Subject areaProcess and organisation
Also known asparadigm shift
A paradigm is the set of assumptions, rules and reference models that a group takes for granted and works by, often without noticing.
A paradigm shift is the moment those assumptions stop working and are replaced by others: the question changes, not just the answer.
The expression comes from Thomas Kuhn, who used it in 1962 to describe scientific revolutions, and from there it moved into economics and management. For a company the practical step is this: within a paradigm you improve what you already do, whereas a paradigm shift asks you to rethink what you do and how you measure it. This is why the introduction of artificial intelligence, or the move to mobile as the main channel, is described as a paradigm shift: without change management, people keep applying the old rules to a reality that has moved past them.
An example
A manufacturer that moves from producing for stock to producing to order, with sales data driving planning, shifts paradigm: the old rules, such as "keep the lines always full", stop being the yardstick of good work.
Enrico Giubertoni. Licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0: you may quote, translate and adapt this entry with the author’s name and a link, stating any changes. For commercial use, write to info@enricogiubertoni.com
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