How to lead a successful change initiative

Dear WW: My boss just volunteered me to lead a big change effort in our organization. We don’t exactly have a huge track record of success, but I’m so bored doing what I’m doing that it seems worth taking the leap. Any suggestions on what I need to look out for? CHANGING HORSES

Dear CHANGING,

Greg Ritchey was running for election to the Columbus, OH City Council and he was scheduled to attend a press conference at the City Hall. He never showed up. But not to worry! Turns out he ended up at the Ohio Statehouse, just a few blocks away. I guess he’s also a candidate for a good city map.

Unfortunately, it’s easy to pull a Ritchey when embarking on a change initiative at work. A number of factors make it all too easy to lose your bearings. The tips below should help you reach your destination. For more, check out John Kotter’s classic, “What Leaders Really Do” (Harvard Business School, 1999).

Do you communicate a sense of urgency? According to Kotter, this is the place where the vast majority of change efforts lose their way. Pursuing the new and untried is uncomfortable, and without ongoing motivation people will tend to slip back into the familiar. Kotter quotes one executive who believes it’s often necessary to, “make the status quo seem more dangerous than launching off into the unknown.” Losing money, sales or market share can all be used as a catalyst for action.

Do you have a vision? You can’t motivate people to change without a clear and compelling vision. Take time to develop a vision-and vision statement!-that are galvanizing. How will you know when they’re effective? When, using them, you’re able to generate interest and enthusiasm in five minutes or less. 

Do you have a team behind the effort? While in the beginning, a change effort may involve only a couple of people, over time others will need to get involved. Plan ahead. Determine which individuals and departments will be needed to make it to the Promised Land. And don’t forget: it’s always easier to cultivate supporters BEFORE you need to ask them for something.

Do you remove obstacles? Every initiative faces obstacles, and change initiatives face more than most. Even if they don’t derail your effort, they’ll consume valuable time, energy and resources. Minimize the damage by planning ahead. Anticipate obstacles and put together a contingency plan for overcoming, minimizing or avoiding them.

Do you look for little victories? Change efforts succeed only through the efforts of many people, and people need fuel if they’re going to support your cause over time (no one initially will probably share your level of passion). Fuel them by celebrating every chance you get. Look for little victories and use them to build the confidence and momentum of your team.

You can fight city hall, but you have to get inside it first. Hopefully these tips will keep you pointed in the right direction.

Working Wounded poll:

What has been your experience with change initiatives where you work?

• ¨ Fight it, I like things just the way they are, 4.6%
• ¨ Wait it out, it’ll lose steam, 17.4%
• ¨ Change, my organization doesn’t change, 26.7%
• ¨ Join in, I’m ready for change, 51.2%

Working Wounded strategy:

Our winning strategy for managing change comes from Gilbert B. in Kensington, CA. “First of all, make sure you know what everybody is doing, and why, before you make ANY changes. There are reasons why things have been done the old way, and some of these reasons may still be valid.  An organization is like a chain and, if you sever just one link, dire things may happen.  Talk to the employees at the bottom of the food chain, not just the big shots.  Why is the office kept open at considerable expense for one lowly clerk who works from 4:00 pm till midnight?  Not because she likes to sleep in, but because she has to telephone the factory in Singapore for the daily status of the orders, and they’re not on our time.  Put her on the day shift, and you’ll have chaos.  Reorganizations have to be handled like fine porcelain; you’re dealing with fragile merchandise.”

Bob Rosner is a best-selling author, speaker and internationally syndicated columnist. Sherrie Campbell is a relationship and business professional, having applied her counseling background in a variety of challenging organizational settings. They’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic, especially if you have better ideas than they do. Also check out their complete column archive at workmash.org, “The Boss’s Survival Guide” and “Gray Matters: The workplace survival guide.” Send your questions or comments to bob@workmash.org.

How to deal with people who resist change at work

Dear WW: I’ve been asked to head up a new initiative in my company. The last time we tried something like this it failed, not because it was a bad idea, but because we couldn’t get the employees to go along with it. How can we overcome our employees’ resistance to doing anything new? THE EMPLOYEES AREN’T A CHANGIN’

Dear CHANGIN’,

Did you read about the London motorist who was ticketed for speeding by a roadside camera? The police mailed the guy his ticket, along with the photo of his speeding car. So the guy responded in kind: he mailed the police a photo of one of his checks! He thought that would be the end of it, too-until the cops sent him a photo of handcuffs. The motorist speedily paid his fine.

Many employees are like this motorist. When presented with change, they put up roadblocks to see if the changes are real or just a passing fad. Fortunately, there are ways to race past employee resistance. The questions below will help you steer clear of the most common employee concerns. For more ideas, check out “Guru Guide” by Boyett and Boyett (Wiley, 1999).

Can you involve employees in planning the change? The popular term is “buy-in.” Get employees involved at the front end, and they’ll be less likely to resist. Who wants to squash something she helped create?

Can you assure employees that the changes won’t blow up in their faces? Change initiators see the benefits of dumping the status quo. Resisters see only the risks. So minimize resistance by acknowledging the risks. Listen carefully to employees’ misgivings and address each one fully.

Can you assure employees that the changes won’t mean a lot more work for them? To many employees, “change” is synonymous with “doing more with less.” No wonder they resist! Counter resistance by not only adding responsibilities to your employee’s plates but also put energy into looking for ways you can take things OFF their plates.

