By: Delaney Tosh

I have noticed recently that business people (and a few guru bloggers) are starting to use the term ‘business revolution’ to describe what I suspect they think is a catchy phrase to describe the latest and greatest thing to do in business -- overhaul everything at the speed of light. “Hey, guys/gals - let’s have a business revolution!”

Revolution. It sounds sexy, exciting…change happens quickly. But is the aftermath as sexy? Or just a messy scene of complications?

Revolution implies destruction. When something gets stuck in a pattern that no longer serves the majority, it has become status quo, but it is no longer valued. In business, the results could be customer revolt, employee revolt, profit revolt, or business owner revolt (burnout); all necessitating the need for a business revolution which has its costs and risks. Typically it requires all hands on deck to change course and some things get lost along the way. All energies and resources of the business are put to the destruction of existing systems. The change can be fast-paced and even exciting for some, but are companies undergoing revolution able to create new systems at the same pace? Is this effective?

Think about this statement: In a revolution, someone always loses.

Evolution implies creation. It may or may not sound sexy depending on your take, but the case for evolution is certainly more enticing. In nature, it implies a slower paced and natural progression of changes. In business, it implies much the same, a gradual change that meets the needs of customers, staff, and systems. It implies listening well and creating and using systems at all levels of business and coordinating these systems to track feedback and implement changes. Things can grow to the next level or be replaced by something more efficient.

Think about this statement: Evolve or go extinct.

What if you combine the two: set revolutionary goals, yet temper them with evolutionary actions that allow the goals to transform in natural and incremental steps?

When is it necessary to switch into revolution mode? And how do you do this without leaving a mess? If your customer is suddenly moving in a new direction, do you wait and evolve or instigate a revolution? You must weigh the costs/benefits of the risk of possibly alienating your customers. How likely are you to be able to maintain your delivery on promise while meeting a swift change in market forces?

If your evolutionary processes are functioning well, you are more able to change on a dime. You have the systems in place to gather feedback and do the research quickly to implement drastic changes to your business model. Think of Microsoft and the advent of the internet. Microsoft almost missed the boat, but was able to radically change their business model to capitalize on the internet. However, they did not have a full out revolution. They did not ditch their operating system business and become a DotCom start-up. They evolved their business to capitalize on this opportunity and continue to do so now with the advent of Web 2.0. Granted, this is a simplified history, but it illustrates how the company relied on systems it had already evolved to evolve with the marketplace.

Perhaps revolution is best left to those laggard businesses that are endangered with extinction -- sort of a do or die scenario. This too, however, could be avoided by following the laws of evolution.