THE CHANGE FORMULA

THE CHANGE FORMULA 

Change by its very nature is messy–it is difficult to manage and control. The bigger the change, the messier it usually becomes, so there is no magic formula. However, David Gleicher, a consultant at Arthur D. Little, proposed one very useful method of looking at change in the 1960s. His argument was that organizational change would occur only when dissatisfaction with the current situation, the desirability of the future goal and the knowledge of the first step to get there combine to outweigh the costs involved. 

This was expressed in the form of a formula. K × D × V > C where: K represents Knowledge of first practical steps. D represents Dissatisfaction with the status quo. V represents the desirability of the Vision of the future. C represents the Cost, both material and psychological, of doing something. 

The multiplication signs in this formula are included to represent how the factors combine. It also means that if any single factor is missing (i.e. the value of that factor reaches zero), the change will not occur. 

Comment 
This is simplistic, but the reality is that if you want to get something done, or have something understood it is best to keep it simple.