According to George Land’s Theory of Transformation in his book Grow or Die, every organization goes through the same S-Curve. This happens over time as things grow in complexity.
The S-Curve begins with a dip as the organization enters the invention phase. Here, the business uses creativity to explore what’s possible and make sense of the chaos of starting up.
The first breakpoint
Once the initial challenges are resolved and things begin to work, the first break point is reached and the organization moves into the improvement phase. Here, growth of the organization is managed as adaptive creativity is used to modify and improve products and processes.
The second breakpoint
Because complexity continues to grow outside of the organization—new technology, new competition, new trends—the improvement phase must give way to re-invention, using creativity to drive the innovation to become relevant again in the new complexity. This is an exciting, yet difficult time for many organizations because it requires another dip—more chaos, less certainty. Often there is an urge to go back to the old ways, which is, in reality, a path to obsolescence and eventually the end.
Where is your organization on the S-Curve? How do you access the creativity required to grow?
A Marketplace of Ideas 
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