3 Tools for effective leveraging of change

If you followed the posts this week you will realise that change itself is not the goal, but the environment in which you live and work. To get a clear understanding of how people react to change, what causes resistance to change and strategies on how to overcome resistance to change, I strongly recommend that you read the posts I published this week. Today I end my discussion about change by introducing 3 tools you can use to effectively leverage change.

1. Increase communication

During times of change communication is one of the most powerful tools you have in your toolbox. Without effective communication you will be comparable to a construction worker without a power-drill. Within an organisation it works very well to channel all suggestions to a action forum. The action forum will focus on the discovery and bargaining process where the forum can discuss the impact of change on each individual, and identify the potential negative and barriers that need to be crossed. The ultimate goal of the action forum is to find ways to help make the change reality.

2. Try before you buy

It is a good idea to identify a small group of enthusiastic people who are able and willing to run a trial or test to see what the impact of any change will be. The purpose of the trial is to get real people into a real scenario in order to measure real outcomes. This provides a low-cost, reduced-risk snapshot of what will happens. You will certainly not buy a car if you didn't take it for a test-drive. Why will you make the mistake of not testing the impact of change before you implement it?

3. Feedback, analysis and what-if scenarios

Change can not be implemented effectively without continuous feedback, analysis and action. You have to implement methods to monitor and adjust your change strategies as you encounter unplanned variables.
It is easy to create success scenarios and make something work on paper. It is however not so easy to create failure scenarios and make something succeed in reality. What if key-players in your organisation decide to quit? What if you run out of resources halfway through the process of change? What if the market shifts suddenly and your current plans become obsolete?
Donald Trump comes to mind when he said that he can accept defeat, but he hates to be caught by surprise. Get as many people possible to contribute and take part in this, often creative, planning process to think ahead and create various change scenarios.

12 Strategies to reduce resistance to change

This week I am focusing on change, how people react to change, why they react the way they do, and what you can do to reduce and leverage change. I recommend that you read the previous posts on this topic: 7 Truths about people and change, and 5 sources of resistance to change before you read this post.

I hereby introduce 12 strategies for reducing resistance and clearing the way for effective change.

1. Change should not come as a surprise

Careful planning should be done before implementing change. Without a clear plan you will have no measure of influence over change. The main idea behind the plan is to have a clear goal and vision of where you want to go, what you want to become, and how you intend to accomplish it.

As with any form of planning you will need to gather information, a lot of information from lots of people and all the resources you can get your hands on.
During the process of gathering information you will be interacting with the various parties that will be affected by the coming change. By involving the people affected you will gain trust and create expectations for change.

The types of question and information you require will be unique to every situation or need for change. The questions you need answered will be your typical Who?, What?, Where?, When? and How? questions.

I suggest that you compile your list of questions and information required before you move in on those who will be affected by the change, because once you make your move the clock starts ticking, and everyone will be waiting impatiently to see the changes become reality.

2. Get people focused on the future

in order to reduce resistance to change you will need to move the change out behind the curtain and onto the stage. Encourage the people who are affected by the change to participate as partners, and reward them when they do participate or contribute.

It is very important to keep a constant focus on the future outcomes. People need to be reminded constantly about where they are heading. If there is a shift in the anticipated outcome you better not keep it to yourself. By keeping a clear view on the goal you will find that people tend to commit themselves more easily to the change and keep the process moving forward.
As the initiator of change you should ensure that you make the change every body's change.

3. It is impossible to over-communicate

It is often not the content of change that people resist as much as the process of introducing it to them. Human beings are creatures of habit. The more you expose them to the idea of change on various levels, the more likely they will be accepting to the idea of change. By surprising them with change will cause high levels of anxiety and resistance.
Communication is the main ingredient for successful change. Effective communication is required before, during and after change. If you are initiating change within an organisation you can use various channels to communicate. Examples include newsletters, noticeboards, notes on payslips, whiteboards, forums, etc.
If you decided on the communication channels you are going to use, make sure that you provide some form of feedback mechanism. By providing some feedback mechanism you will enable everyone to participate and share their concerns.

