At Collective Next, we talk a lot about meaningful change and we distinguish it from just plain old change. Implicit in our use of the term “meaningful” are several interconnected ideas about the nature of the change (what) and the process by which it occurs (how):

What
The change is connected to a greater purpose. This means that its goal is to improve the life and career of an individual or help an organization better realize its mission. But, it goes beyond this. To be meaningful, change should be approached with three questions in mind:

• How will it impact the individual (the employee)?
• How will it impact the collective (the organization)?
• How will it impact the end customer and the world at large?

How
The process by which the change occurs is intentional and inherently valuable. For change to be meaningful it must be

• Informed by an inclusive process which allows those involved to influence it’s direction and to understand its meaning at an individual and collective level
• A facilitated dialogue about an ever-evolving destination. In today’s world the future is too fast evolving and the unintended consequences too many to assume we are simply managing towards a fixed destination.

We see meaningful change as an opportunity to become better versions of ourselves—better versions of our personal selves, our companies, and better versions of the world we live in.

Over the coming year we will seek to bring both the “what” and the “how” of meaningful change to life with everyday examples.