Adapting to Change: Making Innovation a Priority and a Skill

This innovation cycle was developed to explain the challenges seen inside utilities and other organizations as they grapple with significant change and transformation. In fact, as the external environment becomes more and more dynamic, increasingly dominated by changing technologies in the emerging digital economy, everyone – both individuals and organizations - must come to grips with a method of accommodating rapid and episodic disruption. This article introduces this cycle, describes its steps/stages and suggests ways it may be put to use for individuals or organizations facing drastic change, in need of transformation.

But first, a short note on the 2016 US presidential election, where a significant portion of the electorate was said to be “angry” and in turn, gave a majority in the Electoral College to an “outsider” who promised change. We contend that this group of people, sympathetically speaking (setting accusations of racism and misogyny aside), have faced very real disruptive change and decreasing job availability more acutely in rural areas, especially where traditional blue collar skills have decreased in value because of disruptive change – principally, globalization and disruptive technologies (e.g., workforce automation). These are trends that can only be expected to accelerate when a transition away from fossil fuels begins in earnest in the coming decades. Understanding this cycle is key to finding a constructive way beyond anger, pain, and disillusionment.

In all these cases of disruptive change, innovation is the key answer – when the old ways no longer work, the answer is not to withdraw into isolation or force a return to old ways, but to adapt with new approaches and gain resiliency. Only by first accepting change, then moving on to master new skills, processes and business models using innovation can individuals, organizations, societies and economies adapt to a highly dynamic environment where the rules of the game continually shift underfoot. This article and the Dynamic Innovation Cycle address two key themes: 1) Climate Change as a cataclysmic threat to global society and humanity; and 2) Personal Energy as the emergent, individual and collective response to that threat.

Climate Change represents unavoidable, catastrophic change. It is negative change if we fail to respond in a timely way and sufficiently to address the threat. Hopefully, it may still be positive change though, if we adapt by rapidly replacing fossil fuels with clean electric alternatives and by adopting more sustainable lifestyles. This cycle is particularly well suited to Climate Change because we are losing a way of life that provided great benefits, so the urge to Denial is strong; because the path to Mastery involves radical changes and so it's difficult to discern; and because Innovation will be at the heart of any solutions we develop to address this fundamental challenge.

Personal Energy will undertake steady change in iterative fashion, as improved technologies, new business models, and widespread consumer adoption combine to improve our energy innovation toolset for addressing change and disruption. Based in Innovation, Personal Energy requires multiple passes through this change cycle, and with each pass, it is hoped, familiarity with the pattern and developing skills will make the process more seamless, over time even becoming routine, then automatic.

Epiphany

1. Epiphany. The beginning step of the 12-step Innovation Cycle is a realization, at first subconscious, then increasingly apparent to anyone with open eyes and ears, that the sound heard in the distance is actually a warning siren for change, and it is blaring louder and louder. Myriad warning signs begin to form a pattern, which says that change is on the horizon. But the first reaction to disruptive change is almost always to deny that it is happening - "This can't be happening!"

Grief Cycle (Steps 2-5)

As more and more are able to move rapidly from Epiphany to Acceptance and acknowledge the need for change, others get stuck in the Five Stages of Grief, identified and made famous by Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross. Originally developed to explain the behavior of patients facing a terminal diagnosis, this model has been borrowed and expanded over the years to explain coping with grief in many guises. In this case, we borrow it to explain the grief of accepting the unacceptable: massive change at a global level. Persistent change can wear on a person, as can a prediction of calamity. Both apply here. Because we are all bound to go through these five stages again and again, we call it the Grief Cycle.

In what might be called the Grief Cycle Trap, individuals, organizations, even whole societies and economies can become stuck in one or more of these stages. Getting stuck leads to dysfunctional and maladaptive behaviors that are detrimental to long-term interests, foremost the need to adjust to changes that continue to occur while the subject delays accepting even that change has arrived and there is no going back.

2. Denial. Refusal to accept facts and reality is a common defense in the face of distressing conclusions and impacts – initial denial is human nature. But a temporary reaction that goes on too long becomes costly – it creates a life based in fantasy, which delays the real work of facing the facts and adapting to new realities. The delay that accompanies denial compounds neglected problems, constraining options, raising costs, and risking failure. The more temporary denial and delay are, the more time and resources there will be for adaptation.

3. Anger. Upon facing involuntary or unpleasant change, just recognizing loss – of status quo, of routines, even real economic loss – generates anger, a natural defense mechanism that humans experience when stressed or threatened. Focused and righteous anger serves a constructive purpose in nature, but unfocused or blind anger – from lingering resentment to blind rage – goes the other way, becoming a destructive and damaging reaction to change. Literature is ripe with this age-old story of self-destructive anger.

4. Bargaining. Exhausted by anger and seeing no improvement, one's focus shifts to bargaining in the form of If/Then propositions… “If I can just have X (some more time to adjust, relief from my stress, etc), Then I will be willing to reform, make changes, accept (my fate, this change, etc), some day. Or, in a more timely example, if I support a leader who promises to make my world whole again in exchange for X, perhaps then I can avoid the changes I see all around me with my choice. "Worth a try," one thinks, but this approach is one more step in avoiding Acceptance.

5. Depression. In time it becomes apparent that previous gambits to avoid the truth to shy away from unpleasant Reality – namely, Denial, Anger and Bargaining – are consistently ineffective and the challenge of reality persists. The unpleasantness continues, maybe even grows worse. And so, Depression sets in “I am screwed, I am a victim and there is nothing I can do” … It seems as if one is at the bottom of a deep dark hole and there’s no way out. Helplessness gives way to paralyzing despair, forestalling any positive actions to adapt.

