7 Levels Of Change (Part 9 of 9) - Bringing It All Together

November 30, 2007 · Filed Under Brand, Branding, Business, Business Model, Creative Thinking Techniques, Creativity, Customer Experience, Innovation, Myers-Briggs, Personality

Table of contents for 7 Levels Of Change

The last in a nine-part series on Rolf Smith’s 7 Levels of Change, I bring everything together and discuss how to put the 7 Levels to work.

Part 1 - Introduction

Part 2 - Level 1: Effectiveness

Part 3 - Level 2: Efficiency

Part 4 - Level 3: Improving

Part 5 - Level 4: Cutting

Part 6 - Level 5: Copying

Part 7 - Level 6: Different

Part 8 - Level 7: Impossible

Let’s start by assembling a short FAQ on the use of the 7 Levels. Cutting to the chase:

Q: How do I use the 7 Levels?

You use the 7 Levels by thinking about your problems and determining what kind of solutions are appropriate. Can I solve my problem by doing things better? Then focus on Level 1, 2, and 3. Must I do things differently to solve my problem? Focus on Level 5, 6, or 7. Some problems call for improvement, some call for novelty. Some call for the tried and true, some call for the new and unproven. Start looking at change in these ways:

“Doing better” vs. “Doing different”

“Sustaining” vs. “Transforming”

“Evolutionary” vs. “Revolutionary”

Another way is to consider the 7 Levels as a sequential methodology to guide your thinking. It’s like an innovation diagnostic procedure. In each installation in this series I’ve included tools and techniques to help you answer these questions:

Are we being effective?
Can we be more efficient?
How can we improve? What can we improve?
What can we cut?
Who can we copy? How do we adapt it to our situation?
What can we do that no one else is doing?
What is impossible today that, if it were possible, would fundamentally change the way we do business?

Q: Do I HAVE to go through the 7 Levels in sequence?

You don’t have to perform exhaustive analysis for each level but you should at least THINK about each level. You might be able to rule out certain levels fairly quickly.

Again, it all comes back to the problem you’re solving. Going through the 7 Levels in sequence is methodical but it might waste effort, depending on how well you’ve defined your problem. In the appendices to the book there are several case histories that illustrate the benefits of the sequential approach.

Q: Why don’t I have a feel for Level (whatever)?

People have different creative styles and personalities. People with adaptive creative styles and Myers-Briggs type ISxx and ESxx are drawn to Levels 1, 2, and 3. People with innovative creative styles and Myers-Briggs type INxx and ENxx crave Levels 5, 6, and 7.

It would be hard for a person with an adaptive creative style to come up with Level 6 ideas. Or more correctly, what constitutes a Level 6 idea to an adaptor wouldn’t necessarily be the same as a Level 6 idea from an innovator. Likewise an innovator would have a hard time coming up with Level 2 ideas that merely improved things. He might try to improve efficiency by blowing everything up and starting over with a new process or procedure. In either case the solutions may not be appropriate to the problem.

Q: What levels provide the most bang for the buck?

Consider that as the Levels go up, risk goes up but so does reward. More than likely, Levels 3, 4 and 5 balance the risk and reward the best. This gives something for both adaptors and innovators to like. Level 5 is especially attractive in that what you are copying is proven, and the cost of researching and developing what you are copying has already been borne by someone else. Microsoft has used this strategy time and time again. Focusing on what works is the cornerstone of the Doblin strategy.

Q: Can solutions at one Level lead to changes at other Levels?

Indeed. The book itself contains a great example of this - the first combination KFC-Pizza Hut restaurants.

Combining two separate franchised restaurants into one was a Level 6 change to the people who came up with the idea - no one had ever done it before. But once they decided to do it, they found many opportunities for Level 2, 3 and 4 changes in process integration and elimination of redundant capabilities and positions.

Using the 7 Levels for Fun and Profit

Consider what would constitute the 7 Levels for an aspect of your business or activity. Let’s take an example we’ve talked about before - collaboration.

The 7 Levels of Collaboration:

Effectiveness - “I tell you want I need and vice versa”
Efficiency - “I use email to tell a bunch of people what I need and vice versa”‘
Improvement - The Golden Rule: “I treat you how I want to be treated, and vice versa, so we work together better”
Cutting - “We determine what’s most important about our collaboration, focus on it, and cut out the crap that makes it more difficult”
Copying - “We look at how others collaborate and learn from them”
Different - The Platinum Rule: “I learn about your type, style and temperament to better understand how you want to be treated, and vice versa”
Impossible - Telepathy and Empathy to create perfect, instantaneous collaboration

What about these?

The 7 Levels of Customer Experience
The 7 Levels of Rewarding Our Employees
The 7 Levels of Business Model Innovation

Start thinking about the Levels of Change in everything you do, in every problem you have to solve. And keep in mind that as the Levels increase, these other things increase as well: