actual fable for me.
So although I didn't like the format or delivery. There were two key points to take out of this for me:
1. The same processes working for a small organization wont continue working as the organization grows. Inversely, the processes working for a large organization cannot effectively be applied to a small organization.
2. There isn't a black and white solution to have either management or leadership like some other books would have you believe. But having both, and each targeting the areas they are good at. If you can have both thrive in the same processes, you should be able to cope with change a lot better.
Very short book.
Hard to recommend due to format and narration.
Doing the audiobook, I severely disliked the narration. This might have been due to trying to deliver it in an "African" tone/accent? Which detracted from the actual fable for me.
So although I didn't like the format or delivery. There were two key points to take out of this for me:
1. The same processes working for a small organization wont continue working as the organization grows. Inversely, the processes working for a large organization cannot effectively be applied to a small organization.
2. There isn't a black and white solution to have either management or leadership like some other books would have you believe. But having both, and each targeting the areas they are good at. If you can have both thrive in the same processes, you should be able to cope with change a lot better.
Very short book.
Hard to recommend due to format and narration.
January 27, 2022
This was ok - I was disappointed that the basic lesson of the book was management vs leadership, which for me did not satisfy the subtitle’s claim to explain how failing organizations can rise. Even this framework itself was not at all clear to me until I read the coda that explained the book. The authors’ other book, “Our Iceberg is Melting,” was so much easier to follow as the story progressed that I occasionally had to put it down to process the new information that was clicking in my brain. Not the case with this story, with its drawings of squares and circles that were total head-scratchers to me until the final summary. Maybe it gives a new way of framing what management vs leadership could look like, but really was just a less clear “Our Iceberg Is Melting” to me.
August 14, 2022
I’m surprised how this small book fits well big companies and faster growing startups!
And really like the way it confirms the world known fact that there is no unified solution, ever! The answer is always in the balance.
And really like the way it confirms the world known fact that there is no unified solution, ever! The answer is always in the balance.
March 9, 2022
İlk olarak sevgili müdürüme bu kitabı bana hediye ettiği için teşekkür edeyim. İş hayatında yönetim ve liderlik kavramlarının nasıl olması gerektiğine dair güzel bir bakış açısı sunduğu kadar kendisine karşı bakış açımı da değiştiren bir kitap. Kitabın ismi başta epey düşündürtmüştü beni doğal olarak ama sayfaları çevirdikçe kitabın anlamının kitabın başlığına sadece bir gönderme olduğunu anlamaya başladım.
Kitaba dönecek olursa bence iş hayatlarınıza bu kitaptaki fikirleri entegre ederseniz iş motivasyonunuzun stabil kalması son derece olası ama... - Burada büyük bir ama var :) - kurumsal bir firma söz konusuysa bu biraz yöneticinizin bakış açısıyla sınırlı kalıyor. Ben bu konuda açıkçası acayip şanslıyım. Önceki şirketimde gayet iyi bir lider (önceden yönetici olarak görüyordum, şimdi pek değil) ile çalışmıştım, şimdiki şirketimde ise gayet iyi bir yöneticiyle çalışıyorum. Velakin kitapta en önemli alt mesajlardan birisi olan paylaşımcılık (ki mirketler elbette bu konuda harikalar!) ise ayrı mesele.
Kitap ile ilgili en büyük sıkıntım ise ana fikrin doğruluğunu fazlasıyla dayatıyor olması. Halbuki kitapta karşılaştığımız ilk ve en önemli problemin unutulup tamamen problemin sebep olduğu yönetimsel hatalara odaklanmak biraz rahatsız etti. İş arkadaşlarımla bu kitabı tartışıyor olsam bir nebze kitaptan daha fazla zevk alabilirdim (ki kitabı mümkün olduğunca ödünç vermeye çalışacağım) ama benim yaşadığım problemlere ışık tutan bir kitap olmadı. Yine de birçok açıdan bilinçlendirdi.
