 The People Smart Toolbox
Helping People Work Well With People
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Welcome |
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Welcome to the latest issue of The People Smart Toolbox, the online newsletter for business owners and professionals from People Smart Tools and Jim Rooney. Please pass on The People Smart Toolbox to those in your network. |
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In this isssue: Transition Planning |
- The Three Stages of Change
- Questions to Ask Before Changing
- Transition Planning
- Points for Effective Change Implementation
- The Person Involved in Every Change
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| Article Summary |
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Smooth policy or process changes entails getting stakeholders involved in the planning and execution. Give all employees time to buy into the change and to let go of the system they are used to. Leaders ought to model the new desirable behavior and project the attitude they want to receive.
It is OK to modify a change after determining that it may not net a time and resource improvement. Implementing too many changes saps belief from employees. Get everyone affected by the new policies involved and your transition will be viable.
Word Count: 946
Time to Read: Less than 5 minutes | |
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The Three Stages of Change |
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In general, people don't resist change they resist transition.
For the team to buy into change, they need to have a well-defined thought out transition plan. It's even better if they can be included in the planning part of changeover. Planning and extra communication tends to dispel fear.
People experience three stages when change is happening:
Endings. . . letting go of what was.
The neutral zone. . . trying to decide what will be acceptable.
New beginnings. . . they have bought into what will be and accepted the
new reality the change brings. |
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Questions to Ask Before Changing | |
Carefully choosing the policy change is where huge amounts of productivity are gained. There are three ways that managers can effectively go about changing policy:
1. Recognize something that needs to change, determine what needs to be done and quickly act on it. 2. Ask others for input on ideas for change and then take action on their suggestions. 3. When a need for change is identified, get feedback from contemporaries. Establish who will be affected by the proposed change (stakeholders) and get their input before making the change.
The first two are the most frequently used by management yet the least effective because they do not take into account the stakeholder's needs. When a person sees change they weren't involved in, they tend to be resentful. For more on transition planning, go to the next section.
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Transition Planning |
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When creating a transition plan, answer the following questions:
- Is this change absolutely necessary?
- What are the projected time and money saving benefits?
- What consequence will this change have on our customers, pro and con?
- What affect will this have on various departments? All departments need to be considered when any policy change is being planned.
- Who are the individual stakeholders and what will be their response?
- How will this affect employee morale; positive or negative?
- What would happen if this adjustment was not made? Answers to these questions may or may not favor the proposed change.
If there is not enough measurable benefit, it is OK to not go forward with the proposed modification. If change meets with the involved team's approval, convert the plan into a project implementation.
While constructing the implementation, take into consideration the three parts of change.
1. Let go of what is being replaced. This takes a lot of time for some employees and not very long for others. Providing a date when the new plan will begin helps all employees let go of the old system.
2. The neutral zone is the time when employees need to adjust to how they fit into the new plan. They will check in with what their peers are feeling and possibly be affected by their attitude. In every work group there is what I call the "go-to" person or natural leader. Others will tend to emulate this person. Always consider the "go-to" person's opinion and get their buy-in.
3. New beginnings are really test beginnings. The implementation, no matter how well planned, will involve some tweaking. Employee acceptance progresses as the new policy is reinforced. When the planning is done well, most employees will eventually see a personal benefit and be glad the change happened. |
| Points for Effective Change Implementation |
Avoid making too many changes at one time. Employees will say, "This is management's plan of the week! Wait awhile and we will have a new plan." Select the timing of change thoughtfully and gradually execute.
Clearly and frequently communicate all the details to every person involved in the process. When management feels like they are over communicating the plan, it usually feels just right to the employees.
Company or organization leaders must not act as if they are "above" the change. For example, take a policy change for employees not to park in the Visitors Parking. If the owner or management think the rules apply to others and not to them and park in the forbidden zone, they have lost their influence and respect. Employees follow this adage: "All the things you say may be wise and true; I do not care what you say, I watch what you do." |
| The Person Involved in Every Change |
| The most important part of this article is learning who your key players are and involve them in the change process. Some will be obvious and some will not. Look for employees that are respected by other employees and get their buy-in. |
Until next month, communicate, relate and prosper everyday.
Jim Rooney, CPBA (Certified Professional Behavior Analyst)
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