The Necessity of Change Management: Why Our Traditional Communication and Organizational Structures Are Becoming Obsolete

Abstract

The exploitation of the potentials of the upcoming changes will not be successful without a comprehensive change management to master die digital transformation. The position we are currently at in this process can be seen in Fig. 9.1. Are we still the “observers” watching the “new stuff” with interest without already being real “listeners” who, for example, have set up a web monitoring system? Or do we fall into the “analyst of changes” category, with which a more profound investigation of the challenges defined by social media with regard to the own business model is involved? Or has there already been a “piloting of first test projects”—the necessary intermediate stage towards “strategic and organizational anchoring” of the questions about the social revolution? Or have we already achieved an “active participation as day-to-day routine” and adjusted our structures, processes, and range of services to the integration of the potentials of social media in a holistic way?