Panta rhei
The Greek phrase "panta rhei" (πάντα ῥεῖ)
originates from Heraclitus and means that everything and everyone is in a state
of constant flux. Everything, including us, is incessantly changing - sometimes
sluggishly and sometimes vucanely. Today's speed of change is so fast that we
can no longer perceive it with our senses. This flow shifts
our everyday lives with surprising transitions, spontaneous movements, small
and large changes, overwhelming abundance, and unpredictable courses of time.
It means that permanence and stability are limited to vucane alterations.
Nothing remains as it becomes; nothing becomes as it is thought; nothing can be
thought as it is; nothing is as it seems.
This results in internal and external
obligations.
- Internal
The viability of the organization requires clear roles, consideration of the needs of the exec(utive/utors), and a common culture/ mindset. In the end, internal measures must be put in place that are consistent – e.g., Corporate culture, new collaboration models, reorganization of the agency.
- External
The need for action for the external adaptation must be clear: What are the requirements? Who are the stakeholders? What are the political, economic, social, technological, legal, and ecological influence factors? What external measures can be derived from this? The external flow is more challenging to handle, as it can only be influenced indirectly – e.g., through corporate communication, customer relationship management (CRM), and touchpoint management (TM).
Exec(utives/utors) must not allow themselves to
be shifted by the vucane world. They must react adaptively to changes - not
implement big change management after problems become too big, but respond with
an immediate adaptive reaction to the minor changes at the touchpoint where the
change occurs.