Change has many definitions, with the consistent message describing the act of making or becoming different than before. As an editor, I’m a great believer in change—often couched as updates, suggestions, improvements, or other, less frightening terms so I don’t scare off my writers. I like change, but I understand many people feel anxiety at best and obstinate hatred at worst when it comes to trading in the old for something new.
The Times They Are A-Changin’
The beauty of change is, you can count on it to happen. Whether you’re a decision-maker responsible for what will change or an employee who must translate new objectives into desired actions, it’s a good idea to get comfortable with the concept that nothings stays the same forever. In our current business climate, it’s especially critical to draw on or build change preparedness into our company culture. Whether we face a pandemic, lose a valuable client or employee, or need to incorporate updated technology into our daily activities, training ourselves and our teams to embrace change increases resilience. The more agile and flexible we become, the more rapidly we can pivot from crisis to new possibilities.
(If I Could) Change the World
The goal is to embed preparedness into every aspect of your organization, including your daily operations, production processes, strategic planning, business objectives, and your overarching mission and vision. If your company has not invested in creating a change culture yet, the best place to start is to talk about it.
Communication is a key factor for establishing and maintaining change preparedness. If you’re forthright and include all stakeholders affected by this cultural shift, you tap into your employees’ collective wisdom about what they need to achieve success. You also gain insight into what needs to change, what would be nice to change, and what should stay in place. Change only for the sake of change demoralizes people.
Ch-ch-ch-Changes
In the last decade, change management is a popular term describing many available frameworks for handling the day-to-day practicalities of organizational change. As part of fostering a change culture, you should explore what methods might suit your organization. One framework alone is unlikely to fit your needs, however, so consider choosing from among the methods to design a system you can actually practice based in your understanding of your company and with input from your stakeholders.
Whether you need to implement a complex update or simply want to understand various ways to approach change, most change management methods have similar high-level stages, including:
Leading.
Managing.
Delivering.
Supporting.
Measuring.
In response to implementing any changes, your employees—and even you—may react in four ways, including:
Denial.
Resistance.
Exploration.
Commitment.
Understanding how change management programs work may help you and your stakeholders adapt what’s useful while limiting the negative effects of denial and resistance.
Man in the Mirror
As a leader ultimately responsible for motivating your teams, you should keep in mind some basic principles around change. In fact, you may want to move away from the concept of having to manage change within your organization. Instead, concentrate on building a change partnership where you, your employees, and other stakeholders, including suppliers and customers, find ways to determine together where you need—and want—to go. When change becomes people- rather than task-centric, you’re more likely to see sustainable results.
Change leadership embodies these ideals:
It starts and ends with leaders. If leadership doesn’t model the new behavior, it won’t gain momentum. How you talk about the change is crucial—if you nay-say the change even in subtle ways, you undermine it. If you’re struggling with it, say to your stakeholders. They may feel the same way, and together you can search for strategies to move forward.
Early participation from employees leads to greater buy-in. Rolling out a change campaign delivered by a select few or from a consulting company creates dissonance between the change ideals and the reality of what the changes will mean. If you involve the people affected by the change early in the process, you demonstrate respect for their wisdom and may significantly improve change adoption rates. You also lower the risk of lapsing into old habits.
Change takes time and commitment. Some change is simple, requiring a few weeks or months to research, implement, and refine. More complex changes, however, can take 18 months or longer to fully adopt. If you get bored with the message long before the change finishes rolling out, how can you expect your employees to make a commitment you can’t—or won’t? To keep yourself and others motivated, ask them to help you prepare a holistic, incremental approach for internalizing the change and sustaining enthusiasm. Set milestones and celebrate them together to help keep the current and coming changes visible.
Learn to Fly
Editors like to tinker, so we’re natural change artists. If you’re not, or your organization doesn’t seem to be, consider flexing your change muscles to help you and your company grow stronger, more agile, and more able to spin potential disaster into unexpected opportunities. The more you involve the people who must live with the change by communicating with them and including their needs and ideas, the more your company can weather whatever changes you’re facing.
Want to know more about building managerial skills or understanding the dynamics behind change leadership and partnership for your company? Check out Gillespie Associates’ Principles of Adult Learning.