• Thanks for stopping by. Logging in to a registered account will remove all generic ads. Please reach out with any questions or concerns.

Reconstitution

While I am a (very far) outsider looking in, I can see an intersection between the 'reconstitution' and the Arbour report recommendations. The time is ripe for fundamental, systemic change throughout CAF. Whether such change occurs or is effective remains to be seen.
 
stoker dave said:
While I am a (very far) outsider looking in, I can see an intersection between the 'reconstitution' and the Arbour report recommendations. The time is ripe for fundamental, systemic change throughout CAF. Whether such change occurs or is effective remains to be seen.
Click to expand...
Agreed but I hope that they realise that cultural change can’t really happen without structural change. Otherwise we’ll keep treading water (or sink) on both.
 
Remius said:
Agreed but I hope that they realise that cultural change can’t really happen without structural change. Otherwise we’ll keep treading water (or sink) on both.
Click to expand...

Not always true. Lots of work and research has gone into this subject, but clearly not by the CAF.

Culture change means leaders changing the way they show up and collaborate, as the highest priority, which is also frequently the hardest thing to do. In the list of seven elements mentioned below, for example, there is no mention of 'get the CFO to hand you another billion dollars'.

For a senior leader, like our Army Commander, to say 'I need more stuff or I can't change culture' should get him a set of walking papers, which would happen to any CEO that said the same thing. Again, it speaks to some glaring gaps in the organizational leadership knowledge amongst our most senior leaders and their teams:

Why Every Executive Should Be Focusing on Culture Change Now​

To make transformation a reality in their businesses post-pandemic, leaders must build a strong culture to support it.

As the global community emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, business leaders must lay the foundation for their organizations to thrive in a very different world. The pandemic accelerated three interlinked types of transformation affecting every industry: the adoption of digital technologies, the development of new business models, and the implementation of new ways of working. Most companies are now engaged in one or more of these types of transformation. Businesses that aren’t — whether because they have ignored the signals or have failed to adapt quickly enough — risk becoming obsolete.

While most executives recognize the transformation imperative, far fewer understand the essential connection between business transformation and culture change. Companies cannot realize the true potential of digital transformation, embrace new business models, or implement new ways of working without supporting changes in organizational behaviors and norms. A recent study by Boston Consulting Group found that companies that focused on culture were five times more likely to achieve breakthrough results in their digital transformation initiatives than those that didn’t.

Focusing on culture change also can help companies that have not yet embarked on transformation journeys. An adaptive culture provides a foundation for transformation. It also helps organizations overcome cultural fragmentation due to the incomplete integration of acquisitions or a legacy of growth across multiple geographies.

Leaders also need to understand that culture is dynamic and that change will happen in their organizations even if they do nothing to guide it. Employee values, mindset, and behaviors have evolved rapidly in the past year. These changes may or may not be the ones your organization needs, or necessary changes may not be progressing at the right pace.

For these reasons, leaders must take a proactive approach to build the right culture now and avoid the need to reshape culture in parallel with large-scale organizational transformation.

All companies are different, so leaders must adjust for the specific contexts in which their organizations operate. However, we also see a high degree of consistency in the elements of culture required to achieve the full potential of organizational transformations, whether digital or driven by changing business models or new ways of working.

At the risk of promoting a “one best way,” we have identified seven elements of adaptive culture that we consistently see in businesses that have transformed successfully. (See “The Seven Elements of Adaptive Culture.”) Together, they provide the cultural foundation necessary to support rapid adaptation, innovation, and organizational resilience.

