Unrelenting Change and What to Do About It

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well, it may take a little coaching on transformational change leadership.UNRELENTING CHANGE AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT.

Upscaling the organization for the VUCA*

world: change capability for leaders.

*VUCA: Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous


change is not an event.


change is constant.

In today’s “do-it-now” world,

it’s happening all the time.


So why don’t we realize itreally sucks when it happens at work?but… that can be a good thing.


why? Because thriving (not to mention surviving)

requires change.


cultural evolution = change.

you put in a new paternity policy = change.

you’re flattening your structure = change.

you launch a new product = change

you move into a new campus = change

you are expanding into new markets = change

you’re updating your performance management = change.

you acquire a company = change

your sales unexpectedly grew exponentially because kim

kardashian tweeted about your product = change

your new strategy = change.

you have a new progressive CEO = change

a new competitor emerges in your marketplace = change

your workforce is changing = change

You implemented a new people policy = change

You are increasing your cyber security = change

There are changes in hourly/salaried exempt status = change

See what we mean?


This means that we all need to be ready, willing, and able to embrace unrelenting change.


but are our leaders ready for all this?


well, it may take a little coaching on transformational change leadership.


1) make the commitment.

Being a good leader in a change-rich environment means a lot more than sending out an

email or two. Leaders need to invest the time to become proficient at change

leadership, which means building their own knowledge so that they are ready, willing, and

able to lead through change.

Shameless Plug: Wondering how to help your leaders become great change leaders? Well,

wouldn’t you know it, we offer leadership change training. Think of if it as Leading Through

Change 101.

They’ll need to learn about the

essentials of human behavior, and

how to work solid change

management principles into their

everyday activities such as how

they lead meetings, set new

initiatives, and respond to

situations.


2) Communicate a compelling destination (and outline a realistic journey).

There is nothing that will equip your people to handle the stresses of constant

change better than believing whole-heartedly in the “why” of what you do.

Tip: When talking about the journey to your destination, resist the urge to whitewash things. People will respond to an honest and transparent assessment much better than they will to a fairytale.

A good leader will share that truth

in a way that compels belief. And

they’ll also give their peeps a

realistic path for how to achieve

those goals. This means sharing

the actual behaviors and actions

needed to get there.


3) Engage your people in the solution.

Leaders often assign problem solving to a few

“experts”. But to better meet a world of

transformational change, instead get the impacted

people involved in building the solution. Something

changing? Look to your people to figure out how

to make it a success. Got an issue? Let your people

figure out how to address it.

Why? Their involvement makes them feel the process

is more fair, and they’ll be more inclined to advocate

for the change. They’re also more likely to come

up with a solution that will be adopted by their

peers.

Tip: Involving your people in the solution doesn’t mean giving them full autonomy to make every decision. People are looking for a voice in the process, but not necessarily the keys to the castle.


4) Manage resistance and build resilience.

As a leader, remember that everyone processes change in different ways. Some – your

highly resilient people – will thrive on the challenge. Others… well, not so much. Think of a

game of chutes and ladders: some people will climb all the ladders, others will consistently

slip into the pit of despair. Heck, you might be one of the slide-slippers yourself.

Tip: want more information on developing your own resilience? Check out our article on the subject and our list of resilience practices. www.peoplefirm.com/changeresilience.

The good news is that you can teach

yourself to be more resilient to

change, and you can help your people

build resilience as well. Try taking a

stressed team for a walk, or build

resilience practices (like identifying daily

intentions) into meetings and team

culture.


5) Learn, celebrate, & evolve.

Finally, think back to the previous four steps, think about how to celebrate the good, and

how to evolve the stuff you need to get better at. Where do you need to shore up

capability? Did you have some leaders that tuned out? Do you need a better change toolkit?

By consciously paying attention to what worked and didn’t, you’ll add another layer of

change capability each time you go around the loop.

Tip: celebrate both successes and failures, since they both grow you as an organization.

With transformational change

you may very well be working

through multiple cycles at one

time, each at different stages.

Just try to keep each cycle

progressing upward, and you’ll

be OK.


Got it? Let’s review.

1) Ours is a world of unrelenting change.

2) That can be a good thing, since change is necessary to survive and thrive.

3) This means we should be practicing change management with everything we do.

4) Our leaders may need a little coaching to:

Make their commitment

Define the path for their people

Engage their team in each solution

Support the journey (manage resistance & build resilience)

Keep the momentum going

Your people will thank you.


your people = your success.

PeopleFirm is a consulting firm dedicated to achieving the

ultimate win-win: inspired people driving inspired performance.

We focus on effective tools, measurable outcomes, real results,

and getting your people out of their seats and engaged in your

company’s growth.

www.peoplefirm.com

thanks for reading.THANKS FOR READING.

PeopleFirm is a consulting firm dedicated to achieving that ultimate win-win: inspired people driving inspiring performance. We focus on effective tools, measurable outcomes, real results, and getting your people out of their seats and engaged in your company’s growth.

www.peoplefirm.com

Unrelenting Change and What to Do About It

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