Depending on who you ask, 60–70 percent of change initiatives fail to meet their stated objectives, and the primary source of that failure, according to a Deloitte study, is resistance to change. So if you’re embarking on a change initiative, the last things you want to skimp on are risk-awareness and risk management.
Why should I care about Culture Mapping?
If you have an important change initiative you should do a Culture Mapping scan. It reduces risk and increases your chances of success.
Think of it this way. Imagine that your change initiative is a large fleet of ships that is about to go into a relatively uncharted waters (your organization’s culture). You would be stupid to just take the ship into the harbor without some advance scouting.
Culture Mapping is like sending in a team with a fast, motorized rubber raft, to scope out the harbor and plant big red flags to mark the rocks under the surface. To find the deep water and favorable currents. To scope out hostile and friendly forces. To map the territory, so you can navigate the safer waters and give your larger mission the best…
