En Voyage_Issue#14_Flickbook

Business
VIVE LA
CHANGE!
‘Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of
changing himself,’ said Leo Tolstoy. Yet, in the commercial
world of the early 21st century, ‘change’ is a vital part of staying
relevant as the world changes around us. PEA's Managing
Director James Orrick takes a look at the effects of change.
For a master class in change
management, one need look no
further than the natural world. In
his excellent BBC documentary
‘Metamorphosis – The Science
of Change’, Professor Stuart
Reynolds shows in detail and with
extraordinary filmed sequences,
how a fully developed butterfly
must pass first through the
phases of being an egg, larvae
and pupa. Like an actor changing
its clothes, the butterfly plays
different parts as its development
requires different things.
The whole process is called
moulting, a term that correctly
captures the idea of shedding
old clothes, but fails to mention
the importance of first acquiring
a pristine set of new ones.
Metamorphosis, which comes
from the Greek word meaning
‘transformations’, means that the
different stages of development
allow for specialisation – the
caterpillar is just an eating
machine, feeding as fast as it can
to grow big and strong, whereas
the adult butterfly is designed to
reproduce, to grow wings and
fly so it can look for a mate and
find suitable food for its eggs.
Professor Reynolds says: ‘… by
being quick, the period spent
exposed to potential predators
and parasites is minimised. One
of the ways in which speed is
gained is by postponing all the
difficult bits of development until
later; insects don’t metamorphose
until they have finished eating.
But when enough has been
eaten, the insect can retreat
to a safe place (underground
or inside a silken cocoon) and
take its time to transform.’
The commercial message
gleaned from science is that
businesses of all types, including
those in private equity, need to
adapt and, like the caterpillar
or the adult butterfly, need to
focus on particular areas of
change or specialisms rather
than completely reinventing the
wheel every few months. Change
needs to happen but it needs
to be controlled or managed.
It needs to be comfortable and
achievable. Many people set out
each January to introduce positive
change but few will be successful
without a thought-out plan!
There are some changes that can
be proactively introduced, others
that will be outside our control,
yet all will be changes that we will
have to learn to adapt to or evolve
with. As the world stage moves
on, for example, with it will come
inevitable changes in financial
regulation, tax transparency and
beneficial ownership and failure
to keep up with these changes
will simply not be an option.
Technology is another huge
driver of change and the rate
is accelerating every year as
processes leave their analogue
past and enter a bright digital
and virtual future. Not being
up to date and relevant for
clients and ignoring the seismic
revolutions and transformations
that point to the future, is a surefire
way of being out of a job.
Pressures for efficiency drive
change too and can introduce
challenges in keeping your
business model lean as the
adjustments you make to the way
you work will come at a cost. The
skills, knowledge and expertise of
your staff are the most valuable
commodity that you have, so it is
vital to ensure that they embrace
these changes too. You don’t
want them paying lip service to
any transformation - you want
them to be champions for the
cause, armed with understanding,
focus and enthusiasm. That is
something we have successfully
built into our culture at PEA.
The key thing to remember
in the midst of swirling and
potentially tempestuous seas
of change is to not lose sight of
your values and objectives. As
change takes place you must
remember who you are and
what you stand for. As Professor
Reynolds says about butterflies,
‘… despite all the shape-shifting,
the new creature is in essence
still the same individual.’
Vive la change!
Private Equity Administrators Limited is regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission and
licensed under both The Protection of Investors (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 1987 and The Regulation of
Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2000.
73