Urgency as the Catalyst for Change (Essay Sample)

Urgency as the Catalyst for Change Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Instructor’s Name Course Title Date Urgency as the Catalyst for Change According to the book A Sense of Urgency by John Kotter, urgency is one key aspect that initiates change management, and without it, everything becomes futile. The concept of urgency, in this case, highlights its importance, considering that most organizations have a strong culture which tends to resist change in every aspect (Kotter, 2018). Kotter's conceptual basis of focusing on urgency is derived from the realization that change is difficult and is likely to be encountered with considerable resistance. If not accompanied by urgency, then it is likely to lose steam, and the status quo may remain prevalent. Urgency helps to push through the organizational obstacle of complacency. However, there exists an underlying tendency to resist transformation where people would prefer maintaining the status quo when they do not have some compelling reasons to prompt them into action (Kotter, 2018). Kotter's primary intention is to unsettle this complacency and create an environment where people realize that the need for haste and action is paramount. Urgency makes people go out of their comfort zones and appreciate that keeping, as usual, is not an option. Additionally, urgency facilitates the synchronization of organizational effort towards a single goal. This helps develop a common opinion that the existing state of affairs cannot be tolerated, hence calling for collective action (Kotter, 2018). The shared understanding provides support for working together, breaking the silos, and standing in unity while transforming the organization (Kotter, 2018). The lack of urgency might create a gap that could make change momentum incoherent, thus resulting in partial efforts by different sectors in the company. It creates a visionary and alert attitude toward the expected problems (Kotter, 2018). It forces stakeholders to envision and respond to any env...