Organisations are organic systems. Just like the rest of us, organisations go through good and bad patches. This is true not only of their economic performance, but also of the professionalism of the interaction within departments or management teams, and of how the culture of organisation and responsibility is put into day-to-day practice. In many instances, the one is very closely connected with the other.
The need for change usually becomes urgent when times are not so good, and when the first grinding and whining of badly-oiled corporate machinery (which may be a result of external or internal factors) can be heard. External factors that force organisations to change might be altered markets or framework conditions, a revolution in technology or new customer demands. Internal factors that demand change might take the form of a new strategic alignment, an existing culture that is showing signs of "wear and tear", or cooperation models that are no longer up to date.
The idea of systemic organisation consultancy is to achieve a previously defined strategic target by means of programmes and “scripts” designed to ensure that the desired changes are implemented on all levels and in every corner of the organisation. The fragmentary approach represents an efficient deployment of resources, since it is rarely advisable to try to set up a “change operation mode” parallel to an organisation’s day-to-day operative business. It is far more effective to concentrate on bringing about changes in individual areas of the organisation that represent the whole. Intervention by degrees and in selected areas makes use of the “stages” already in place within the organisation anyway, and the characters required to perform in any given scene are only called when needed.
The requirements diagnosed and the change architecture agreed in collaboration with the customer determine how long the support will last, and how much will be needed. Also when accompanying change processes over a longer period of time (change management), it is ensured that change does not become the life’s work of all involved, but takes place after selective, targeted intervention has provided the necessary impulses to steer things in the desired direction.