Value-Based Management in Government

CHAPTER THREEStrategy Setting and Execution: Setting and Linking Goals and Capabilities

MANAGING CHANGE AS A PREREQUISITE TO MANAGING VALUE

Imagine for a moment a world without change. That was the basis for the 1993 movie Groundhog Day, starring Bill Murray. Every day that the main character awoke was set to become an exact repeat of the preceding day. The only change in that new day would be a direct result of a change that Bill Murray's character introduced. Other than his actions, the actions of everyone and everything around him remained the same day after day.

Putting aside the fact that living such a life might be rather boring, knowing each day how tomorrow's events would unfold would make for much simpler decision-making. The consequences of continuing past actions would be known with certainty. Of course, in the real world, we do not know what events will come with the passing of time, whether that is measured in years, months, or even hours and minutes. The world around us is always changing and is increasingly more volatile, and this of course brings uncertainty in what new challenges we as individuals or organizations will face.

Individuals and organizations both face two general types of change:

1. One is that from the world around us – that source of change that was magically put on hold in the Bill Murray movie. This change in the external environment in which we all live and work, but which is outside of our control and influence, is what has been called first-order ...