6. Acceptance. In this last phase of the grief cycle, Reality wins out, Truth shines through, and acceptance of change ushers in a new world order to replace the old. But acceptance does nothing to obviate the loss of the old and the vacuum it creates. Something must be done. As we all have heard, “Nature abhors a vacuum.” As the old world, the old set of beliefs, the old coping mechanisms, the old processes and routines are stripped away, the subject is left an empty vessel, a novice in a new world without the old support mechanisms. Something new is needed, acceptance begins the process of adaptation and sets the stage for constructive growth and progress.

Mastery Cycle (Steps 6-11)

The Mastery Cycle describes the steps one takes on gaining maturity and growing into a new paradigm. The Grief Cycle concludes with Acceptance, but acceptance of a new paradigm is only the beginning. With the old paradigm gone, the resulting vacuum cannot easily or immediately be filled. Natural steps must be followed to build a new paradigm and fill the vacuum, with some progressing more rapidly through them than others.

Note: The five steps of the Mastery Cycle are described in more detail in the Customer Maturity Model at the www.prsenl.com website.

7. Orientation. To get along in this fresh, brand new world that is oriented around a new, unfamiliar paradigm, it’s necessary for the neophyte to go back to school, to learn the new ways and new vocabulary and grow into the new paradigm. Given that the environment going forward is dynamic, the task of orientation is ongoing – we are forever “in school” in this new world, obliged to stay current if we are to move ahead.

8. Experimentation. This is an exciting, but awkward stage, where newfound skills are executed haltingly, and mistakes and missteps abound. Experimentation is the heart and soul of Innovation – it allows the person or organization time to learn lessons more thoroughly, to apply the general to the specifics of the situation, and most importantly, to discover new ways of doing new things. When working with organizations, experimentation can take the form of Trials, which are good opportunities for individuals to engage with utilities and corporations seeking themselves to master the stages of change, innovation and adaptation.

9. Competency. As skills are mastered, those seeking to change gain a handle on what is necessary. They acquire their own toolbox, and master how to use their favorite tools for different situations. Each new skill not only adds to the package of skills at hand, it builds on the value of previous skills. Becoming more skillful is game-changing because it opens new doors to new experiences and broadens one’s perspective.

10. Mastery. As hidden talents are developed, skills mastered, and experience logged, mastery begins to emerge within the new paradigm. In time, habits and routines even turn the formerly odd and new into the commonplace and normal. It is said that it takes 10,000 hours at anything to become a “master,” although some dispute this. Let’s agree that mastery takes time, attention, and considerable work and learning. Mastery does not come easy, rather it is a tremendous investment of time, effort, and resources.

11. Innovation. Moving beyond the commonplace, the master can begin to play with the rules, invent new and better ways of doing things, innovate to create a personal style of one’s own. Sharing with others, playing with new ways, turning new technologies, products, services, and business models into almost unrecognizable approaches, the Innovation Stage is the most exciting of all. Furthermore, Innovation is perhaps the most valuable, given that it moves ahead into undiscovered territory and opens new doors that had historically been closed.

Unease

12. Unease. Imagine having gone from mastery to innovation, only to learn that the environment that was the basis for all this effort is changing and on the way to being replaced. The conditions and rules that supported one's mastery are disappearing. An unease creeps in, manifesting itself as a threat to one's security and well-being. This unease is the first signal that the cycle is completing itself and soon it will be time to repeat the process, starting all over again at Step One. That’s the nature of a cycle, as Unease leads to Epiphany, the recognition that suspicions are correct, that changes are real.

The Bottom Line on the Dynamic Innovation Cycle

While at first glance, it may seem a waste to go around and around this cycle, throwing out the past in exchange for an uncertain future, a key point to remember is that participating in change, adapting to the future is not a zero sum game. Each turn around the cycle imparts new skills, experiences, lessons and wisdom to the individual, organization, or society, building up its resiliency. With each turn, the patterns of change become stronger, the stages of adaptation more recognizable.  

Indeed, with each cycle the skills of Adaptation and Innovation grow, the growth becomes more apparent, and eventually, one’s skills at change itself even move from mere consciousness into habitual routines. “Here we go again,” the change veteran may say, as she recognizes the warning signs of Unease and Epiphany.

Those who get "good" at change recognize the patterns, anticipate the work ahead, and rapidly move through the Grief Cycle, almost skipping it altogether in anticipation of getting back into the Mastery Cycle and the Orientation Stage, where the fun begins. Though it is healthy, even vital to acknowledge the fear, pain and losses of the Grief Stage, it is not healthy to dwell there any longer than necessary. Conversely, accelerating through Steps 7-9 (Orientation, Experimentation and Competency) in order to spend more time at Steps 10 and 11 (Mastery and Innovation) - provides the greatest value before the environment inevitably changes yet again.

Those who get good at this adaptive behavior become natural community leaders, helping others along with the incessant difficulties of Adaptation and Innovation. The first four steps in the Grief Cycle, Steps 2-5, slow progress down and inhibit successful adaptation to change, becoming the common enemy of those who embrace change for the positive growth it offers. The less time is needed in Steps 1-6 coping with loss of the old, the faster we are able to get through Steps 7-9 mastering the new world order, the more time we have for Steps 10 and 11 reaping the advantages of progress and change.