Change is Necessary, But it has to be the Right Change

Response to: Don’t Threaten People with This Famous Dr. Deming Quote

I do believe Deming said "It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory."

I think short quotes are wonderful because they can pack tons of meaning into a short quip that you can take in quickly.  The problem is that, to then do what Dr. Deming implies is necessary - change - you need the knowledge necessary to make the right changes.

While change may well be necessary.  Change is not sufficient.  You need to know what to do then change.  Similar to Dr. Deming's thoughts on best efforts :-)

And as Peter Scholtes said "95% of changes made by management today make no improvement."  as quoted in the New Economics.

Related: Management and Leadership Quotes - Change is not Improvement - Management Matters: Building Enterprise Capability