Bu sene belki bu tip kitapları daha fazla okumayı deneyebilirim. Sevgilerle... :)
Kitaba dönecek olursa bence iş hayatlarınıza bu kitaptaki fikirleri entegre ederseniz iş motivasyonunuzun stabil kalması son derece olası ama... - Burada büyük bir ama var :) - kurumsal bir firma söz konusuysa bu biraz yöneticinizin bakış açısıyla sınırlı kalıyor. Ben bu konuda açıkçası acayip şanslıyım. Önceki şirketimde gayet iyi bir lider (önceden yönetici olarak görüyordum, şimdi pek değil) ile çalışmıştım, şimdiki şirketimde ise gayet iyi bir yöneticiyle çalışıyorum. Velakin kitapta en önemli alt mesajlardan birisi olan paylaşımcılık (ki mirketler elbette bu konuda harikalar!) ise ayrı mesele.
Kitap ile ilgili en büyük sıkıntım ise ana fikrin doğruluğunu fazlasıyla dayatıyor olması. Halbuki kitapta karşılaştığımız ilk ve en önemli problemin unutulup tamamen problemin sebep olduğu yönetimsel hatalara odaklanmak biraz rahatsız etti. İş arkadaşlarımla bu kitabı tartışıyor olsam bir nebze kitaptan daha fazla zevk alabilirdim (ki kitabı mümkün olduğunca ödünç vermeye çalışacağım) ama benim yaşadığım problemlere ışık tutan bir kitap olmadı. Yine de birçok açıdan bilinçlendirdi.
Bu sene belki bu tip kitapları daha fazla okumayı deneyebilirim. Sevgilerle... :)
June 30, 2016
Usually, I like fables about leadership and management because they let you draw your own learnings without being preachy. Also, stories stick around longer in one's head than bullet points.
However, this fable really goes nowhere. My only takeaway from the book was that meerkats are cute creatures and it is a pity that they get attacked by various predators.
Broadly, the book tries to talk about two approaches through which organisations evolve:
1. Having structures and hierarchies and trying to stay relevant by building innovation into them
2. Coming together as collections of ideas/ideals and then trying to figure out the best possible structure to support.
The overall discussion is on which one of these approaches is better, or whether both of them together are more useless or more useful. However, this book is nowhere close to the impactful storytelling of Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions
However, this fable really goes nowhere. My only takeaway from the book was that meerkats are cute creatures and it is a pity that they get attacked by various predators.
Broadly, the book tries to talk about two approaches through which organisations evolve:
1. Having structures and hierarchies and trying to stay relevant by building innovation into them
2. Coming together as collections of ideas/ideals and then trying to figure out the best possible structure to support.
The overall discussion is on which one of these approaches is better, or whether both of them together are more useless or more useful. However, this book is nowhere close to the impactful storytelling of Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions
September 6, 2016
Billed as a story about how organizations rise, fall and can rise again, this graphically rich book is presented in the form of a series of fables to underline its message.
It is a simple device and one perhaps that you will either love or be at best ambivalent towards. For this reviewer it was the second of the two situations. It is by no means a bad book yet it just failed to engage; in the hands of another reader it could be entirely different. The authors believe that this will assist companies cope with challenges and bat them away into opportunities and explain this through the lens of a group of meerkats, their lives, their problems and how they met the challenges head-on.
If you like the book and its format then its price is insignificant. However, if you are on the edge or uncertain it can be a costly investment to find you can’t stand it after a few pages. It might be worth looking out for it at a bookstore and seeing which way you swing. For this reviewer, the content and advice was just not so engaging, special or different to warrant the “trauma” of its cutey-storyville style. Different strokes for different folks…
Autamme.com
It is a simple device and one perhaps that you will either love or be at best ambivalent towards. For this reviewer it was the second of the two situations. It is by no means a bad book yet it just failed to engage; in the hands of another reader it could be entirely different. The authors believe that this will assist companies cope with challenges and bat them away into opportunities and explain this through the lens of a group of meerkats, their lives, their problems and how they met the challenges head-on.
