Meeting the Challenge of Change

Ten years ago as a leadership professor at the Queen’s School of Business and a busy consultant on “organizational effectiveness”, I was happy to provide everyone with a PowerPoint presentation on Managing Change. Now, I am not sure that change management is infact the best term. We can seek to guide the process, but cannot always control (which is the essence of management) all the results. This is especially the case where a great many seasoned professionals and established systems are involved, and where new terminologies, accountability relationships, and information systems are being introduced. These days most working people I encounter are challenged by changes that impact all aspects of operations and governance. This holds true in both the private and public sectors. But a healthy workplace community with a clear mission, shared core values, and a resilient staff will continue to thrive in turbulent times. It does, however, require work! Here are some useful guidelines for meeting the challenges of change: Recognize that Change is Challenging The opening line of Scott Peck’s influential book, The Road Less Traveled, is short and dramatic: “Life is difficult.” To which I would add… “And change is not easy.” Beware of anyone who tries to tell you otherwise. Recognize that change is challenging... Never underestimate how difficult matters will turn out to be in reality. In the 21st century, it is wondrously easy with software to create images of exciting futures and how to get there. Yet people with experience know that reality is much more complex, intangible and resistant to simple solutions. Once we recognize and publicly affirm that fact, we become less inclined to think we have the solution, and more open to working with others. And hopefully, less inclined to turn to experts and outside consultants to make us pay dearly for knowledge most of us already know. Don’t Lose Sight of Your Fundamental Mission and Core Values These will be sea anchors in the storms. Clarifying minimal ground rules of organizational civility can be especially helpful here, providing a foundation for robust discussions about alternative courses of action. Know your purpose and core operating values, and always keep the needs of your current and future clients as the ultimate criterion for evaluating the case for change. Focus on Guiding Transitions Rather than Managing Change A key resource here is the framework provided by William Bridges in the book Managing Transitions. This is a process model that outlines three sequential stages of transition as organizations move from the old situations toward the new: endings, neutral zones and beginnings. The challenge of managing transitions is to recognize that we must first help people to let go of old ways of being and doing, support them in a middle zone, while guiding them toward acceptance and effectiveness under new circumstances. It is a complex framework that captures the complexity of transitions while providing practical action steps. Perhaps the deepest lesson in the transition framework is the necessity of letting go and saying goodbye to some part of self or life in order for anything new to happen, or for real change to occur. The first stage of transition is always an ending, and only then can we move into the gray area between old and new, the wilderness of in-between where we know we are no longer who or where we were, but do not know yet who or where we shall be. It is disorienting and even painful, especially if, like most people, we hope vaguely while dreading precisely. But as we struggle in the neutral zone, the shape of our future begins to dawn. Bridges encourages readers with the observation that even when we lose hope, we need to trust the process for there is a “beginning at the end.” Gardeners know through experience the inherent wisdom of the transition model. We do not have the new growth of spring without the pruning of autumn, and the dark days of winter. And all spiritual traditions stress that meaningful changes must begin with a time of dying and letting go of our former identities. Avoid “Either/Or” Binary Thinking Under stress, ordinarily rational adults begin to think in simplistic terms. Management teams–and governance boards–can display symptoms of a collective anxiety attack. Despite a track record of adapting to several changes over the years, and often with a great deal of accumulated wisdom and clinical skills in helping others to change, experienced workers often will resist change on emotional grounds, using untested assumptions. Develop a Change Guidance Team Establish a team that represents all levels of the organization. This provides a forum where change issues are discussed and collective wisdom is generated. It should also be the setting where core resources related to change are gathered and evaluated prior to being shared across the organization. Try to ensure that everyone has a basic understanding of change processes. Give them a copy of Managing Transitions. Clear and Supportive Communication is Critical Recognize the fundamental need to communicate about how situations, structures, relationships, and ideas are changing. During times of rapid change, the need for quality communication rises dramatically while the probability it will occur drops dramatically. Develop mechanisms and processes that share accurate information on a regular basis. Be truthful and clear about what is changing and why, and what is not changing and why. Monitor and measure key processes and organizational indicators to ensure that discussions are grounded in facts rather than emotions. Above all, avoid “selling” your solution, work at listening. Maintain Individual and Organizational Health Work intentionally at maintaining individual and organizational health indicators as buffers against the stresses associated with change. In doing so, you will be developing staff resilience and optimism. Resilience is the ability to recover from and/or adjust to misfortune and changes, and to face an uncertain future with conviction and optimism. Look for this quality in new hires. Long-term staff in late mid-career may have low resilience, which often makes them the focal points for resistance. Take practical and disciplined steps to protect the human capital of your workplace team, and that includes senior leaders! Building and sustaining a healthy workplace should be an important governance and leadership priority. Ideally, this should involve the ongoing use of evaluation tools to assess effectiveness. Model Collaboration at the Top It is critical to model collaboration at the top of the organization. That implies a sound grasp of collaboration and its requisite skills, plus an understanding of how this style of problem solving fits with other modes of resolving conflict. Developing our understanding of collaboration also helps everyone involved to recognize the signs of pseudo-collaboration, a form of soft manipulation that can undermine trust and community. There are situations where collaboration is not the best approach, and a direct assertive stance is imperative. Members of leadership teams would really benefit from a conflict management workshop to learn about their personal conflict profiles and the usefulness of different approaches across situations. Re-Think your Thinking about Leadership Finally, re-think the way you think about leadership. The days of the heroic, patronizing leader who has all the answers are past. As workplace communities of practice seek to make sense of turbulent times, their members need to enter into serious, candid, and supportive dialogue about critical issues. If the community’s big questions are the property of a small group, an insider “elite” model can develop through me. The result too often is a passive majority, which struggles with visions generated by the few. And the few spend increasing time and energy “selling” their solutions. The emphasis here is on community conversation: not direction or manipulation from one individual or a small group. People in the leadership core can start the process, but it’s critical to have the widest possible participation. Try letting go of the basic leadership urge to control outcomes. Now that’s a real transition challenge! My hope is that these guidelines might help you and your colleagues survive the turbulent waters ahead. But whatever you do, remember to spend your afternoons wisely. After all, you can’t take them with you!

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