The challenge of change
Anything new or different in our lives means change. Isn’t that exciting? Apparently not! When asked about change, most people will answer that they do not like it. Why? Usually because their comfort zone is in jeopardy. That wonderful protective bubble that we lovingly construct around ourselves. In the comfort zone, life is good. In a routine, we go through the motions each day, and we like it. The comfort zone is warm and fluffy and protects us from the horrors of the outside world. Until the evil change manager makes an appearance, destroying my comfort zone and dragging me kicking and screaming by the ankles to unfamiliar territory.
As change managers, what can we do to overcome this? Let’s give your change project a good chance of SUCCESS:
Shared vision
Change is often told, but not sold. This is why people don’t buy it. Create a shared vision for your team. A vision of what life will look like once they have got on board with the change and successfully implemented it. Paint a picture of their future that is attractive, compelling and inspiring. You want them to achieve it, but can you make them want it too? Can you make them willingly pursue the goal? Think of Martin Luther King’s famous speech in 1963: “I have a dream…”
Understanding of the organisation
The more you know about your organisation, the better. It brings context into the picture, along with imminent trends, threats and a sense of short to long term goals.
Do your homework before announcing any changes. This leads nicely into:
Cultural alignment
Make sure your change implementation effort is aligned to your organisations’ culture. Is it open to change, or resistant? Has there been a lot of change recently, making people more receptive? Or, does the opposite apply? Maybe have things been stable for a while and people have forgotten what change feels like? This might mean that your announcement of change may not be well received.
Communication
Simply put, a vital factor in successfully implementing change. Next, how will it be communicated? Do the stakeholders prefer face to face meetings, conference calls, mass email, or a poster on the wall next to the coffee machine? Or all of the above? Who needs to be consulted before a decision is made, or informed afterwards? A stakeholder communication plan works extremely well here.
Experienced help where necessary
Sometimes we can’t do it all on our own. A change project usually requires a project team to get the work done. Use the human resources at your disposal.
Strong leadership
A good leader leads by example and is a strong and effective role model. Good leaders have willing followers. They understand why they should follow and are happy to do so. They’re engaged. If you believe in and are excited by the change, they will be. If you’re not, it could be an uphill battle to harness team productivity and performance.
Stakeholder buy-in
How do we get the stakeholders to buy-in to change? Consider the vital question: What’s in it for them? Sell them the benefits of the change from their perspective: “what this means for you is…”
Alternatively, you could try Situation, Implications, Solution (SIS) – another form of leverage. Tell them about the current situation (changes are coming), describe the implications of change failure (bad publicity, lose customers, disaster) and propose the solution (let’s get together and implement the change!).
Conclusion
Most people don’t like change. So, if we’re going to implement one, we need to;
- create a shared vision
- understand our organisation and its culture
- communicate effectively
- get help if required
- lead effectively
- obtain stakeholder buy-in.
Good luck!