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by Tom Rasmussen
"The art of progress is to preserve order amid change,
and to preserve change amid order."
Alfred North Whitehead, English philosopher
As anyone who has ever managed change knows, the inertia of tradition is incredibly difficult to overcome. Reflexively, it is thrown in the face of change initiatives as a counterpunch. The power of tradition is especially potent in organizations with long and successful pasts. For those who achieve longevity within an organization, tradition brings back memories of the glory days and offers the temptation to say, "It worked well then, so why not now?" However, tradition does not have to be change's antagonist. Rather, tradition can be a powerful force FOR change.
Leonard Sweet, a futurist friend of mine, loves to hyphenate common words in order to emphasize their meaning. For instance, he might write remember as re-member. Doing this helps us notice that the root word is member which means. . . a distinct part of something. So to re-member is to put the distinct parts of something back together. Any parent who has watched their child play with Legos has observed them take distinct blocks (members) and re-assemble or re-member them in many ways. The same Legos that formed a house yesterday can be re-membered into a spaceship today. We applaud our children for the creativity to see new possibilities from the same set of blocks.
Can we choose to remember the traditions of an organization in a similar fashion? I think so. That does not mean inventing traditions that never existed. Instead, much like Lego blocks lying on a table, we take the building blocks of traditions and assemble them in new ways which, while still being true to the original, result in innovative and creative solutions.
 Consider two great American retailers. For most of the twentieth century the Sears catalog was an iconic part of Americana. A quote from the Sears website states: "The 1943. . .Sears catalog serves as a mirror of our times, recording for future historians today's desires, habits, customs, and mode of living." As a child of the sixties, I remember the excitement of receiving the Christmas edition. It contained the stuff of my childhood dreams. However, the catalog had already earned its place in retail history long before I was old enough to lust over its pages.
The first Sears catalog appeared in 1888. It capitalized on the most current social and technological trends of the day. Here again is a quote from the Sears website:
"The time was right for mail order merchandise. Fueled by the Homestead Act of 1862, America's westward expansion followed the growth of the railroads. The postal system aided the mail order business by permitting the classification of mail order publications as aids in the dissemination of knowledge entitling these catalogs the postage rate of one cent per pound. The advent of Rural Free Delivery in 1896 also made distribution of the catalog economical."
The convenience of mail order provided a growing America everything from grooming supplies to barber chairs, clothes to washing machines, and house wares to actual houses.
By 1993 however, Sears decided to end the long tradition of the "Big" catalog.
One year later in 1994 an entrepreneur by the name of Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.com, arguably one of the largest retailers on the planet today. One can buy nearly anything through Amazon. The selection and variety of goods available would impress even Richard Sears.
My purpose is not to compare these two giants of retail but to highlight my belief that, perhaps Amazon picked up the true tradition behind the Sears catalog.
I came across a statement the other day that stuck with me.
"Traditions are not the same as the old ways. Traditions are values that serve to define the mores and boundaries of a culture, society, or organization. They can be stories or myths that illustrate why we believe in one idea or value or another." (Adapted from Dr. Ed Brenegar)
In 1993 many people no doubt mourned the passing of the "Big" catalog tradition. That tradition was refined and enhanced for over a hundred years. It changed from relying on mail to including phone orders, followed by FedEx and UPS replacing older modes of delivery. But it was still the good old paper catalog, useful for propping up babies at the table, holding open a door, and furnishing the good old outhouse.
But was the catalog the true tradition or did it merely represent the old ways?
Here are some statements from both Sears and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
Regarding customer service:
"We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It's our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better." ~ Jeff Bezos
Richard Sears illustrated the cover of his 1894 catalog declaring it the "Book of Bargains: A Money Saver for Everyone," and the "Cheapest Supply House on Earth," claiming that "Our trade reaches around the World." Sears also knew the importance of keeping customers, boldly stating that "We Can't Afford to Lose a Customer."
Regarding new products and services:
"There are two ways to extend a business. Take inventory of what you're good at and extend out from your skills. Or determine what your customers need and work backward, even if it requires learning new skills. Kindle is an example of working backward." ~ Jeff Bezos
Always looking to cater to customer needs, Sears employed translators who could. . ."read and write all languages." He featured new items such as barber chairs, disc graphophones, and basketballs and goals (hoops). The next year he sold the Eveready searchlight and the babygate, and the company announced the opening of the Sears camera factory. The wig department added wigs for African-American men and women.
Both companies were on the cutting edge of utilizing the emerging technologies of their era. Sears capitalized on the growth of the postal system and railroads; Amazon leveraged the internet and automated warehousing. Both companies realized the value of reaching a customer base diverse in both tastes and geography.
While the differences between the two are certainly significant, I would assert that the values that the original Sears catalog created are very close to the values that undergird Amazon. Imagine if in 1993 Sears's leadership realized that the real tradition was not the catalog but the value of selling anything to anyone anywhere and offering a great customer experience.
Perhaps there are corollaries in your organization. In the twenty-first century, it is nearly impossible for an organization to go through a decade and not require change. At times, it may feel as though tradition is the enemy of that change. But look deeper into the DNA of your organization. Find the truest and best traditions and re-member them into your best allies for challenging and changing the old ways.
Tom Rasmussen works for Micron Technology as a Business Intelligence Engineer. He holds a Bachelor of Music Performance from University of Idaho and a Master of Divinity from Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. Tom has been happily married to Lorene for 31 years and a proud father and grandfather (would you like to see pictures?).
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