Change...before you have to!

Written by Jay Larson, The Prophet of Possibilities, ChartHouse Learning

The one constant in the world is that it is always changing! From the economy to road construction things seem to be shifting faster and faster as we move forward. Most of the change we see is thrust upon us and we must react to whatever that change is.

But I want to talk to you today about making changes in your organization, before you have to, that will actually help you react more effectively to those shifts in business, customer base as well as the economy and…well I’m not sure I can help with road construction! I call this ‘on-purpose change’.

I speak with leaders from around the US and the world and ‘on-purpose change’ is an elusive goal and often a constant frustration. As soon as we try to change something – a business process, a position or just the color of the break room – the complaints start pouring in and resistance to what-ever-it-is begins.

So, how can we make our organizations more capable of ‘on-purpose’ change?

Don’t go it alone…you can’t anyways!
You need to be committed to whatever change you are trying to make. You need to believe it is best for the business and be ready to stand firm if you have to…you’re the leader! However, you can’t change anyone other than yourself – so stop trying! You own that choice for yourself, but where the frustration comes in is when you realize that everyone in your organization owns that choice for themselves. As Ken Blanchard stated in Mission Possible, “Effective change is not something you do to people. It’s something you do with them.”

If you simply command the change you may get results in the short term, but you may also kill the goose that laid the golden egg. When you command people to do things you can severely damage trust and be responsible for creating the fear that leads to resistance. Isn’t that what was driving you crazy to begin with?

What you need to do is find, or create, believers to work ‘with’. Do you know individuals on your management team or elsewhere that feel the same way about the issue as you do? Take inventory of their influence and yours. Help them see the case for making the change and get them excited about it. Then communicate, and work with the rest of the organization.

Communicate
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

The more you communicate, the more they know. The more they know, the less there is for them to fear. If there is less fear, chances are there is less resistance. Instead of destroying trust through a forced change, build trust with your employees by being honest about the change you are trying to make and show them they are valued by asking their opinion (and listening to it). Who knows, they might just have a better solution that you haven’t thought of. Has that ever happened before?

But, we’re not just trying to fight resistance; we’re trying to motivate change. Change in the organization is simply a series of personal decisions across the employee base to believe in the change. You, and your believers, can help the employees with these personal decisions by listening to the concerns and ideas they have.

As you build that trust in your leadership, and in the change, never underestimate the power of the WIIFM – the “What’s in it for me?” You might think that they should just do what they’re told but, if they don’t see what’s in it for them, why would they support the change? In fact, if there is nothing in it for them, they will not change.

For example – You may want to make changes to the ordering system for very solid business reasons. There may be hard work involved and some, if not a lot of, inconvenience for many people. But, it may be that if we don’t change the ordering system and get rid of inefficiencies, we will eventually have to take pay cuts and/or lay-offs? Communicated in the right spirit, that’s a pretty strong WIIFM.

Build trust and prepare for change by asking a lot of questions
As employees, we LOVE inertia! Most people like the expected and rely on it for a sense of security. But being more capable of ‘on-purpose change’ means we have to begin expecting the unexpected. You can help prepare your employees for change by asking more questions. Two in particular: “Why? and Why not?”

When you start asking “why” or “why not” it gives everyone a chance to challenge what may be old systems or processes and lead them to more innovative thinking. “Why do we do it this way?” “It sounds crazy, but why not?” If you can awaken your employees to a new approach to their job or a current process you won’t have to worry about making the change. They’ll make it for you!

In one of our conferences with a hospital the group was asked how they would like to arrive in the morning. One doctor, who had obviously had enough of the conference, stood up and said, “I would like to be flown in each day by helicopter, with music playing and nurses lined up along a red carpet and have them throw flowers at my feet and cheer for me as I arrive.” He was obviously being sarcastic, but they discussed the idea further – someone asked, “Why not? Doesn’t everyone want to be treated like a celebrity?”

They ended up taking a look at their employee entrance, which at the time was drab and uninviting, and made some changes. They planted flowers on each side of the employee entrance, piped in music and even installed a red, anti-slip mat on the way in. Now, every employee is greeted by music, fresh flowers and the “red carpet treatment” on their way in to work. As a result they saw a lift in their employee satisfaction scores. That’s a powerful “Why not?”

You have probably read through this article and said to yourself, “I know most of this,” and most likely you do, for much of this is very common wisdom. The problem is however, it is not common practice. Engaging employees ahead of time by asking their opinion, building trust and NOT trying to change them, but helping them change themselves is one way your organization can successfully build capacity for change…before you have to.