Signals for change

Every organisation moves through phases. Knowing when to change matters. But knowing why you’re not changing matters maybe more. We’ve distilled the collective experience of Kirk & Blackbeard’s captains into a library of recognisable change failure patterns, so you can spot them early, correct course, ask for help and avoid repeating mistakes others already paid for.

Storm Signalling

When early warnings are seen, reported, and discussed but never allowed to steer.

Map / Territory Confusion

When leadership mistakes representations of reality for reality itself

Steamship Logic

Modernising everything except the thinking

Phantom Pursuit

An image of a 1950's radar scree, as a metaphor for organisations embracing hyped tech as a silver bullet for their problems.

An image of a 1950's radar scree, as a metaphor for organisations embracing hyped tech as a silver bullet for their problems.

When last week's novelty hijacks next year's course

Compass Drift

an image of a 1960s captain looking through binoculars as a metaphor for how to avoid unwanted deviation from a strategy

an image of a 1960s captain looking through binoculars as a metaphor for how to avoid unwanted deviation from a strategy

When no one changes course, but you end up somewhere else anyway

Anchor Dragging

When your history is steering the ship

Fog of Metrics

When instruments are trusted more then reality

Mutiny by Compliance

When obedience becomes the safest form of challenge

Kawaii Plundering

When friendlyness hides the true nature of the businessmodel.