Mental Agility–the Foundation for Every Change in the Organization
INTERVIEW TO ERICH R. BÜHLER BY RENATA PUSZKIEL, PMI Strefa Magazine
You have been accompanying various organizations across the globe during the
transformations towards business agility.
What do you find so exciting about the
change that you decided to choose such
a career?
Let me go back in time… my first job was in a software company back in Uruguay in 1994. During the first years of my career, I started realizing that change was hard. The more you invest in trying to change an organization and the ways that people work,
the more you need to consider new paradigms and foundations. And helping people and creating new foundations have been my
main motivators.
When individuals learn something new in the company, they are not just happy to apply those ideas there but they also take them back home and use them in their private lives. That is why we have to be responsible. Responsibility is not just about knowing that something is going to work or not in the organization, but about trying to understand
…how it will influence a person and might positively change their life.
It does not mean that we do life coaching, we are not prepared for that. It means that we are responsible and we try to make sure that we understand the impact on individuals, what their fears are, how organizational health helps develop them, and how we can create a better company.
I have been helping change companies for more than 30 years and this is basically what has been motivating… helping people and companies succeed sustainably.
Which set of skills should a change consultant have in order to be successful in his role?
If we go back to the literature, they always mention that you should focus on two things, which are hard skills and soft skills.
Frameworks, methodologies, empathy, negotiation, etc.
This can be a little bit tricky as, for example, negotiation is something that is classication….
