The ChallengeOne
of the most compelling prerequisites of effective leadership today is the ability to lead employees through organizational change. My experience has been that leaders are either highly sensitive to this prerequisite or highly insensitive. Those who are highly sensitive know what actions are appropriate and act accordingly; those who are insensitive to this prerequisite are baffled, confused and frustrated, though are
unwilling to admit it, and act inappropriately. One of the most inappropriate actions they take is to begin the change process and then pass the leadership of that process to someone else - or worse - to a group. This "disengaged leadership" model results in employees who are frustrated by the change, who become less productive on the job, and who do not embrace the change process.
The leader who is highly sensitive to this prerequisite of effective leadership stays connected and engaged with the change process and takes into account three essential factors:
1. The human element of organizational change.
2. The compelling need to focus on the reasons for change and the desired outcomes of change.
3. The imperative to engage employees in the change process.
The Strategy: Leading by Connecting,
Focusing and Engaging
1. People and Change - Effective leaders understand that people relate to organizational change differently. My experience has been that people who are faced with organizational change can be grouped into three categories: those who are usually uncomfortable with change, those who like change or
accept it willingly with little or no hesitation and those who are willing to go along with change if they understand it.
- Uncomfortable with Change - These individuals are threatened by change in general, tend to be disconnected with organizational priorities, may not trust leaders, do not outwardly demonstrate their loyalty to the
organization and may not ever embrace change with a comfortable feeling. In organizations familiar to me, this group includes between 10 to 15% of the employees.
Effective leaders accept this group as a fact of organizational life and avoid spending too much time trying to convince them to accept change.
- Like Change - These people usually support and trust organizational leaders without question, are well connected to organizational priorities and outwardly demonstrate a high level of loyalty to the organization (although some cannot be counted on to vocalize this commitment in public due to peer pressure to the contrary). My experience has been that
about 25% of employees fall into this category.
Effective leaders acknowledge this group with enthusiasm, enlist members to leadership roles in promoting the change effort and stay closely connected with them by reinforcing their efforts, their loyalty and the importance of their leadership role in the change process.
- Willing to Accept Change if Convinced - Members of this group want to understand why the change is necessary (reasons for the change) and what it will mean for the organization (desired outcomes of change), and generally support and want to trust organizational leaders if they are convinced the change makes sense and that the CEO and their immediate
supervisors know what they are doing (meaning they believe they are competent). Members of this group are usually connected to organizational priorities. I believe 60 to 65% of employees in most organizations are in this group.
Effective leaders focus most of their time and attention on this group, ensuring that members understand the reasons for
the change and the desired outcomes of change and actively seek their engagement - even leadership - in the change process.
2. Focusing on Reasons and Desired Outcomes - One of the pitfalls that leaders of change must avoid is spending an inordinate amount of their time communicating what the organization
will look like once the change process is completed and little or no time explaining why the change is necessary. For the change process to evolve with some degree of alacrity, the basic reasons for the change must be explained in some detail up front because, as noted above, about 75% of employees in most organizations will not readily embrace change without an understanding of why the present is not
satisfactory. This is particularly true of the employees who are willing to accept change if they are convinced the reasons make sense to them and they understand their place in the change process.
Effective leaders articulate the reasons for change and the desired outcomes of change at the initiation of the change process and reinforce
them at every phase of the change process; they ensure every change leader does the same.
3. Engaging Employees - Employees, in general, want to be part of the change process once they understand that organizational change will take place, if only to protect their own job security. Given this assumption,
effective leaders will take the following actions to keep employees engaged in the change process:
- As early as possible, help employees understand their part in the change process and what the outcomes will mean to them as individual employees, and ensure other change leaders do the same.
- Establish roles in the change process for as many employees as possible, and explain those roles in some detail up front.
- Stay personally connected with as many of these employees as possible through individual conversations, in person whenever possible, and via telephone
otherwise, but not through E-mails, which are viewed as impersonal by most employees.
- Create opportunities that are safe and easily accessible for employees who are not convinced of the need to change to express themselves, and limit the amount of time leaders devote to these opportunities.
- Do everything possible and reasonable to ensure a speedy change process. Long, extended organizational change processes lead to serious morale problems, reduced productivity and enhanced opportunities for resistors to make their case and gain momentum, thereby negatively impacting the change process.
- Continually reinforce the reasons for the change and the desired outcomes, and remain fully committed to the change process and resolute in leading it.
Final Thought
Contact me to discuss organizing and leading an effective change process in your organization, either by E-mail at jim@jimjoseassociates.comOR telephone at 520 / 825 - 8015.
