ABSTRACT
Introduction Managing change has been compared with attempting to change a Boeing 727 into a Boeing 747 in mid-flight. On the one hand, the change seems worth the trouble, because the 747 will be a more effective trans port vehicle. On the other hand, there will be a point where the craft is neither a 727 nor a 747 and the whole thing could crash. For supply chain professionals change is inevitable as current paradigms are tested and retested to attempt to attain excellence. Yet few will argue that translating supply chain strategies into action is often more difficult and less successful than was initially anticipated. Indeed, many initiatives to implement a new supply chain strategy either fail or fall short of expec tations. A key reason for this is that supply chain professionals neglect the behavioural element: they pay insufficient attention to managing resistance and to reskilling and developing people to operate in the new environment. In significant change, they do not ensure that the culture of the group of people concerned matches the new strategy.
