Recent communication consulting exposed me to the world of Urban Renewal.
Urban Renewal and the revitalisation of cities; an opportunity for new Thoughtware, concepts and designs that improved the life of individuals, communities, businesses and society.
Such enterprise required many stakeholders, from urban designers to sociologists, from economists to architects, engineers to community builders, communication agencies to scientists.
The particular project, whilst sponsored by a government agency, was being driven through that agency by a visionary consultant whose agenda was creating ‘places’ that met the real needs of people for the foreseeable future.
The government agency and consultants vision was not only for transformative outcomes but also a process methodology that required continual engagement and dialogue with, and empowerment of, the people who were going to inhabit the new city.
It was their city – they were going to have to live in it.
Invited professionals were required to facilitate the cities existing community to be the drivers and conceivers of the new design rather than the recipients of a ‘professional’ solution.
What quickly became apparent (What has this to do with Pharma and Communication – Read On)
What quickly became apparent was that all of the professional stakeholders, both as individual businesses and as the assembled team, had ‘their way’ of approaching projects of this nature.
Continual dialogue, engagement and facilitation with the cities inhabitants were totally alien concepts.
Their response was formulaic!
Was this expertise or was it the equivalent of the ‘form letter’?
Was this a rote response, the professional machine in action, or an application of tried and tested methodologies?
Were they in ‘the professional groove’ or in a ‘professional rut’?
The sponsoring agency, their advisor and the existing community were not going to accept a new, but dysfunctional, city design. Nor were they going to accept a role in the grandstand when they could be actively playing the game to win.
Passive acceptance of a solution, provided by experts, to the place they were going to live their lives, representing more of the same as everywhere else, was not going to be acceptable.
The Result – a massive challenge to large professional organisations to create new Thoughtware that would lead to a significant improvement in outcomes for the ultimate recipients of their product – PEOPLE.
The government agency and their advisor were acting as the catalyst for change.
The vision and agenda were set - professionals had to respond or be kicked-off the team.
How did the professionals fare? Miserably!
Workshops, exemplars, external leadership, coaching, participation in trials all manner of mind-shifting struggled to achieve professional organisation enlightenment.
Corporate resistance took many forms. Denigration of the advising consultant was rife. Undermining of the process abounded. Professional indignity was clearly apparent.
“We know how to do this and the quicker this nonsense ends the better and we can get back to doing what we are good at.”
Don’t think for a moment that the government agency, who were on the frontline of paradigm changing, were exempt from challenges.
Organisational structure, internal processes, methodologies, plans, policies, procedures, personnel all faced scrutiny and change.
“What we have achieved in the past and the means by which we have achieved it has not serviced our constituents efficiently or effectively. We cannot go on evolving the same old paradigm and hope that the outcomes generated will be any different.”
Well Pharma is this just another ‘tale of two cities’ or an insight into a fundamental problem that pervades professional organisations and the paradigm of modern business?
How relevant is this story to you?
Where is the leadership vision?
Who’s providing the catalyst for change?
Where is the challenge to and rethink of the business paradigm?
What methods are being utilised to engage, listen to and empower clients and consumers?
Where is the comprehension that unless Pharma takes a responsible role for a paradigm change in the health and wellbeing marketplace then the ‘reserves bench’ as opposed to a regular ‘first team’ place could well be the best outcome to hope for?
Come on Pharma get into ‘the groove’ and out of the ‘rut’!
(Tomorrow’s Blog: Effectiveness and Efficiency in Pharma Communication)
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