The Seven Elements of Adaptive Culture​

  1. Customer centricity: Understanding and prioritizing the needs of customers rather than focusing on products or profit.
  2. Ecosystem focus: Prioritizing the well-being of the entire multiorganizational system and not just the company.
  3. Analytical orientation: Fully embracing the power of data and analytics in decision-making rather than relying only on experience or judgment.
  4. Collaborative reflex: Proactively engaging in cross-organizational collaboration and teamwork rather than working in silos.
  5. Bias to action: Valuing speed, not risk minimization, over perfection.
  6. Learning mindset: Engaging in experimentation and rapid learning.
  7. Leader as enabler: Empowering and energizing people while holding them accountable.
sloanreview.mit.edu

Why Every Executive Should Be Focusing on Culture Change Now

Businesses that don’t understand the connection between business transformation and culture change risk obsolescence.
sloanreview.mit.edu sloanreview.mit.edu
 
@daftandbarmy One of the problems is that there are a lot of common business approaches trying to get ported into DND without looking to see if the context makes sense, and if they need to adopt the strategy to make it work.

I think that makes some initiatives difficult/impractical to implement, as they don't take into account what we actually do, and are meant for normal businesses where the main point is to make money.
 
Navy_Pete said:
@daftandbarmy One of the problems is that there are a lot of common business approaches trying to get ported into DND without looking to see if the context makes sense, and if they need to adopt the strategy to make it work.

I think that makes some initiatives difficult/impractical to implement, as they don't take into account what we actually do, and are meant for normal businesses where the main point is to make money.
Click to expand...

Because DND/CAF humans are different from other humans, right? ;)
 
The CAF as a whole could improve the last three points greatly.
As long as reconstitution remains a number 1 priority along with readiness and modernization I don’t expect much.
 
daftandbarmy said:
Because DND/CAF humans are different from other humans, right? ;)
Click to expand...
No, but a customer centrict approach focused on increasing profits doesn't really make sense. And some aspects of the culture are unique to militaries because we fundamentally do different things, and if you only consider it from the lens of what makes sense for a business you can drop important aspects of why it works in one context but not in another.

Screws and bolts both turn, but it's better to use the right tool.

Relevant example, the RCN is trying to implement commercial classification standards, while giving the RCN the ability to disregard it as long as they 'accept the risk', with no ability for the technical side to drop the hammer.

Classification works on commercial ships because they can order things fixed or the ship will lose insurance and not allowed to leave the harbour. We're adopting the rules without those controls, and basically the defects keep piling up with no checks and balances as long as there are individual risk assessments. We don't do big picture risk assessments, and if anyone thinks they understand the cumulative risk of 1500+ defects, missed maintenance routines and broken things per ship, they are kidding themselves.
 
Good2Golf said:
Weinie has always been out standing in his field. 😉
Click to expand...
I know the type...

Wizard Of Oz Dorothy GIF
 
daftandbarmy said:
Not always true. Lots of work and research has gone into this subject, but clearly not by the CAF.

Culture change means leaders changing the way they show up and collaborate, as the highest priority, which is also frequently the hardest thing to do. In the list of seven elements mentioned below, for example, there is no mention of 'get the CFO to hand you another billion dollars'.

For a senior leader, like our Army Commander, to say 'I need more stuff or I can't change culture' should get him a set of walking papers, which would happen to any CEO that said the same thing. Again, it speaks to some glaring gaps in the organizational leadership knowledge amongst our most senior leaders and their teams:

Why Every Executive Should Be Focusing on Culture Change Now​

To make transformation a reality in their businesses post-pandemic, leaders must build a strong culture to support it.

As the global community emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, business leaders must lay the foundation for their organizations to thrive in a very different world. The pandemic accelerated three interlinked types of transformation affecting every industry: the adoption of digital technologies, the development of new business models, and the implementation of new ways of working. Most companies are now engaged in one or more of these types of transformation. Businesses that aren’t — whether because they have ignored the signals or have failed to adapt quickly enough — risk becoming obsolete.

While most executives recognize the transformation imperative, far fewer understand the essential connection between business transformation and culture change. Companies cannot realize the true potential of digital transformation, embrace new business models, or implement new ways of working without supporting changes in organizational behaviors and norms. A recent study by Boston Consulting Group found that companies that focused on culture were five times more likely to achieve breakthrough results in their digital transformation initiatives than those that didn’t.

