Resource Management Innovations
Lessons from the Trench: Managing Change
If you have been following the Blog, you have a sense by now that we place a great deal of importance on the leadership responsibility of Vision Casting (where are we going) and Mission Building (how will we get there). Implicit in that transition from current to desired state is 'Change'.
For all of its negative publicity, I think ‘Change’ has inherited its reputation (as with most things from which we shrink) from a lack of understanding. I can’t imagine why we would accept a stock that never ever increased in value. It seems to me we don’t push back against digital watches, DVD’s or self cleaning ovens. I can’t imagine my children never growing up or my having to hold for life an entry level job. Rather, it seems to me that the change we are inclined to resist is that which we perceive will affect us negatively. Ah, the ‘P’ word. Remember what we were told about that? You have heard it said that the only constant we have is change … so why all the bluster?
If inherent in the role of leadership is transitioning from Current to Desired State … then isn’t corporate culture one big, constant state of … (wait for it) Change? The short answer is (or should be) “Yes”. Those individuals (and collectively organizations) who can envision ‘what done looks like’ and can beat the competition to it …. Wins. Its called First to Market. If I (read You) could create a change-ready culture … in concert with a clearly defined desired state (Vision) and a means to achieve it (Mission) … could I have a significant competitive advantage? It could be a virtual monopoly.
So lets better understand the physiology behind why otherwise smart people resist change.
We (good solid folks like you and me) naturally seek stability and order; change by definition brings disruption and uncertainty to that hard earned stability and order. Resistance to change takes many forms ~ from complaints and grumbling to absenteeism, turnover, work slowdowns, strikes and outright sabotage. Resistance to change is neither blind nor irrational, and change managed poorly is just bad for business. Under normal conditions, people resist change that affects them negatively, and welcome change that, they believe, affects them positively. This is rational conduct.
Fritz Roethlisberger, who conducted the original Hawthorne studies, believed that an individual interprets each change situation in light of his or her own attitudes. He diagrammed the interplay between change and attitudes (a function of personal history and social experiences both inside and outside the work environment). Translation: One size fits One. In our rush to affect change we often gloss over some key management (aka= doing the right things well) characteristics, that if incorporated into our planned response, could provide considerable advantage. Although space is limited here … consider these five points when planning change:
Step 1. Create awareness and urgency of the need for change.
Step 2. Involve people (those affected) as much as possible.
Step 3. Communicate the changes honestly, often, explaining the rationale for them.
Step 4. Deal forthrightly with concerns.
Step 5. Give those affected a role in introducing the change.
In Blogs past I have mentioned that a leader with no followers is just somebody out for a walk. I have not been effective as a leader if I have not clearly articulated a desired end result … then successfully navigated the corporate transition to it. I am not a shepherd, if I am not moving sheep. It just makes sense to have a strategy for change … then remember the three key elements: Communicate, communicate and communicate. If in your zeal to accomplish the goal you glance in the rearview mirror and there’s noone there … put the coffee on. Give us a call. We can help.
Cheers;
Rick @ RMI
Posted By: Rick Kneeshaw 2010/04/08
Categories: From the Desk of the HR Manager