IntroductionChange is the only constant in life. And therefore, it must be understood as part of an ongoing work in progress that calls for a much broader canvas that seeks out competing voices and works with the resulting ambiguities, contradictions, and tensions of a messy reality (Graetz, F. & Smith, A., 2010). In this presentation, I try to show that organizational change relies largely on the environment around it, much more than on the desire of the members or change agents working in that organization. This view departs from that of Lippitt (1958) who suggests that the successful implementation of planned organizational changes depends on premeditated interventions intended to alter the functioning of an organization. It also departs from traditional approaches to organizational change which typically follow a linear, rational model in which the emphasis is on controllability under the direction of a strong leader or "guiding coalition" (Collis, 1998). . In this discussion, I therefore compare the different philosophies of change and I try to show that the success of implementing change depends largely on the organization's appreciation of what is happening around it rather than of what it has planned as a strategic direction. in a turbulent environment that forces them to change even against their will. Every organization has an accurate forecast of its future, which is why they all spend time and resources putting strategic plans in place. More often than not, they are challenged to not follow these plans because they fail to understand that change is a natural phenomenon intimately linked to continuity and that the change-continuity continuum is what defines the body. ... middle of paper.... ..American Sociological Review, 48, 147-160.Graetz, F. and Smith, ACT (June 2010). Managing organizational change: a philosophical approach to change. Journal of Change Management 10(2), 135-154.Gray, J. (2009) On the road to Rio. AFR Magazine, November 28, 27-31 Kanter, RM, Stein, BA and Jick, TD (1992) The Challenge of Organizational Change (New York: The FreePress). Meyer, H.-D. and Rowan, B. (2006) The New Institutionalism in Education (Albury: SUNY Press).Newman, J. (2012). An organizational change management framework for sustainability. Greener Management International, 57, 65–75. Van de Ven, A. and Drazin, R (1985) The concept of fit in contingency theory, in: L. Cummings and B. Staw (eds.) Research in Organizational Behavior, 7, 333-365 (Greenwich , CT: JAI Press). Williams, R. (2008) The Great South African, Good Weekend, July 26, 18–24.