Five characters in a drawing represent different reactions to organizational change depicted as an unknown area behind a wall. One character cautiously looks over the wall to see what is behind it, another has decided to jump over, while a third will go around the jagged wall. In the center, one character is blind and unable to react to the change, while another seems poised to help those struggling with the transition. The drawing suggests the change was not properly managed as a team, as each character reacts solely as individuals rather than supporting one another through the change as a cohesive unit.

1. IN THE UNKNOWN
La Nuit Occupée(pencildrawing) -Hubert DEVRIENDT
My brotherHubertDEVRIENDTisa surrealistpainterandwhenIwas recentlyshownone of hisdrawings,
I immediatelyfeltitwasthe bestimage of whatan organizational change couldcause ina team.
Beyond some sortof a wall isthe Unknown.Five characterswill reactindifferentways :one on the far left
of the picture iscautiouslytryingtosee whatliesbehindandhasnotyetdecidedwhetherornothe will
give ita try.
Meanwhile,anotherone hasalreadymade uphismindand ison the top of the wall,readyto jumpinto
newterritory : onlythe future will sayif he wassmart or reckless…
The character on the right has decidedtosee forhimselftoo butas the wall has jaggededges,he will
take the time to go around it and stayon safe ground.
In the center,twocharacters take a differentcourse :one iscrouchedat the footof the wall.Ashiscane
and heavyglassesshow,he isblind andseemsunaware of the scene orunable tomove.Turning tohim,
a secondman isreadyto provide assistance. Hisheadsurroundedbyahalo,he isobviouslyakindof
saviourwhowill spendtime helpinghisfellowhuman beings ratherthanservinghisowninterestfirst.
The wall is of course the change,perceivedbysome asthreateningandbyothersasattractive.
Whateverliesbehind,the transitionmaybe riskyasthe sharp edgesof the wall show it.

2. All five characterscan oftenbe metwhencompaniestransformthe waypeople behave andwork:
the Innovator whose passionwillovercome all fearsbutwill notattractthe bulkof people around, the
Achieverwhowill pragmaticallyassessthe situationbeforesteppingforward,the Wavererwhowill
waitand see, the Passive whois unwillingorunable toaddress the upcomingchange,and the Saviour
whose supportwill help people findthe strengthorthe faithto move on.
What the picture may suggestisthatthis change hasnot properlybeen« managed»,i.e coordinated.
All individualsbutone,the Saviour,actfor theirownsake only andno « teamspirit» seemsto bond
themtogether. Onthe contrary, ‘managingchange’meansmaintainingsome orderandteamspiriteven
whentimesare turbulent.
Have you some favourite imagesof whatChange isforyou ? If yesI wouldbe gladif youcouldshare
yoursand tell whatchangingtimes andchangingorganizations have taughtyou !
Pierre DEVRIENDT