ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we illustrate a transformational change through a story about the introduction of potato cultivation in 18th-century Sweden. The chapter evolves around the farmer Jacob Andersson and the gardener Einar Carlsson and their different approaches to the introduction of the potato. Their respective stories communicate certain strategic aspects of technology-induced change, but most importantly it uncovers the behavioral dimension of such change. Altogether, this historical odyssey visualizes how a new revolutionary farming technology once changed the world and functions as an analogy for technological change. The later chapters of the book will refer back to the story in order to highlight different important facets of change and explain the plethora of its adjacent leadership and management choices, activities, and strategies.
