Organizational Change: Why Establish a Sense of Urgency First?

Organizational Change: Why Establish a Sense of Urgency First?

Let's focus on point number one of Kotter's Change Phases model.
The statement/phrase, "Establish a sense of urgency", is not and should not be a directive to just stop whatever you are doing and jump into the change business.
It is saying to me that we must make the NEED for change clear and valid. The sense of urgency is calling for a collective FOCUS once a commitment is made to move forward with any change agenda. Sense of Urgency is not asking our bodies to go into panic mode or anything that creates undue anxiety. It is telling us to make it a priority once the homework is done. It is setting the stage for the subsequent seven steps in the model.