Re: Jonah and Mental Models

Keith Cowan (cowan@pci.on.ca)
Wed, 18 Jan 1995 05:19:34 -0500 (EST)

> setting in which it *is possible* to inquire about assumptions. The danger
> of telling the client what to do is that you are attempting an import
> activity into an open system. If there is no readiness or context for the
> import, it will not find fertile ground and the overall consequence of the
> rejection of the idea will be a setback to the authority of the
> consultation and those who sanctioned it. When someone comments that the
> =======================================================
> Richard Burg Voice 510-848-4258

This fertile ground analogy prompted me to continue the analogy into the
perception of a weed being just an unwanted plant in a particular place.
For example, when grass from the lawn encroaches into the garden bed, it
must be removed.

This thread is treading on the fundamental aspect of change management
consulting. The target organization must be ready for the change AND
the style of the intervention must be consistent with the organizational
culture. If either of these are not "in sync" then the intervention of
the consultants will not achieve the desired effect within the organization.

This is one reason so many intereventions do not produce similar results.

-- 
Keith Cowan       Phone: (416)565-6253           FAX: (905)858-7131
Toronto        Internet: cowan@pci.on.ca  Compuserve: 72212,51