To succeed in organizational development, take a leaf out of Jack Reacher's book

Change is tricky if you approach it badly. An Amazon TV show offers some great advice on how to get change right

In 2022, Amazon Prime Video launched a TV show based on the extensive Jack Reacher book series by author Lee Child. Three seasons of Reacher have since become available for streaming. Tom Cruise had previously starred in two decent Jack Reacher movies – the new action crime series takes things up a notch, though, and it certainly makes for excellent entertainment. The Guardian wrote: "This rollicking adaptation of Lee Child's man-mountain ex-military sleuth is hugely fun, packed with punch-ups and far better than Cruise's movie efforts." I couldn’t agree more. Plus: There is some professional wisdom to be found in the series.

The setting of the stories: Jack Reacher, former major in an investigative unit of the United States Army is now a drifter, roaming the United States taking odd jobs and investigating suspicious and frequently dangerous situations – some of which are of a personal nature. Key to Reacher’s odd personality is his willingness to get to the bottom when investigating crimes, regardless of personal risks - and even if he could be killed figuring out the truth. The man (played by actor Alan Ritchson) behaves in ways that can be described as consistently and sometimes shockingly uncompromising.

“In an investigation, assumptions kill”

Reacher says this often: Both to himself, it seems, and as a reminder to others he gets to work with. It is one of the most frequently returning Reacher words of wisdom in the series. Assumptions kill simply expresses that we need to question everything, if we want to get to the truth, in earnest. In fact, Reacher and those he associates with in his case work often learn the hard way not to take anything for granted, not to take anything at face value, and to refrain from jumping to conclusions. This is excellent advice for anyone dealing with organizational change and organizational development, regardless if you are in an external or internal role:

While we are tempted to settle with theories early, and to believe that what we experience is true, premature assumptions will frustrate our best intentions, and stifle our efforts to make a difference and to accomplish anything.

How often have I heard, over the years, that “people are tired of change”? Or that “we cannot demand that much of people, as they cannot handle so much change all at once. We have to stretch things over a long amount of time, to make the change more bearable, right?” Such assumptions are blatantly untrue and indicate severe lack of investigation, and a damning lack of curiosity, even. Reacher would never fall for that kind of narrative.

Finding solutions to organizational problems requires those involved in change work to consistently dig down to invisible root causes of visible behaviors. In change situations, we observe all kinds of behavior, then at some point draw conclusions. But when we assume that behaviors are hard to change or cannot be changed, it all goes downhill. While the observations around behavior themselves may often be on point, and verifiable, once it is assumed that behaviors are predispositions and limitations to a change effort, we are already failing.

Instead of treating behaviors as results of context and conditions, we often interpret behaviors as root causes. The reality, however, is that people adapt to changing conditions. Often very quickly. It is not behaviors, or stuff like “joint values” or “culture”, that are the limiting factor, but our willingness to change the playing field within which people will then behave. Once the game changes, behavior changes – often without much further need for external interference. Don’t take behaviors, or supposed “mindset” or what seems as “character” or “comfort zones” as a given. In organizational development, assumptions kill.

Assumptions kill means that, in organizational development and change work, our efforts will most certainly be derailed if we fail to be diligent enough in understanding psychology, contextual settings and systems dynamics. Which leads us to a second Reacher word of wisdom:

“In an investigation, details matter”

It is striking in the Reacher series how hardworking and persistent Reacher and his associates are in their work. There’s a need to put in night shifts to work through hundreds of files? Let’s get started! We have to make a big effort sifting through documents, riddles and piles of numbers? Let’s get to work – even if the numbers bore us. An observation is required – and two people will have to spend an enormous amount of time sitting in a car doing close to nothing? We better get going now!

Jack Reacher warns us that doing good work always requires making and effort and getting down to the intricacies of the problem at hand. In my consulting work, I often find that the details matter insight is not taken to heart. One typical example: I have had many clients who told me at the start of our relationship that the ERP transaction software they used “just isn’t working for us: It doesn’t have the features we need and the supplier is not very responsive”. Upon changing the organizational structure, processes and performance systems in accordance with decentralized decision-making, we invariably find that the software is fine, but that there were all kinds of problems related to sloppiness: Lack of training, lack of willingness to understand what working together might look like, broken and misunderstood processes, silo thinking. Or an absurd level of centralization of activities in just one individual’s hands. The opposite sometimes also holds true: On the outset, some tool or software is described to me as incredibly helpful or amazing. Later it turns out the tool was always superfluous and dysfunctional. Details matter.

Worse still: In our consulting work,

Silke Hermann

and I find that managers and executives often know surprisingly little about their people. I am not talking about knowledge of private matters, of course, but about the very things managers should know about or must know about, in order to do their work. What are everyone’s actual qualifications – and not just claimed ones? What masteries does each individual really possess? What is everybody learning in this moment - and if they aren’t learning anything, why aren’t they? Details about people matter. Big time.

Be diligent. Put in the work. Don’t shy away from the nitty-gritty stuff.

Reacher laws

Another Reacher quote pretty much sums up the Reacher work ethos. It outlines the reacheresque philosophy of organizational development, or consulting. – at least if you decide to read it that way. Read it carefully! Here it comes:

“Never forgive, never forget. Do it once and do it right. You reap what you sow. Plans go to hell as soon as the first shot is fired. Protect and serve. Never off duty.”

Neat, right? Now – off you go to watch, or re-watch Reacher the TV show.