I think these ideas are inspiring to all of us who work, regardless of the size of our paychecks or our title on the organizational chart. Unions promoted important and radical workplace changes that are recognized on Labor Day. Perhaps there will come a day that honors "Change Insurgents"
"You Can Be a Change Insurgent"
You don’t have to be at the top of the organization. In the old economy, leadership was another way of saying “formal authority.” In the new economy, power comes from knowledge and creativity-which means that change insurgents can, and should, be anywhere.
Power lies with people who know the technology. People closest to the technology (programmers, designers, engineers) are in the best position to discover what the technology is capable of doing—what can be tweaked or altered to get a different result. Geeks are also most likely to be in the “gossip circle” about what’s cooking elsewhere. The job of every change insurgent is to bring that information to bear on the company’s operations.
Power lies with people who know the market. People closest to the customers are in the best position to know what the customers want. They’re in the best position to gauge competitors—and to detect the next competitor. And they’re also most likely to pick up hints from companies in other industries that are dealing with the same customers.
Change insurgency can be a team sport. The most effective change insurgents aren’t loners, mavericks, or revolutionaries. They work the system. They enlist others. They sell their ideas upward and outward, and they grab good ideas from others.
The best managers foster change insurgency throughout their organization. People in positions of responsibility know that high performing organizations are rife with change insurgents. So they reward people for their ability to sell their ideas. The more someone is imitated, the higher that person’s value. Good managers also reward insurgents for finding good ideas and spreading them. Great organizations create a culture of insurgency.
What do you think? Relevant to your workplace? Are these ideas, offered eight years ago, on-target or are they too risky and idealistic?
