Understanding how change is perceived and knowing how to provide support to others during the transition is a useful skill that all leaders must acquire.

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Think of a major change that “happened” at your place of work and reflect on the situation briefly. Who originated the change? What impact did the change have on you? What did you do to overcome the impact caused by the change? What was the result of your actions? What would you do differently next time?

Change is a situation that demands that people think or act differently from ways they have done before or are used to. It can be the introduction of a new product, or a new service or a new way of doing business. It can be the introduction of a new Chief executive or a new management. This situation perhaps sounds familiar. It is however true that sometimes changes are so subtle that some people may not realize they are taking place.  Change can be originated by oneself or by someone else. The change you initiate yourself is relatively easier to handle than one originated from elsewhere. Change is quite often scary since it often calls for learning new skills in order to adapt or cope with the situation. Quite often change is also introduced when the company or organization is facing challenges or when it is going through external and internal difficulties or shocks. In such circumstances workers may feel that change is happening to them or even targeting them. Understanding how change is perceived and knowing how to provide support to others during the transition is a useful skill that all leaders must acquire. One way to appreciate how the people you lead or supervise perceive the change the company or organization is introducing is to reflect on how you personally feel and react to the change. Four key areas of successful change management can be discerned. They are:

1. Understanding change.

It is not enough that the leader reflects on how he or she personally feels and reacts to change. While a personal understanding of change is important to make one more empathetic, a true change leader will strive to make others aware of the change. She or he will explain the process, implications and rationale for change to those affected by it. He or she will explain the forces that make the change imperative and outline the consequences of staying the same. The successful change leader will from the start create platforms for discussion and sharing the views about the change. This helps the people to understand the realities of the situation, and to bring the idea of successful change to life. It is particularly important that an assessment of the effect or impact of change (impact analysis) is done so that you can identify as many of the negative impacts or consequences of the change as possible. The following key questions must be asked in the assessment:

  • How will the proposed change affect the overall strategy of the organization or company?
  • How will the proposed change affect the structure of the organization?
  • How will the proposed change affect the organization’s systems (e.g. Management information systems; Human resource management systems; operations procedures; staff rules and procedures; organizational policies and procedures)?
  • What skills sets will be required to effect and/or cope with the proposed change?
  • How will the proposed change affect the organization’s culture and current practices (symbols, life styles, shared values)

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In answering these questions the change leader or team must involve the people most likely to be affected by the change. Note that these key areas are interdependent. A change in one of the areas will necessarily have impact in another area or areas. A change in strategy for example will have impact on the organizational structure, the systems and the skill sets needed to implement the new strategy. A change in structure may have negative impacts on the implementation of the strategy

2. Planning change.

An assessment of the situation done as part of understanding change will help you understand the possible positive and negative consequences of change. This is important as contingency plans will have to be developed to deal with any issues that may arise. In essence, planning change involves developing  interventions that mitigate resistance  to potential negative consequences of the change as well make use of the positive aspects of the change to align change initiatives with organizational objectives. In planning change clear objectives must be set, activities to achieve the objectives must be determined as well as the responsible parties for each intervention or activity. In addition the relevant resources to manage the change must identified and prepared

3. Designing change management strategies

Change management strategies fall in three categories namely; strategies that mitigate the potential consequences of change; strategies that prepare the people affected so that they’ll understand and support change rather than fight against it (Managing resistance); and contingency strategies needed to manage the situation if it gets out of control.

4. Implementing change

This involves undertaking a core set of activities that need to be done to effect change, and make it stick in the long term. The key activities in implementing change can be categorized as below:

i. Establishing a structure for change

In order to lead change, you need to establish a change management structure. This structure need not be formal or part of the hierarchical arrangement of the organization or company. It can be composed of  a loose team, of influential people whose power comes from a variety of sources, including job title, status, expertise, and /or political importance. It is this team that is charged with implementing the change activities agreed upon and build momentum around the need for change.

ii. Communicating change

This involves planning communications to ensure that you give the right people the right message at the right time to get the support and the buy-in you need for the change. If the impact analysis is well done the areas of communication will be defined. These will include but not limited to the process, implications and rationale for change, the potential consequences of the change and the effect of change on the structure, systems, and culture of the people. Proper communication will help the people to get ready to adapt to the changes. The change leader or team should therefore establish platforms and forums for communication and invite discussion of views on the change.

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iii. Mitigating the consequences of change

This involves planning activities needed to address the impacts of the change. This may involve adopting strategies that minimize the negative emotions that arise from the experience of negative events. Coaching people through change is one of the ways of mitigating the consequences of change. It encourages people to see change as an opportunity rather than a threat and helps them to understand and embrace change. Where change involves a need for new skills sets it helps when training needs are identified and addressed.

iv. Managing resistance to change

People respond in different ways when presented with change. This time is often marked by resistance and emotional upheaval, because people are being forced to let go of something they are comfortable with. Depending on the situation, resentment toward the change, low morale and reduced productivity often occur.  There is anxiety about roles, status or identities, and skepticism about the change. The change leader must anticipate specific reasons underlying resistance to change and implement approaches that address resistance.

v. Supporting people to cope with change

It is important that the people affected by the change have the support they need to cope with the change. Communication and support are perhaps the most important interventions in any change management project. New structures have to be explained, training needs driven by the change need to be identified and addressed through appropriate training or mentorship approaches and career paths must be discussed and explained. The organization or company must ensure that those involved or affected have the help and support they need to go through the times of uncertainty.

5. Monitoring and evaluating change

Managing change is a project. As in all projects it is important to Identify and agree on the process and the success indicators for change, and ensure they are regularly measured and reported on.

Finally, to make any change stick, it should be anchored in corporate culture so that it becomes part of the core of the organization.

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