Leftwing Hate

The most important ingredients to successfully manage change in an organization are: executive sponsorship, effective communication, and accountability. All of these are direct responsibilities of management. Thus, unsuccessful change initiatives are most frequently caused by poor management performance.

It’s relatively easy to blame the stubborn grunt workers on the front lines for digging in their heels and resisting change. Much attention is placed on effectively dealing with their emotional response to change. While that is certainly important, it’s really the managers that require much more of the focus. If they are not on board, there is no chance that the individual performers will be.

Managers have their reasons for resisting change. After all, they are people too. They are uncomfortable with change. Most are strong willed as well and are very confident that proposed changes will be either ineffective or simply won’t work at all. Furthermore, there is frequently not a high degree of trust among management. Change initiatives have been unsuccessful so many times in the past, and no one has been held accountable. As a result, managers just play along, wait until the winds of change blow over, and see where the dust settles.

It’s not so much the overt expression of dissatisfaction, rather, a subtle remark or reaction, an inability to articulate the reasons for the change, or simply ignoring a proposed change that can have a huge negative impact on team members and quickly torpedo an initiative. If managers throughout the organization are not engaged, they will not do what is necessary to get their direct reports engaged.

So, what is the solution?

1) Upper management needs to solicit input on the proposed change from managers and they in turn must do so from the other employees. Those that disagree with aspects of the approach should not be beaten down for expressing valid concerns. Rather, input should be considered and adjustments should be made as appropriate. Managers and individual performers must be part of the solution.

2) Upper management must make the change a priority and reflect it with their actions. We’ve all heard about the importance of executive sponsorship. Executives need to consistently put their money, words, and actions where their mouths are. When change is on the horizon there must be adequate resources (dollars and people) to effect the change. Too often attempts to cut corners sabotage the change from the start. For instance, tapping a manager with a full time job to project manage a large initiative in his/her spare time is a recipe for disaster. Buying everyone a copy of Who Moved My Cheese and then slinking away into the executive suite won’t do the trick either.

3) Communicate, Communicate, Communicate. It is so critical. Open and honest two-way communication must occur early and often. Expectations must be clearly set. Everyone involved must be aware of the change, why it’s being done, who is impacted and how, what the roles and responsibilities are, etc. The message must continually be reinforced throughout the organization by the multiple levels of management. Feedback must consistently be sought and acted upon. Measurable desired results must be spelled out at each level of the organization to include repercussions for not achieving the results.

4) Plans must be put in place (with contribution from team members) to achieve the desired results. Progress must be reported, and those involved must be held accountable for the results.

With the above in place, the majority of managers will be won over, and they in turn will do their part to gain the support of the rest of the employees. The result will be the successful implementation of change initiative number one. With each subsequent win, trust will grow, change will come easier, and the many benefits of innovation will follow.