Idea in Brief
Many change programs trumpet their arrival with well-known Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs). But just as many get stuck at the first hurdle to meeting those goals—mobilizing the organization away from the status quo. Catalytic mechanisms help catapult organizations over this hurdle. This simple yet powerful tool enables companies to propel commitment levels past the point of no return. They are galvanizing, nonbureaucratic means of turning visions into reality, usually involving a redistribution of power. Short pay is a defining example of a catalytic mechanism. Granite Rock mobilized its employees to feverish levels of performance improvement with this simple but radical policy that invites customers who are not completely satisfied to reduce their invoice payment—without returning product. Of course, short pay is not appropriate for every company, but other catalytic mechanisms wielding that much power definitely are.