Why Curiosity Drives Change Capacity: Scott D. Anthony

Change Signal

Here are three big questions that arise from this Change Signal conversation with Scott D. Anthony:

• What's systematically killing curiosity in your organization?

• Can you hold your team in that sweet spot between comfort and chaos? And

• Are your excuses actually avoiding the real work of transformation?

Scott D. Anthony, Clinical Professor of Business Administration at Tuck and innovation strategist, challenges how we think about change leadership in large organizations. Most companies lose their curiosity, focusing only on whether spreadsheet numbers add up — a pretty boring question.

The real work is building adaptive capacity through deliberate discomfort. You need people uncomfortable enough to learn but not so uncomfortable that they shut down or find scapegoats.

Scott shares the remarkable DBS Bank transformation story, from Singapore's lowest-ranked bank to globally recognized innovator. Their secret weapon? The Gandalf scholarship program that generated 30x returns on learning investments.

And here's where it gets interesting: successful leaders develop paradoxical thinking. They perceive danger while staying optimistic, allocate resources while avoiding rigidity.

Here’s where he gets helpfully provocative: When leaders say, "I wish I could, but my shareholders won't let me," that's just avoiding hard work. Every organization claims its situation is uniquely difficult — it's not.

Change management isn't about finding better excuses. It's about building curiosity, managing productive discomfort, and developing the mental agility to hold competing truths.

Change Signal. For transformational leaders seeking modern change mastery. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works.

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