On one business process reengineering (BPR) project, the team I was
facilitating was not tuned in to the need for fundamental change and was
resistant to efforts to provoke radical thinking. To win them over, I sent
them a series of e-mail messages, each with a key point about BPR extracted
from a book or article by a learned author. To make sure that they would take
the trouble to read the messages I would limit them to at most one a day and
generally no more than what could fit on a single screen. Just a spoonful of
wisdom. Before long they were asking me to facilitate a workshop to generate
radical ideas.
Whenever I try to introduce a new idea to a group, I ASSUME that they are
going to reject it the first time they hear it. But what this does is plant a
seed. They begin thinking about it. Then I follow it up with the opinions of
outside experts, such as through the extracts mentioned above. Eventually,
the message gets through.
This makes sense. After all, it was by reading those books and articles that
I came to be persuaded. Why should I expect them to be persuaded without
going through the same process?
Rob Polster
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Dr. Robert S. Polster Phone: 703-379-5700
Richard S. Carson & Associates FAX: 703-379-5707
Internet: ropol@delphi.com
Mail: 2144 California St., NW Suite 513
Washington, DC 20008
USA
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