Most change happens slowly, through the ongoing process of growth, innovation and demographics. But every now and then it happens all of a sudden, sweeping away old assumptions and habits and obliging us all to do things differently. London’s ‘Big Bang’ in its financial markets was one such change. This year’s COVID-19 pandemic is another, as we have had to adjust fundamental aspects of our lives with little warning in a background of fear and uncertainty. 

In the world of work, we have had to adjust how and where we work with practically no warning. These events happen, and they will happen again. The thing they all have in common is agility and innovation. While they test us, they also present opportunities to foster innovation and unlock opportunities – when we are forced to be agile, we find we can.

The role of an architect in a modern delivery is about being able to do deal with both of these types of change – to understand incremental change, and to thrive on the unexpected sudden change. The accelerating change in technology happens sometimes incrementally, but increasingly in unexpected leaps.

In this article, Corneliu Rimboiu explores some of the ways we can learn from these changes, and how we might prepare better for future changes.