Change management, as a strategic company asset, only began to
be openly valued in the 1990s. Since then the field, which
surrounds including employees in company changes, has evolved and
its importance has been formalised: bachelor and master degrees in
change management emerged not too long ago, and HR departments now
employ specialists in this area. It seems unlikely that this
field's rise has nothing to do with a general trend in employee
psyche: a poll carried out in the US1 supports
what's now accepted as a general truth, that younger workers
value happiness and inclusion at work, contrasting to older workers
who value income and skill acquisition.
The value of change management is twofold. First, when done
well, companies can pivot quickly to seize opportunities (a new
technology, for example) or to minimise unforeseen threats like a
CEO's departure, plummeting share price, or a tough new
regulation. For example, Shell, amidst a crisis in 2004, hastily
but
