As the world
changes, people and organizations need to adapt to changing circumstances. Most
of the time, managers and professionals accommodate the change and get on
with everyday work. But every person has a different capacity to adapt to
changing situations.
Change means "new" and "new" creates often uncertainty, stress, etc. "We need to let go of certainties". Key elements for change involves vision, skills, motivation and people. If not dealt with all these aspects,
on the long term it will undermine the process and in the end organizational
effectiveness.
Fundamental key
factor to success to good change management is understanding that what might be
an insignificant change for you might be a massive upheaval for someone else
and vice versa.
Empowerment through change
Actively managing
change is important to ensure staff can adapt effectively while still
delivering much needed services. If it’s managed well, then change can be
empowering, taking people to the edges of their comfort zone, stretching them
and building their confidence to realize they are capable of things they didn’t
know.
Participate in change
Be part of the
change. Create support. Discuss the changes as a team in order to develop a
shared understanding of what needs to happen. Allow time for new thinking to
develop. Rushed discussions can be a false economy and come back to bite you
later on when you realize you hadn’t all quite understood each others’ meaning.
Communicate, communicate, and communicate
It has been said
you need to communicate any message seven times in seven different ways for it
to be heard and understood. That might sound excessive, but don’t just say it
once and assume everyone was listening and understood.
Know why making the change and what to achieve
Develop a vision of
what the situation will be like when you have the change in place. (GAP and
bridging). What’s the difference between what is happening now and what it will
be like when the change has happened? Be specific.
Think it through before you change
You might save time
by changing processes but if this leads to a staff feeling demotivated, effects
will soon be lost.
Think through the
change and its implications and if there is likely to be any negative impact,
think about how you are going to manage that before deciding whether to go
ahead.
Be the change you want to see
People do as you
do, not as you say so make sure that the messages your attitude and behavior
communicates do not contradict the changes you want to introduce. Leadership and
Early Adopters (skills).
Build change momentum
Starting with the
biggest challenges will demotivate and derail your initiatives and changes
before you get started. Start in the most promising areas and build momentum as
you go.
Get connected to the solutions you need by allowing SOMMOS the honor of aiding, coaching and/or managing key services for best succes!!
