Steering a new course

I love using analogies and similes to explain concepts and ideas, so when someone described a council changing direction as being similar to a train changing tracks this week it bought a smile to my face.

I was reminded of Turn the Ship Around by L. David Marquet which uses a method of transport to describe changing organisational culture, and also perhaps slightly unfair comparisons with turning round an oil tanker others have made in the past.

This got me thinking, what's the best analogy for change in local government?

Anyone who's worked in the sector will probably recognise that a council isn't a single vehicle, it's more akin to fleet of ships all sailing in formation.

When you think about it like that it's easier to understand that the challenge to deliver change in local government isn't altering the course of a single vessel, we know from the response to Covid that individual parts of a council can change direction very quickly, it's to alter the direction of all ships in the fleet and make sure they're headed in a new direction, in formation.

So if your council is setting a new course, make sure you plot a different direction for your whole fleet.

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