If you like the book and its format then its price is insignificant. However, if you are on the edge or uncertain it can be a costly investment to find you can’t stand it after a few pages. It might be worth looking out for it at a bookstore and seeing which way you swing. For this reviewer, the content and advice was just not so engaging, special or different to warrant the “trauma” of its cutey-storyville style. Different strokes for different folks…
Autamme.com
August 21, 2016
Consisted but comprehensive
Thus is the most concise and comprehensive book I've read about leadership and management in fast change context.
The fable of the meerkats demonstrate that leadership and management are not a "neither ... or" . Organisations which are over managed and under led rise and fall. Equally organisations which are over led and under managed rise and fall. To succeed in question fast changing world, organisations must be both well led and well managed.
This is my take away after reading this great book from Kotter and Rathgeber.
A must read book for all managers and leaders.
Thus is the most concise and comprehensive book I've read about leadership and management in fast change context.
The fable of the meerkats demonstrate that leadership and management are not a "neither ... or" . Organisations which are over managed and under led rise and fall. Equally organisations which are over led and under managed rise and fall. To succeed in question fast changing world, organisations must be both well led and well managed.
This is my take away after reading this great book from Kotter and Rathgeber.
A must read book for all managers and leaders.
January 5, 2018
Otter and Rathgeber craft a cute but long-winded tale about two Meerkat communities, one of which runs on management and one on leadership. Guess what? To survive the colonies need both. How desperately they need each style depends on crisis and the rate of change.
The story clearly illustrates the need for both, but...I think most readers would get the point from a story a third the length of this one and would be happier with more information on facilitating the needed discussions around identifying the adjustments and changes their specific organizations require—and how to get there.
Thanks, Netgalley, for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
The story clearly illustrates the need for both, but...I think most readers would get the point from a story a third the length of this one and would be happier with more information on facilitating the needed discussions around identifying the adjustments and changes their specific organizations require—and how to get there.
Thanks, Netgalley, for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
July 19, 2016
One of the best business books I've read so far this year, this one provides powerful lessons in a very engaging format. It uses fable to illustrate points which would have been boring for some if read through the usual prose.
This book narrates the story of meerkats, the one I think is the specie of Timon in the movie the Lion King. The story is not related to The Lion King franchise but they both give life to ordinary animals to convey powerful messages. Anyhow, many will surely enjoy this book since the concepts are easier to understand and it impacts many organizations nowadays.
This book narrates the story of meerkats, the one I think is the specie of Timon in the movie the Lion King. The story is not related to The Lion King franchise but they both give life to ordinary animals to convey powerful messages. Anyhow, many will surely enjoy this book since the concepts are easier to understand and it impacts many organizations nowadays.
December 29, 2016
A cute sequel to Our Iceberg is Melting.
September 17, 2018
Some housekeeping disclosures first:
1. This was on a list of recommended reading related to Improving Public Sector Productivity in a certification course I am in.
2. I did not know it was in parable form.
3. I am not really receptive to how many minutes it takes to find out who moved my cheese. I generally find parable formats to be derivative and the clumsy attempts to jam a thought into a cute - and always contrived -story get in the way of conveying a real message.
So, by #3, for me, the story gets in the way of any value Kotter and Rathgeber might have to share...until the end of the book when they depart into summary. Bottom line, there is nothing new here...rehashed, repackaged oversimplified differences between leadership and management (they do note that each perform different functions, serving different ends) and effecting change to reverse (or prevent) a fall.
If fables are your jam, this might have some value. A change of perspective is usually welcome and I know many people who like the Johnson, Blanchard approach.
