Peter Senge, the author of the Fifth Discipline defines ‘structure’ in terms of feedback interactions and relationships within a system. Companies are not machines where an action begets a direct response. “Companies are actually living organisms, not a machine,” he says.[i] Leaders shouldn’t try to impose or drive change. Leaders should try to cultivate change. Change agents are not mechanics who should be seen as someone to fix a broken machine but as organizational gardeners.
[i] Webber, Alan, “Learning for a Change,” Fast Company, May, 1999, p. 184.