It’s an age-old problem.
- You’re a successful company, so you’re expected to innovate. That’s what successful companies do, after all.
- You’ve had a big restructuring, so everybody is scared about their future.
People don’t innovate (“Thrive” mode) when they’re scared. Instead, they keep their heads down (“Survive” mode).
So, Job One for the CEO is to get the people from “Survive” to “Thrive”. And yes, there’s a definite process.
As always, people do better when they have agency, when they feel they’re part of the process, not just cogs.
That never changes.