For others, generating the means to kickstart productivity in a stable (complacent/stagnant?) organization might benefit from my paraphrasing of their summary:
1. Creating a sense of urgency for a change opportunity
2. Building a group (coalition) to guide toward the opportunity
3. Forming the vision of taking advantage of the opportunity
4. Enlisting adherents and early adopters to advocate
5. Enabling progress by removing obstacles
6. Generating more smaller “wins” is better than one big one
7. Keep it going, don’t let up, keep the urgency (else why was it urgent in the first place?)
8. Adopting the change as part of the new culture
See? Nothing new.
1. This was on a list of recommended reading related to Improving Public Sector Productivity in a certification course I am in.
2. I did not know it was in parable form.
3. I am not really receptive to how many minutes it takes to find out who moved my cheese. I generally find parable formats to be derivative and the clumsy attempts to jam a thought into a cute - and always contrived -story get in the way of conveying a real message.
So, by #3, for me, the story gets in the way of any value Kotter and Rathgeber might have to share...until the end of the book when they depart into summary. Bottom line, there is nothing new here...rehashed, repackaged oversimplified differences between leadership and management (they do note that each perform different functions, serving different ends) and effecting change to reverse (or prevent) a fall.
If fables are your jam, this might have some value. A change of perspective is usually welcome and I know many people who like the Johnson, Blanchard approach.
For others, generating the means to kickstart productivity in a stable (complacent/stagnant?) organization might benefit from my paraphrasing of their summary:
1. Creating a sense of urgency for a change opportunity
2. Building a group (coalition) to guide toward the opportunity
3. Forming the vision of taking advantage of the opportunity
4. Enlisting adherents and early adopters to advocate
5. Enabling progress by removing obstacles
6. Generating more smaller “wins” is better than one big one
7. Keep it going, don’t let up, keep the urgency (else why was it urgent in the first place?)
8. Adopting the change as part of the new culture
See? Nothing new.
December 25, 2022
تمر الشركات بأربعة مراحل:
1- البداية من لا شيء، وهي مرحلة فيها إبداع وتكيف وتحفيز مع شيء من الفوضى.
2- مع زيادة حجم المؤسسة، تبدأ في التخلص من الفوضى بالتنظيم والإدارة، مع بقاء الإبداع والتكيف والتحفيز. وإن لم تفعل فإن مقتلها هو زيادة الحجم مع غياب الإدارة.
3- مع تضخم المؤسسة أكثر، تستقر فيها البيروقراطية وتكون حسنة الإدارة: فيها أنظمة وهياكل وسياسات وإجراءات، لكن هذه البيروقراطية تقوام التغيير والتكيف. فإذا كانت الأمور مستقرة فإن أداء هذه المؤسسات يكون عاليا، لكن إذا كانت التغيرات سريعة، كانت هذه البيروقراطية هي مقتل المؤسسة.
4- إذا زادت التغيرات والمنافسة عن حد معين، تفشل المؤسسة وتنهار.
.
الصعود مجددا يتطلب العودة إلى المرحلة الثانية: الإدارة مع القيادة، يعني حسن تنظيم الموارد والسماح بالقيادة من أي موضع في المؤسسة.
وهذه النقطة الثانية (القيادة من أي موضع في المؤسسة) هي صميم الأفكار التي يتبناها المؤلف (جون كوتر)، ويلخصها في 8 مراحل:
1- إيجاد شعور بالإلحاح وسوء الوضع الراهن والكلام على الفرص وما تجلبه من خير
2- بناء تحالف إرشادي يشبه الشبكة، متجاوزا الهرم الوظيفي المعتاد، أي من أقسام وإدارات ومستويات متنوعة
3- تشكيل رؤية استراتيجية ومبادرات عملية تحظى بشعبية بين التحالف
4- تجنيد جيش من المتطوعين لبدء تنفيذ المبادارات
5- تمكين العمل من خلال إزالة العوائق
6- تحقيق مكاسب سريعة قصيرة الأجل والاحتفاء بها لتوليد زخم
7- الحفاظ على الحافز والبدء في تنفيذ مبادرات جديدة
8- التغيير الفعلي عن طريق إضفاء الطابع المؤسسي على الانتصارات المتحققة وإدراجها في السلم الإداري، وما يتبعه من قياس ومتابعة وتنظيم.