Focusing on culture change also can help companies that have not yet embarked on transformation journeys. An adaptive culture provides a foundation for transformation. It also helps organizations overcome cultural fragmentation due to the incomplete integration of acquisitions or a legacy of growth across multiple geographies.

Leaders also need to understand that culture is dynamic and that change will happen in their organizations even if they do nothing to guide it. Employee values, mindset, and behaviors have evolved rapidly in the past year. These changes may or may not be the ones your organization needs, or necessary changes may not be progressing at the right pace.

For these reasons, leaders must take a proactive approach to build the right culture now and avoid the need to reshape culture in parallel with large-scale organizational transformation.

All companies are different, so leaders must adjust for the specific contexts in which their organizations operate. However, we also see a high degree of consistency in the elements of culture required to achieve the full potential of organizational transformations, whether digital or driven by changing business models or new ways of working.

At the risk of promoting a “one best way,” we have identified seven elements of adaptive culture that we consistently see in businesses that have transformed successfully. (See “The Seven Elements of Adaptive Culture.”) Together, they provide the cultural foundation necessary to support rapid adaptation, innovation, and organizational resilience.

The Seven Elements of Adaptive Culture​

  1. Customer centricity: Understanding and prioritizing the needs of customers rather than focusing on products or profit.
  2. Ecosystem focus: Prioritizing the well-being of the entire multiorganizational system and not just the company.
  3. Analytical orientation: Fully embracing the power of data and analytics in decision-making rather than relying only on experience or judgment.
  4. Collaborative reflex: Proactively engaging in cross-organizational collaboration and teamwork rather than working in silos.
  5. Bias to action: Valuing speed, not risk minimization, over perfection.
  6. Learning mindset: Engaging in experimentation and rapid learning.
  7. Leader as enabler: Empowering and energizing people while holding them accountable.
sloanreview.mit.edu

Why Every Executive Should Be Focusing on Culture Change Now

Businesses that don’t understand the connection between business transformation and culture change risk obsolescence.
sloanreview.mit.edu sloanreview.mit.edu
Click to expand...
I would warn the current Business Management trends like DEI or "culture change" are about to peak. The coming economic storm is going to run head first into the modern management culture. Companies like Blackrock and their CEO Fink are going to be in a world of hurt. Their DEI culture cascade though the S&P is not getting them the returns they have hoped for.

In an org like the CAF should not be using business management ideas. Take Just in Time for logistics in a military setting that's not going work. Using technology to move material to the end user is a good thing. Not having warehouses of "war" stock is not. etc.

Also I think embracing the "soft" type HR management styles are not always a good thing for the military.....I have always thought the Canadian style of the CAF as a "job" not as something seen even greater a culture mistake by the government. (that's my belief but not my main point here) I hated the ads on the bus to the armories in the 80's "looking some money get a job in the CF" When you see ads on American TV We do more before 8:00 am in the morning than.....etc. The point is in a organization that "employees" have the ultimate unlimited liability clause things are different than the job at the bank or the factory.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Bruce Monkhouse
    • Like
Canada Doesnt Have an Islamophobia Problem- Article
Replies
10
Views
6K
Jarnhamar
Jarnhamar
K
    • Wow
North Carolina pilot jumps from plane midair before emergency landing
Replies
7
Views
5K
Kilted
K
T
    • Like
Close to 1 Billion unspent
2
Replies
36
Views
18K
Navy_Pete
Navy_Pete
Weinie
    • Like
OMM Revocation
2
Replies
26
Views
16K
kratz
kratz
Furniture
    • Like
Will Politicians Learn to Stop Dividing? I Doubt it...
3 4 5
Replies
82
Views
38K
Fishbone Jones
Fishbone Jones
Back
Top