4. People are more creative than you think

Most people have the ability to create an anticipated image or expectation about what something will look like, feel like, taste like and sound like long before they have actually experienced it in reality. The human brain, as an organ located inside your skull, does not have the ability to distinguish between what is real and what is not real. The images we create in our minds when are looking forward to something is much more positive than the images and emotions we experience when we are not looking forward to something. If and when you introduce change you could use this parameter to create positive expectations and help those involved to see what the change will look like once it has taken place. You will know you have succeeded when people share the same vision of the outcome, and work hard to ensure that it "looks" like it was expected.

5. The more the merrier

Whether formal or informal, you have to create a support network. Networks act as check points and anxiety relievers. You can make people feel more comfortable by expanding the support network and encourage people to use the support network.
Support comes in various forms, for example managers, co-workers, mentors and motivational coaches, support teams, etc. The more the merrier.
The support networks can also be used as points of influence to promote change.
Who advocates change in your life or organisation?
if you have a large support network you will find it much easier to sell the change to the people affected by it. The change will happen faster and more efficiently.

6. There is no harm in asking for help

You have to know the exact amount of human resources and capital you require to make and sustain the change. Asking for something and not getting it is part of the process. When you get no for an answer you should use the reasons for declined requisitions to prepare for your next requisition. There is no harm in asking for help. You may not get it, but at least you tried.

7. There is power in numbers

You will require a broad base of competitors to carry through with the change. 20% of the participants you started with will not cut it. You need a number of healthy team players, advocates, champions and friends who are unanimous with the change. Once the change gains momentum you should use the power of these people's impetus for longer or broader impact.

8. Identify the barriers and get them out of the way

It is important to always stay on top of things. Follow-up meetings should be viewed as a coaching function. The coaching process involves the identification of personal and work-related barriers, and finding ways to change and address them.
Follow-up meetings can be held on regular, scheduled intervals or when specific stages are reached in the change process.

9. Pay the price for mistakes

Change introduces risk, and where there is risk involved you will make mistakes from time to time. Fear of punishment for mistakes reduces the willingness to take the risks necessary for change to work. Just because the outcomes are not always what you expected, doesn't mean that you, or anyone else for that matter, made the wrong decisions. Failure is often a short-term "hit" for you or your company, and it will lead to long-term incentives for everyone. The only failure would be not to try new and different approaches.

10. Keep things moving forward

As explained in my previous post, change is a force that need to be applied constantly until it becomes the norm. People tend to fall back to the old way of doing something, and positive reinforcement is the force that keeps the change process going in a consistent direction.
Positive reinforcement is any form of motivation that gives recognition to someone for the progress or accomplishments achieved. Public reinforcement or awards should not be restricted to specific outcomes and achievement of goals. When you are running in a marathon, it is the reinforcement of others that convince you that you are already a winner for coming so far, that you are almost there and to keep going.

11. Keep it simple

How do you eat an elephant?
One bite at time.
Complex problems (change) require complex solutions. It is alright to introduce or face complex change. Complex changework will cause an uproar and a lot of resistance if it pushes people too far out of their comfort zones. Complex change should be accomplished a little bit at a time.

12. Be a leader, not a boss

Leadership can easily be seen as the corner stone of effective change.
There are thousands of books written on the topic of leadership, but the main leadership requirements for effective changework includes attitude, analysis and action.
Attitude towards change and innovation starts with the leaders as they set the stage and attempt to energise others. Analysis and feedback of progress toward outcomes keep people motivated and focused. When leaders take the responsibility to take action, the entire group becomes empowered and focused.

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5 Sources of resistance to change

Yesterday I posted an article about how people react when undergoing change. I strongly recommend that you read the previous post first in order to get a clear understanding of how people react to change, before you read this post that focus on why people react to change.

Humans are creatures of habit, and resistance to change might be seen as a form of stupidity. Sometimes change is small and only affects our daily routine, but often change has a major impact on your life and lifestyle. It is mostly our fear for the unknown, combined with negative perceptions and expectations that keep us from exploring new opportunities and possibilities.

Resistance comes from a number of sources:

1. Resistance as a result of fear

The fear of failure is one of the strongest forces that determine human behaviour. The fear of loosing your identity, belonging, control, meaning in life, security, your marriage or your life; of the unknown; and of negative consequences like criticism, rejection and isolation.

2. Resistance as a result of laziness

Some may call it the "comfort zone", others simply call it down right lazy. Lazy people have the tendency to focus on the short term only, and have no vision for the long term. They see the work that needs to be done now, how much work it is, and how much effort it will require to complete the task at hand. Lazy people's perspectives are obscured. They only see the work that needs to be done now, with no clear picture of the future or long term goal.