.
يحكي الكتاب هذه الأفكار من خلال قصة رمزية لطيفة، ثم يلخصها في آخر الكتاب بشكل جيد.
1- البداية من لا شيء، وهي مرحلة فيها إبداع وتكيف وتحفيز مع شيء من الفوضى.
2- مع زيادة حجم المؤسسة، تبدأ في التخلص من الفوضى بالتنظيم والإدارة، مع بقاء الإبداع والتكيف والتحفيز. وإن لم تفعل فإن مقتلها هو زيادة الحجم مع غياب الإدارة.
3- مع تضخم المؤسسة أكثر، تستقر فيها البيروقراطية وتكون حسنة الإدارة: فيها أنظمة وهياكل وسياسات وإجراءات، لكن هذه البيروقراطية تقوام التغيير والتكيف. فإذا كانت الأمور مستقرة فإن أداء هذه المؤسسات يكون عاليا، لكن إذا كانت التغيرات سريعة، كانت هذه البيروقراطية هي مقتل المؤسسة.
4- إذا زادت التغيرات والمنافسة عن حد معين، تفشل المؤسسة وتنهار.
.
الصعود مجددا يتطلب العودة إلى المرحلة الثانية: الإدارة مع القيادة، يعني حسن تنظيم الموارد والسماح بالقيادة من أي موضع في المؤسسة.
وهذه النقطة الثانية (القيادة من أي موضع في المؤسسة) هي صميم الأفكار التي يتبناها المؤلف (جون كوتر)، ويلخصها في 8 مراحل:
1- إيجاد شعور بالإلحاح وسوء الوضع الراهن والكلام على الفرص وما تجلبه من خير
2- بناء تحالف إرشادي يشبه الشبكة، متجاوزا الهرم الوظيفي المعتاد، أي من أقسام وإدارات ومستويات متنوعة
3- تشكيل رؤية استراتيجية ومبادرات عملية تحظى بشعبية بين التحالف
4- تجنيد جيش من المتطوعين لبدء تنفيذ المبادارات
5- تمكين العمل من خلال إزالة العوائق
6- تحقيق مكاسب سريعة قصيرة الأجل والاحتفاء بها لتوليد زخم
7- الحفاظ على الحافز والبدء في تنفيذ مبادرات جديدة
8- التغيير الفعلي عن طريق إضفاء الطابع المؤسسي على الانتصارات المتحققة وإدراجها في السلم الإداري، وما يتبعه من قياس ومتابعة وتنظيم.
.
يحكي الكتاب هذه الأفكار من خلال قصة رمزية لطيفة، ثم يلخصها في آخر الكتاب بشكل جيد.
June 11, 2020
Anecdote.
I slept over at my friend's parents' house. We used to run a student organization together in college. We picked up this book from her parents' shelves (her parents are deep into organization and leadership) and proceeded to read it out loud to each other.
Typical things you do at a sleepover in your early 20s, riiiight?
Well, we ended up never finishing reading the book together. We got sleepy or something.
It has always been on my mind to finish the book and I'm glad I did.
It truly made me reflect on my student leadership experiences. In highschool, I was part of orgs that were both MANAGEMENT-y (regimented marching band of 150+ teenagers) and LEADERSHIP-y (student government member, technical theater crew).
So we founded a student org in college, and I went hardcore into MANAGEMENT mode while my friend was a free spirit into creativity and trying new ways of doing things.
I suppose this book helped me see our differences in leadership styles, and that neither of us was right or wrong. We both had things to learn.
I love the ending that a growing org needs both. Everything is like a growing human person. You need to manage your time and also lead yourself. An organization? You gotta have disciplined management but also the leadership aspect to motivate and inspire yourself to do more.
Also the illustrations are hella cute.
