Change, Forever Constant

Getting people to do something new and different, often called the broad umbrella of change management, is rooted in the study of behaviour science. Various methodologies and processes have packaged approaches rooted in research, which generally have common themes. They are logical, can overlay with a well constructed project plan, and people are often championing their value. However, they aren’t always well utilized in action, for a variety of reasons.

Time is likely the greatest enemy of change management, as it does require both planning and actions from people to not focus on the other dozen tasks on their plates. Additionally, there is often a financial cost for that time, relieving roles to learn and build capacity, thereby enabling their ability to apply the new.

Value is one that is a little harder to measure in supporting a change, but it boils down to those who are most impacted understanding the ‘why’. Understanding drivers for decisions can make a powerful difference when people are told they have to do something new; hopefully those reasons resonate with their own values. People are generally reasonable, and appreciate the need to address problematic drivers, even if it’s inconvenient for them to reprogram their work.

A good plan to move people from the place they are to the desired end also has a tremendous impact on successful outcomes. If mapped over a timeline, it becomes easy to measure increments of success.

All of these are helpful with change and can often be successfully executed, yet there is still a struggle with managing change, because change is ultimately about people, and people are in an ever evolving ecosystem of movement. From massive global events to pressing work priorities to personal crises, those actioning changes are impacted by an endless barrage of variables that can thwart all the best of plans. And in our current workforce climate the changes are increasingly concurrent and complex, requiring tremendous effort to achieve the intended vision of our leaders; now we’re using the word transformation more frequently, because that’s what’s required to achieve the future objectives of our industries.

All this makes the change planning all that much more daunting, and the efforts to execute exhausting. Being responsive and dynamic while simultaneously structured and planned are converging skills, yet this is what’s being asked of leaders to achieve grand goals for success. It is possible to create a comprehensive plan and still remain responsive to evolving needs, I’m including two simple approaches from my own experiences.

The first is a tactic I shared recently with a senior executive, who was introducing a massive cultural transformation to a large organization. She met with her peers regularly and provided updates on the project. I suggested slightly adjusting the approach to updates to solicit success stories from each executive’s vantage point. Allowing autonomy and a positive focus created safety in sharing, while it also served as an opportunity to learn from each other, and subsequently apply the most impactful learnings in support of the change.

The second is at the local implementation level. It's very advantageous to determine who has influence and how they can be empowered to support the change when leaders aren’t visible; we all know the conversations amongst employees look different when leaders leave the room. This person or group can serve as a bridge of honest information to the leaders, allowing for timely adjustments to plans and responding to roadblocks not considered, which there always are.

Although it’s referred to as a behaviour science, I think of the need to respond to the evolving needs within change as a dance. This takes experience and will never look the same between projects, no matter how similar. However there are structural supports to empower those most impacted, which will result in more successful implementation. I encourage you to try the two suggestions for responsive iteration and explore how else you can remain agile while mobilizing people to a desired outcome.