The last word from the East: Wu Xing and organisational change

Barney Loehnis

The article argues that the success of an organisation and its ability to be agile can be likened to the presence of five elements of health which, in Chinese, are collectively known as "Wu Xing": wood, fire, earth, metal and water.

The last word from the East: Wu Xing and organisational change

Barney LoehnisOgilvy & Mather

Organisational change happens in slow motion, so every small outcome we produce must lead to a bigger end-game. 'Producing' things facilitates change. The better we get at 'producing', the quicker we build the organisation.

As Steve Jobs said: "The final step of an artist – the single validating act – was getting his or her work into boxes… Once you get the computers into people's homes, you have penetrated their minds. But to do that, to make a difference in the world and a...

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