I slept over at my friend's parents' house. We used to run a student organization together in college. We picked up this book from her parents' shelves (her parents are deep into organization and leadership) and proceeded to read it out loud to each other.
Typical things you do at a sleepover in your early 20s, riiiight?
Well, we ended up never finishing reading the book together. We got sleepy or something.
It has always been on my mind to finish the book and I'm glad I did.
It truly made me reflect on my student leadership experiences. In highschool, I was part of orgs that were both MANAGEMENT-y (regimented marching band of 150+ teenagers) and LEADERSHIP-y (student government member, technical theater crew).
So we founded a student org in college, and I went hardcore into MANAGEMENT mode while my friend was a free spirit into creativity and trying new ways of doing things.
I suppose this book helped me see our differences in leadership styles, and that neither of us was right or wrong. We both had things to learn.
I love the ending that a growing org needs both. Everything is like a growing human person. You need to manage your time and also lead yourself. An organization? You gotta have disciplined management but also the leadership aspect to motivate and inspire yourself to do more.
Also the illustrations are hella cute.
June 20, 2020
Real #change is hard to achieve, harder to sustain and hardest to stay in the state of constant change (most people miss the last part)! In the end, if all that a change has achieved is a new state, it would be a shame because the real idea behind bringing in a change is not to be saddled with a new version of the old way of doing things! A real change must take us on an unending journey of constant exploration where the change doesn't lead us to a new "business as usual" but ability to change itself becomes the business as usual!
#covid19 has forced a challenging time on us. However, it has also thawed the general resistance to change, notwithstanding an understandable lack of a wholehearted acceptance to what is being imposed. It would be a shame to waste this crisis and turn it into an opportunity for future. That is table stakes. However, a real loss for an individual, a team or an organization would be to failing to adapt to a "keep exploring" mindset where questioning status quo and constant #experimentation are the newer competencies. The aim of this #changemanagement is to change the mindsets forever and not simply the behaviors one-time. @John Kotter's latest book is a delightful read on this topic.
https://www.kotterinc.com/book/thats-...
#covid19 has forced a challenging time on us. However, it has also thawed the general resistance to change, notwithstanding an understandable lack of a wholehearted acceptance to what is being imposed. It would be a shame to waste this crisis and turn it into an opportunity for future. That is table stakes. However, a real loss for an individual, a team or an organization would be to failing to adapt to a "keep exploring" mindset where questioning status quo and constant #experimentation are the newer competencies. The aim of this #changemanagement is to change the mindsets forever and not simply the behaviors one-time. @John Kotter's latest book is a delightful read on this topic.
https://www.kotterinc.com/book/thats-...
July 25, 2021
I've read several of John P. Kotter's works and have found his thinking on change management very interesting. When I saw the cover of this book the it stood out and I think the approach of using a fable to capture how new thinking and ideas (often from external sources) can be injected into a traditional and hierarchical organization, but as shown in the book, this process unlikely ever easy, but it is necessary. This quick read pulls from the author's decades of research on these issues. Nadia is a bright and adventurous meerkat in the Kalahari Desert. She is a younger and enthusiastic member of a mature clan that has a fixed way of running things to support their survival. In line with the 8 Step Change Model from Kotter, Nadia ultimately has to move away from her established klan in order to generate the urgency to change within her klan's established plans, schedules, procedures, rules, and layers as the klan is surprised by an external threat. Overall this is a useful read on going beyond traditional management to adapt within mature organizations and the fable was quick, easy read.
February 22, 2017
Most of this book (much like one of the author's previous books "Our Iceberg is Melting"), is written in the form of a fable. While I didn't necessarily enjoy following the story of a clan of meerkats, the application at the end, made the story worthwhile.
Toward the end of the book, the author writes these words...
"Management and leadership serve different functions: The first can get the regular work done well, reliable, and efficiently, even in exceptionally large and complex systems; the second can energize us, despite barriers, to innovate swiftly and propel us into a prosperous future, despite changing problems and opportunities. Management and leadership are not two ways to achieve the same end. They serve different ends, both of which are essential in complex organizations that operate in changing environments."
