Change management is one of the greatest competencies of current leaders.
The last two decades were times of true digital revolution. As customers, we are facing new disruptive solutions each day. That affects our daily rituals which now are different from a generation ago.
This transformation consists of a big number of small changes, innovations. As people, we urge for new stuff we can pick from the full bucket. “New toys” effect. Yet, the situation is different, when the changes are imposed on us.
“Survival is the ability to swim in strange water.” – Frank Herbert, Dune
It is hilarious to watch how children cope with such situations. They are curious when they explore the world themselves, while when we introduce, even a small change, we often face resistance without getting acquainted or just listening to the end. In adult life, in professional situations, changes often put us under stress and influence the psychological safety of individuals and teams.
Changes can be planned using the change management models. If those frameworks are enhanced with the in-depth context of the team, and leaders’ actions are embedded within the culture of the organization, such a Manager has all the competence to show his team the right direction for change. Spark them with motivation to build the space rocket of change and set off in the right direction rather than spinning in confusion.
If you would like to check the methods, one of the most popular is the Prosci ADKAR® Model. That acronym stands for the five outcomes each needs to achieve for the change to be successful: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement.
In a nutshell, ADKAR stands for:
- A – Awareness of the need for change
- D – Desire to participate and support the change
- K – Knowledge on how to change
- A – Ability to implement desired skills and behaviors
- R – Reinforcement to sustain a change.
For more info, you can visit the Prosci website. This shows the approach, and it would be only the backbone for the process. Such models help to cover the full spectrum and highlight the areas which need improvement.
People who create the organization, and its culture are the heart of each change, so please don’t overestimate frameworks and tools. They only help to navigate, to draw a map.
The quality of change management reveals the strength of the organization, at the same time it shows its weakest points. The core of both is the people.
Below you’ll find the most important tips for leaders willing to help their teams to survive and thrive through change:
- Focus on people, share context
Change influences people. Stay committed to the value of people in an organization, prepare for the change in a sustainable way. Make sure that the team is aware of the reason and context of the change. Does the team know what problem we want to address? What do we try to optimize? To which changes of the environment do we need to adjust?
2. Radical candor approach
Radical candor is caring personally and challenging directly, not brutal honesty. When we gain the ability to sincerely share the feedback we can develop each other through it. In a nimble and proactive way.
3. Room for questions, and then relevant answers
In each phase of change, leave enough room for questions. Encourage it. When questions arise, answer quickly and refer precisely to the question. Help to cool down emotions accompanying the change.
4. Use the change to empower talents
Some of the people are natural change agents. They feel great going into the unknown, they’ve developed the ability to deal with uncertainty, and stay resilient through change. We can make good use of their competence in the process of change and empower them by giving change management tasks.
5. Choose advisors who see the different angles, and yet feel the organization
Alone you can’t see each perspective. Consult people who have different approaches, roles in the organization. While implementing change search for the people who know the organization in-depth, also the ones who are new and engaged. So you will have the full spectrum.
6. Be consistent
Use your favorite framework, and stick to it. Don’t skip any phases. Draw conclusions from what is happening. Change is often an ongoing, iterative process.
7. Give time
You have to give people time for adjustment. Prepare the communication regarding change. Good preparation can save a lot of stress and give heads-up to the people who need it.
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed everyone to the epicenter of change “overnight”. It didn’t allow us to analyze, make plans, roadmaps for that change, and use available models for change management. It forced us to act spontaneously, drawing inspiration for communication from the organizational culture. The situation was symmetrical for everyone, however, it favored organizations and individuals that understand and learned that change is a part of development. That there is a goal at the end of each process, and when the process becomes obsolete the goal itself is the northern star.
The change will accompany us constantly, it is good to love it and master it as a leader or an agent of change. Here one of the most important rules in evolutionary biology applies perfectly, “organisms best adjusted to their environment are the most successful in surviving”.
Photo by Håkon Grimstad on Unsplash