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When Change Hurts
"Future shock is the shattering stress and disorientation that we induce in individuals by subjecting them to too much change in too short a time."
Alvin Toffler
In today's business world there are many reasons why an organization would feel the urgency to change. Their customers age, income and demographics may change, the government may put new regulations in place, they may face new competition and the constant advances in technology all make us feel that status quo is unacceptable. And I agree....to a point. But what happens to an organization when the leader is engrossed in all of these aspects of change....at the same time?
I once consulted with a company that decided to become ISO certified, take on Lean Manufacturing principles, apply for the Malcolm Baldridge Award and move towards self- directed work teams all at the same time. The employees of this organization felt like their heads were spinning from so much change. Upper management did not understand or care to understand the impact of too much change on their organization.
It doesn't take just these large initiatives to unsettle a team. I have seen bosses that simply change their minds a lot about the little things like moving the day and time of their staff meeting each week, every week. Or the leader that often assigns tasks and then quickly reassigns them to someone else.
So, I thought I would list the thoughts and feelings of employees that have to endure a boss that latches on to the "flavor-of-the-month" management style or impulsively changes the little things in an office too often:
- Employees feel overwhelmed, lost and uncertain which task is most important so productivity suffers.
- They feel like the boss does not understand the amount of work that went into a certain process/task that now is changed. Cynicism, burn-out and apathy take over.
- They ride out each initiative by performing at a minimum so they do not have to endure re-work
- They see their boss as impulsive and a poor planner.
- They believe their boss is arrogant and trust is eroded.
What can you do if you find that you are a boss that loves to change things up....often?
- Seek out the informal leader of your direct reports. This is the person who may not have a leadership title but is respected by most of your employees and has an influence on them. Ask this informal leader the following critical question:
- How do my change initiatives help the team and how do they hurt the team? Now the tough part is to be quiet, listen, take notes and thank the person who gives you honest feedback.
- Gather additional feedback face-to-face with subordinates or through an anonymous survey sent electronically. I recommend finding a trusted member of your leadership team to gather the responses to the same question about how your change initiatives help or hurt your team.
- Take action immediately on the feedback that is hurting the team. You may need to postpone the initiative, find better ways to show its impact on the team or cancel the initiative.
- Find a way to wait long enough to see an initiative through to its end before starting another. If you are truly impulsive you may need to find medication or therapy to help you overcome the addiction to change. I see this most often with entrepreneurs who make their employee's lives miserable with impulsive changes.
What if you work for a boss that is addicted to change?
- Approach your boss in a private setting and let them know how their ability to change is helpful to the team and when it hurts the team. Be as specific as you can. I realize this may not be feasible with every boss but I believe it takes courage to step forward and share how productivity is impacted by the constant change being proposed.
- Ask the team's informal leader to share how change is impacting the team or have the team share directly during a staff meeting how change is helping and hurting the team.
- If nothing changes, you may need to find a different boss to follow as the cost of stress on your physical, mental and emotional health may be taking its toll.
Question for You:
Are you a boss who feels the need to change things up often to stay competitive? Do you work for a boss that has an addiction to change?
Action for You:
If you are a boss whose need for change is hurting the productivity of the team, you need to find out how the change initiative is hurting the performance of the department or team and make necessary changes immediately. If you are working for someone who loves change and is unaware of the way it impacts staff, you need to find a way to share this important insight with them.
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