Everyone wants to make their mark and be noticed for it, like claiming possession of something, even if only temporarily.
I associate this with the English idiomatic expression that says “A new broom sweeps clean.” This expression is quite old – it was used by Shakespeare.
It’s all very subjective off course – if one asks the people who were there already they’ll tell you that things were clean already. The new person comes in and wants to make clean because they see it from a different perspective.
Sometimes things need to be cleaned up. And sometimes they don’t. The key is to acknowledge this and change only what needs changing, and not change something because it’s expected, or because they don’t understand it.
Someone new can make great changes because they have a new perspective, but experience is also valuable.
There is an extension to this saying, “Yes, a new broom sweeps clean, but the old one knows the corners.”
Sometime’s it’s better to just let it be.
The following was referenced in the writing of this post:
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Talk:a_new_broom_sweeps_clean)
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/proverbs.html