In other words, instead of choosing between leadership and management of your employees or team, maybe there needs to be a healthy dose of both.
Toward the end of the book, the author writes these words...
"Management and leadership serve different functions: The first can get the regular work done well, reliable, and efficiently, even in exceptionally large and complex systems; the second can energize us, despite barriers, to innovate swiftly and propel us into a prosperous future, despite changing problems and opportunities. Management and leadership are not two ways to achieve the same end. They serve different ends, both of which are essential in complex organizations that operate in changing environments."
In other words, instead of choosing between leadership and management of your employees or team, maybe there needs to be a healthy dose of both.
April 27, 2018
Aunque siempre soy algo escéptico respecto a libros escritos por académicos / consultores (un sector el que hay demasiados líricos), este es un libro que está bien. Fácil de leer, donde más de un@ reconocerá situaciones que ha vivido y donde hay material para darle más de una pensada.
Este libro es una fábula sobre la tensión entre la gestión y el liderazgo, entre organizaciones grandes y jerarquizadas, y las pequeñas y dinámicas. Una estructura horizontal, donde las puertas están abiertas y hay mucha flexibilidad, funciona en organizaciones pequeñas, pero en cuanto ganan tamaño esto puede llevar al caos..., pero también a la pérdida del dinamismo que impulsaba su crecimiento. El libro ilustra con un relato ameno estos problemas y propone una solución. Spoiler: la solución depende que la alta dirección de ejemplo y la impulse, de lo contrario ni el mejor consultor podrá cambiar lo que pasa.
Este libro es una fábula sobre la tensión entre la gestión y el liderazgo, entre organizaciones grandes y jerarquizadas, y las pequeñas y dinámicas. Una estructura horizontal, donde las puertas están abiertas y hay mucha flexibilidad, funciona en organizaciones pequeñas, pero en cuanto ganan tamaño esto puede llevar al caos..., pero también a la pérdida del dinamismo que impulsaba su crecimiento. El libro ilustra con un relato ameno estos problemas y propone una solución. Spoiler: la solución depende que la alta dirección de ejemplo y la impulse, de lo contrario ni el mejor consultor podrá cambiar lo que pasa.
January 1, 2019
Short (if you listen to the audiobook it's less than 3 hours of listening) book about basics of management and leadership, how companies should react in face of a crisis and how to stay creative - all of that given via an engaging story of meerkats living on the Kalahari desert. Kotter provides us with a story of failure, successes and how to react to anything with an interesting plot of the fight in the group of meerkats - for survival from drought, famine, insubordination and bureaucracy. After the final parts of the story we get an additional summary and description of key ideas and insights.
Interesting try to connect two different point of views - bureaucracy, hierarchy and just trying harder the same thing while in crisis and the second option - being open, creative, with less rules and more democratic (but this can fail too).
Interesting try to connect two different point of views - bureaucracy, hierarchy and just trying harder the same thing while in crisis and the second option - being open, creative, with less rules and more democratic (but this can fail too).
January 29, 2019
Let me start by saying that the knowledge in this book is very helpful. It’s John Kotter and I would expect nothing less than valuable insight and strategy for change. The process for integrating leadership and management to help an established organization make significant changes is valuable. These 10 pages of the book are solid.
On the other hand, the fable is weak and lacks clarity in illustrating the principles of the process. It feels to me like Kotter wanted to follow in the footsteps of Lencioni in the fable writing part and he just couldn’t do it. I enjoyed Lencioni’s fables. I didn’t enjoy this. It felt odd the whole way through it to read about Meerkats having organizational charts.
You won’t be disappointed with the knowledge you can gain from the book, but I recommend skipping the fable and go right to the explanation at the end.