Can you give extra support while employees adapt to the change? Change is scary to employees: they might make mistakes! You can ease their fears, however, by giving them additional resources and additional training while they learn the new way of doing things.

Can you make sure your new policies jibe with existing ones? Major changes make major ripples. Areas far removed from the ones you’re targeting are likely to feel the impact. Look at all the ramifications of your changes, minimize any unnecessary ones, then tell employees about EVERYTHING that will be different so there are no surprises.

Incidentally, don’t assume your employees will resist the change. I recently surveyed the employees of a state agency and found that only 5% felt the organization was undertaking too much change. Most employees EMBRACE change IF they have a voice in planning it. So get your employees involved and you’ll be in the fast lane in no time at all.

Working Wounded poll:

Which movie title best describes how employees at your company respond to a big change at work?

• The Big Easy (we like change), 14.2%
• The Big Sleep (we don’t change, period), 38.7%
• The Big Blue (we don’t like change), 46.9%

Working Wounded strategy:

Our winning strategy for dealing with change comes from M. P. in West Greenwich, RI. “Employees resist change because they are not a part of the ENTIRE change process. This includes research, data gathering, idea generation, and final proposals. Many times, the changes are developed by people who do not truly understand how things really get done. Gobble down a big slice of humble pie and get out of your office! Ask the employees what they are doing, how they’re doing it, and what problems they encounter. Listen to their frustrations and the “work-arounds” they’ve developed out of necessity. Gather improvement suggestions from them, and develop the final plan with these employees playing the key roles. Trying to obtain buy-in for a change is too little too late. Ownership needs to come from the start, it’s not something you can tack on at the end.”

Bob Rosner is a best-selling author, speaker and internationally syndicated columnist. Sherrie Campbell is a relationship and business professional, having applied her counseling background in a variety of challenging organizational settings. They’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic, especially if you have better ideas than they do. Also check out their complete column archive at workmash.org, “The Boss’s Survival Guide” and “Gray Matters: The workplace survival guide.” Send your questions or comments to bob@workmash.org.

How to deal with change resisters at work

Dear WW: I’ve got to make dramatic changes at work. It hasn’t even been officially announced and people are already digging in their heels to resist it. What can I do to lesson the pain? STUCK IN THE STATUS QUO

Dear STUCK,

A few days after September 11^th, a Pop Warner football team in Mildford, MA decided to do a brief memorial observance before their game. Both teams and their cheerleaders joined in the observance. The referee not only didn’t participate, he tossed a penalty flag on the home team for delay of game. As you’d expect, the referee’s actions created a howl of protest.

There are always people who will freak out at even the slightest deviation from the norm. Rather than getting upset, it’s important to realize that people who resist change are part of the change process. You’ve got to plan for them and initiate efforts to get their buy in. I’ve listed some tips to do that below. For more, check out the Harvard Business Review on Change (HBS, 1998).

Do you create a sense of urgency? I’m probably not telling you something you don’t already know painfully well-most people at work today are totally burned out. And burned out people are great at tuning out whatever follows the phrase “doing more with less.” So you’ve got to get their attention by creating a sense of urgency about what you’d like to do and why you need to do it.

Do you create and communicate a vision? If your change will result in people ending up in a better place, by all means share this with them. Remember that right now people are anxious, so discuss with them the positive ramifications and allow them to voice their concerns about any negative ramifications.

Are people empowered to act? The more control you can give to your people, the more enthusiasm they’ll bring to your change effort. Look for every place that people can put their stamp on your cause and encourage them to do so.

Are short-term victories celebrated? Anyone who reads this column on a regular basis knows that I’m a huge fan of little victories. To paraphrase the old saying about elections in Chicago, celebrate early and often. And don’t just focus on financial rewards; a pat on the back or a letter of commendation goes a long way, too.

Are the new approaches incorporated into the way business is done? The goal of every change effort should be to make the new approach the status quo. So keep your eyes open for places where the old and new ways are in conflict and prepare a plan for getting them in sync. Nothing takes the wind out of a change effort faster than the phrase, “It’s the way we’ve always done things around here.”

There will always be people who just aren’t in the game. Follow the tips above and you’ll get as many people as possible on your side.

Working Wounded poll:

Which movie title best describes how employees at your company respond to a big change at work?

• The Big Blue (we don’t like change), 15.2%
• The Big Sleep (we don’t change, period), 21.9%
• The Big Easy (we like change), 62.8%

Working Wounded strategy:

Our winning strategy for dealing with people who resist change at work comes from G.L. in Houston, TX. “In my work on computer support, we deal frequently with people who are resistant to change. In my experience, it helps to remember that everyone listens to WIIFM – What’s In It For Me. If you can demonstrate how they will personally benefit by this change, it goes a long way to getting acceptance. Very few people enjoy changing their work processes, but if you can demonstrate that the change will result in significantly less paperwork/ computing processing time/ steps in the approval process/ whatever, it can turn them around. Telling them it saves the company $N billion is nice, but unless they are in a bonus program based on financial performance, it is unlikely to change attitudes.”

Bob Rosner is a best-selling author, speaker and internationally syndicated columnist. Sherrie Campbell is a relationship and business professional, having applied her counseling background in a variety of challenging organizational settings. They’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic, especially if you have better ideas than they do. Also check out their complete column archive at workmash.org, “The Boss’s Survival Guide” and “Gray Matters: The workplace survival guide.” Send your questions or comments to bob@workmash.org.