Time for change

Time for change

Shashi Ravichandran

John F. Kennedy once said, “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

Everyone has heard this or a variation of this truth at some time or another. But how prepared are we to actually face and accept change? It seems that most people have a hard time acknowledging that age old ways of doing something may not work in tod ay’s demanding corporate world. The rigours of working with international teams and matrix reporting structures, both of which are common practice today, calls for certain panache in adaptability and a willingness to change with the times.

Take for instance an area where leading industry gurus are crying hoarse for change – college curriculum in the area of soft skills and business communication. How receptive are people to this suggestion? “I have been teaching this course for 23 years and you are now telling me there is a gap in the content?” His voice grew shrill. “I am a professor of English and I am good at what I teach. You are an executive in a multinational company. What do you know about teaching English?”

Mishra, Professor of English, has been teaching in the same college for over two decades. The syllabus is weighed down by the classics and Shakespeare. Mishra’s teaching style has changed little over the years and his course content and notes even less so. Shyamal, the target of the professor’s ravings, is an executive in the organisational learning department of an IT company.

Mishra does make a fair point. So where is the disconnect? And is it real?

Very. Mishra may be an experienced professor but his coursework and teaching are outdated for today’s market needs. The graduate population coming out of college needs the self-confidence to hold its own in an international arena. They have to be able to talk impressively with confidence. They have to know how to communicate effectively with impact. The syllabus, the teaching methodology, and the course content all beg to be revamped.

But because change is unsettling and ambiguous, because it robs people of confidence and challenges their beliefs and attitudes, many people like Mishra and not just those in academics, resist change. It threatens them and makes them insecure; it also intimidates them because they are unsure of whether they have the wherewithal to cope with the new situation. Generally speaking, most people are comfortable in a set routine and many get angry when confronted with change. Some even believe that if they are indifferent and ignore it, it will actually go away.

But the fact is, people who succeed in today’s changing world are those who don’t shy away from taking measured risk in trying a new approach. They embrace differences and recognise the value of diverse experiences. They have a flexible mind, they are open to change, and they possess high self-esteem and self-confidence. They meet challenges with innovative approaches and fresh thinking; they think laterally and build on each other’s ideas. They train themselves to adapt quickly to changing demands and are capable of delivering superior solutions. The future, as George Will said, has a way of arriving unannounced. Preparing oneself to win is every individual’s own responsibility and choice.

(The writer is Head, Corporate Affairs, Scope International Pvt. Ltd., the wholly-owned subsidiary of Standard Chartered Bank, UK.)