On the other hand, the fable is weak and lacks clarity in illustrating the principles of the process. It feels to me like Kotter wanted to follow in the footsteps of Lencioni in the fable writing part and he just couldn’t do it. I enjoyed Lencioni’s fables. I didn’t enjoy this. It felt odd the whole way through it to read about Meerkats having organizational charts.
You won’t be disappointed with the knowledge you can gain from the book, but I recommend skipping the fable and go right to the explanation at the end.
August 20, 2019
John Kotter has an excellent record of providing insights and challenges to the leaders of complex organizations. This book focuses on how best leadership can make adaptations when the business environment is changing significantly.
Some readers might find the book to be engaging (or maybe even insightful) when Kotter and co-writer Holger Rathgeber tell the story of a clan of South African meerkats facing a climate change that will ruin their lives.
The images of the little animals in the book are attractive, especially when the clan's leaders make bad mistakes catastrophic threat. However, the theme of this short book is taken up with the narrative. The animal characters fit into the usual people who want not change vs those who see that they need to change.
Fortunately, the last 20 pages provide the ideas of the book.
s
Some readers might find the book to be engaging (or maybe even insightful) when Kotter and co-writer Holger Rathgeber tell the story of a clan of South African meerkats facing a climate change that will ruin their lives.
The images of the little animals in the book are attractive, especially when the clan's leaders make bad mistakes catastrophic threat. However, the theme of this short book is taken up with the narrative. The animal characters fit into the usual people who want not change vs those who see that they need to change.
Fortunately, the last 20 pages provide the ideas of the book.
s
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 13, 2017
This is a great book for those who work in medium and large organizations where there is a struggle to balance structure with innovation and creativity. It is a parable based on meerkat clans in the Kalahari Desert; this style of writing may not be for everyone, but I enjoyed it and thought it provided a good illustration of the difference between leadership and management.
I felt the parable did not quite provide enough in terms of describing how leadership and management can co-exist, but there is additional discussion at the end of the parable on this topic as well as a guideline for seizing opportunities for innovation within organizations.
I felt the parable did not quite provide enough in terms of describing how leadership and management can co-exist, but there is additional discussion at the end of the parable on this topic as well as a guideline for seizing opportunities for innovation within organizations.
June 20, 2021
This isn't the kind of book I would normally read but I read it for a book club at work. At its heart, this book is about how leaders should respond when facing existential threats to their existence, which it tells through a fictional narrative about meerkats. I could definitely see the lessons about not being stagnant as leaders, while also acknowledging that some form of hierarchy is required. Mostly this book made me frustrated about the status quo in higher ed which is largely rooted on ignoring and downplaying the idea that anyone other than those at the top could have useful ideas about how things could or should be done differently.
November 22, 2021
เป็นหนังสือ business bookที่เล่าเรื่องแบบนิทานแทรกข้อคิดไว้เยอะแยะมากมาย สอนถึงการแก้ไขปัญหาที่เราไม่เคยพบเจอ และปัญหาที่พบเจอบ่อยๆว่าควรทำอย่างไร บอกเล่าถึงวิธีการที่จะเสนอไอเดียใหม่ๆให้แก่ผู้อื่นฟังอย่างไรเขาถึงจะยอมรับ การที่เปิดรับไอเดียใหม่ๆเป็นสิ่งที่น่ายินดีและควรค่า เพราะเราไม่รู้ว่า ไอเดียใหม่ๆที่เราไม่เคยทำนั้น มันจะช่วยเหลือประโยชน์อะไรกับตนเองและคนอื่นอีกมากมายได้ขนาดไหนบ้าง เพราะมันเป็นสิ่งใหม่ๆที่เราควรที่จะลองทำ อย่าปิดกั้น ถ้ามันไม่เวิร์คเราก็แค่หาวิธีอื่น เป็นหนังสือที่ดีอีกเล่มเลยได้ให้กำลังใจเวลาเราอยากลองทำสิ่งใหม่อีกด้วย
Displaying 1 - 30 of 173 reviews