3. Resistance to change as a result of momentum

Momentum is actually quite the opposite of laziness. Many people invest a lot of time and energy in working towards a future goal. In fact, sometimes too much time and energy is expended in the "old ways".
You can imagine someone driven to move in a certain direction with great anticipation, almost deliberate and aggressively focused. Someone who has gained momentum, picked speed and who is feeling confident and motivated.
Now, all of the sudden this person is required to stop and move in the opposite direction.
This will require a new commitment, realigning with the new vision, sacrificing all the effort, time and energy invested. If you attempt to stop a train that runs full speed at you, and turn it around on its tracks to go the other way, you can't possibly expect to experience no resistance or pain.

4. Resistance to change as a result of past experiences

If you initiate change you should expect that there is someone who either don't trust you, simply don't like you, or someone who has an old score to settle with you. Either way, you will experience resistance. People forgive, but they don't forget. Past experiences, and I'm not referring to the good ones, causes people to resist - actively or passively.

5. Resistance as a result of selfishness

You, me and everyone else on earth have a selfish tendency, often manifested through the "what is in it for me?" syndrome. If we can't see the advantages or benefits we will gain through the change and effort, we either wait the change out or we refuse to participate with enthusiasm. It is therefore the responsibility of the initiator of change to clearly define the incentives and clarify the payoff for every individual involved in the process of change.

In the next post I will focus on strategies that will reduce the resistance of change. I am looking forward to read your comments.

7 Truths about people and change

There is probably not a single person on earth that is not somehow affected by change. We are living in a world of innovation, re-engineering and transformation. Everyone experiences change differently, and everyone reacts differently to change.
Some people thrive on change, while other people find it very painful. Change requires a great deal of flexibility and adaptability, and because of this many will be dragged down, engulfed and perish if they can't manage to adapt to change.

Following are 7 truths about how people behave when undergoing change:

1. People feel awkward and self-conscious

Many believe that the next generation will be more adapted to change, as people who are raised in an ever-changing environment are comfortable with the changes going on around them. They are inspired by it and in a sense, prefer a life that throws constant change at them.
For the majority of us change is scary, painful and unwanted.

2. People firstly consider the sacrifices

In general we are a species that analyse the worst-case scenario. People will first think about what they have to loose in order to gain something else. The challenge we are faced with in any organisation or marketing effort is to overcome these "fears" by painting positive expectations and outcomes that will overcome this natural defensive behaviour.

3. People feel alone

People are afraid of showing their fear and anxiety in an effort to appear strong and confident. By hiding the anxiety and fear, communication is smothered and you will find quite few people pulling on their collars and stiffening their upper lips. During change, when communication is crucial, you will find many people isolated and alone.

4. Everyone has their limits

People can handle only a certain amount of change. One of the keys to successful change is timing. Experiments where done on the administering of change. When change is administered in small dosages, in an effort soften the impact of change over a longer period of time, people showed a downward trend in morale after the second and third dosage of change. It was also found that a lack in trust towards management was much higher.
Companies who had the most success with regards to change were those who made major steps in short time frames and practiced good communication skills. When people know what they are working towards they are willing to take the pain for a little while.

5. Not everyone are equally prepared for change

When the word change is mentioned you will find people who are geared up and ready to go, while others are still anchored to their morning coffee and wondering what the day will bring. When "calculating" the readiness of the people around you, consider the lowest common denominator. It is the laggards that ultimately determine the pace of change, not the people running up front. The harder you push for change the more resistance you will experience in return. By following my blog this week I will reveal how you can speed up the process of change, even for the less enthusiastic.

6. People will never have enough resources

one of the first things you here within an organisation where change is taking place is, "We could do it if we only had more...".
People will always need more resources, even though they are nor utilising the resources they have. If you look around there are many untapped resources. Most of them available, others borrowed, some stolen and others unknown. These are all resources that can be utilised to get through a tough change. You can either make it work, or leave it completely. Unlock hidden resources by asking for people's input on alternative resources. People usually don't volunteer to offer resources, but if asked they often share.

7. Old habits die hard

Change is a temporary force that needs to be applied constantly until the change becomes the norm. if you take the pressure off to early during change you will revert to the old way of doing, and never find your new North.