Target s Guide to Change Management

Transcription

1 Target s Guide to Change Management SUCCESSFUL CHANGE CHANGES EVERYTHING L AMARSH.COM 505 N O R T H L A K E S H O R E D R I V E, S U I T E 1210 C H I C A G O, I L L I N O I S U S A P F L A MA R S H G LO B A L

2 Targets of change have a role to play as well that makes them partners with key Change Agents and Sponsors. Over the years we have provided much support for change management practitioners whose job it is to help people impacted by change to move through the delta and successfully achieve new, future desired states. A key part of that effort has been our concentration on the role that management plays. We have built a process for developing their capability and willingness to be effective Sponsors of change. As Change Agents and Sponsors have become increasingly skilled, we realize that if we are not careful we could be sending the wrong message to those who have to change. The effort we are putting into the role of change management practitioner and Sponsor to help Targets of change does not mean that they, the Targets, can be passive and rely on those in charge of the change to do all that is necessary. Targets of change have a role to play as well that makes them partners with key Change Agents and Sponsors. This ebook is for Targets -- those who for the good of the organization s change efforts and their own good, need to be proactive and not passive to become true partners in the change process. A Target s Guide to Change Management Victim? Target? Partner? The third role in change needs a guide as much as the Sponsors and Change Agents do Changes in your organization s business and how your work is done are impacting you. Your leadership wants to be sure you get the support you need as you and your organization go through these changes. As a part of this support, reading this ebook will help you explore how change affects you personally. It will also help identify the obstacles facing you as you experience changes and build plans to enable you to deal with each. You will come away with a basic process to help you gain more control over specific changes happening to you. As part of that control, you will be able to create a list of questions and concerns that can be given to your leadership. And finally, you will learn how you can participate in change and develop action plans for yourself to help you move forward. K. Judge 1 TARGET S GUIDE TO CHANGE MANAGEMENT

3 K. Judge Successful change needs management, change agents and the people impacted to operate as partners in the change. Importantly, there is a downside to the changes you are being asked to make when you are not feeling like a true partner in the change process. Change happening to you when you feel that you don t have any control over it can cause worry and anxiety. When you don t feel you have control, you can become frustrated and feel that management cares more about the changes than you as an employee. In their effort to help you to accept the change, Change Agents make sure to identify everyone who is being asked to change by proactively thinking about what concerns, fears and/ or questions these Targets may have. They then determine what they can do to reduce or prevent relevant fears, concerns and/or questions to make it easier for you to change. Good for them. And for your organization, it also causes problems when you as the employee don t feel control over the change process. When this happens, you can t work with the same level of energy and your concerns and issues can seriously threaten changes that need to be made. Change Agents and Sponsors may not get it right and they may miss key resistance sources you are experiencing. They might even misread the depth of your reaction to the change, but it s you who is experiencing change and only you know best what your reaction is and what you will need in order to eventually change. You are also the only one who can make the determination of whether or not you will make the choice to change. Leaders and Change Agents believe everyone will have to change. You do have a choice, and that choice must be communicated. Even though the old computer system is being taken away or your desk is being moved five -- or 500 miles -- down the road and it appears you have no choice, you can chose not to change. You can leave the organization, though the consequences of that choice may be severe, it remains a choice. To make an informed choice you need to know what the real consequences will be if you chose not to change. Successful change needs management, Change Agents and people impacted to operate as partners in change. Partnership means groups agree to work together for a common goal. In this case it s simple -- successful change for the organization and you, the employee. It takes willingness on the part of all parties to make it happen. In many organizations today, leadership makes the commitment and is willing to establish such partnership. So, what do you need to do to fulfill your role as a partner? You need to figure out if you have concerns and issues around any particular change. You need to accept that there are ways you can get answers to your concerns, not always initially, and not always fully, not because management is keeping things from you but because information develops over time in any change. There are three basic elements to being a partner in change that Targets need to understand and accept: 1 While you may not be able to control the change, you can control how you react to it. 2 You have the right to seek information and support needed to cope with the change. 3 You have the right to make a choice to change or not to change. 2 LAMARSH.COM Resistance to change is a normal reaction when we face changes that threaten to knock us out of the place we are comfortable. We experience resistance in our personal lives when we find out we have to make a change. Even positive changes like getting married, buying a car or even rearranging the furniture in the living room can trigger related concerns. It makes sense that as you start to change you may also start to second guess the decision and begin to resist the change or wonder if you will be willing to make the change. This natural and normal reaction to change can result in uncomfortable feelings. We have all experienced similar reactions, maybe even all of them at times. I know how to do my job, and others recognize my skill. I am going to look like a fool trying to manage these new robots they are installing. Are they kidding? I have been using an Excel spreadsheet that I designed years ago. It works well. Everybody gets paid and gets the right amount of pay. I m not giving up my spreadsheet. I ve been keeping track. I counted seven big changes our foreman has announced this month alone. I can handle changes, but not that many! Can you believe the changes being talked about? I don t see any reason to change from the way we do things now. And I don t like the changes we are making. The new break schedule means I can t play cards with Herman and Eileen from the other line. They will now have different break time. We ve been playing every day for 6 years. Why change that? Are they trying to tell me the way I work today is wrong? That I m not a good employee? They say I have to uproot my family and move to the new location. Why can t we stay here? Watching how the company has done changes in the past I don t believe these will be any more successful this time than the last time or, if it is successful, the way it will be done is too painful. Let s look at what Targets need to do in the partnership. A critical first step is to do a thoughtful assessment of your own orientation to change. Consider your experience with past changes and your reaction to them. Use this Target Assessment to help you gain a perspective on how you approach change.

4 Target Change Assessment In general when it comes to making changes: Don t have enough information Never Rarely Usually Always 1. I am willing to take risks I am willing to disrupt the status quo I am willing to fight for the changes that I believe are valuable I am able to accurately assess and articulate my feelings I am bored if things stay the same for too long I am able to live with a high level of disruption and lack of definition I am willing to try to adjust and negotiate the Desired State I am willing to adjust and negotiate the change process I am willing to spend time building a Personal Change Plan I recognize that change is a critical part of my job and my future Scoring History Assessment Total Score 10 x 25 = % Number of Don t Know Enough About Myself Assessment Legend Less than 45%: Serious danger Between 46 and 65%: Serious concern Observations 3 LAMARSH.COM

5 Then build your own Personal Change Management Plan for each of the changes facing you. A Personal Change Management Plan Gather Information about the Change Develop Understanding of the Change Make an Informed Choice Choose to Resist // Choose to Accept Accept the Consequences // Get More Support The end result is an opportunity for you to be more objective and rational in your decision to change or not to change. There are three steps to help you build your own safety net collect the information you need, analyze that information and design an action plan for yourself. Be a partner and gain more control over your life at work. Our most recent book, Change Better Survive and Thrive During Change at Work and Throughout Life, details the Personal Change Management Plan and provides you with both a paper copy of the accompanying workbook and an access code to download an electronic copy from LaMarsh.com. Organizations that recognize the value of building a change partnership with their employees will be stronger and more competitive. Employees who are willing to embrace that partnership and do their part will experience less stress, have more control, and make a large contribution to that success. What You Need to Do Gather Information about the Change COLLECT INFORMATION Are you satisfied that you know enough about the change you are being asked to make? Why change? Change to what? How the change is being done? Develop Understanding of the Change ANALYZE THAT INFORMATION Now take the information you have and sit down and study it. Do you have enough understanding of the change to decide how you are going to act: to support the change or to go after more data or to decide not to change? Make an Informed Choice Choose to Resist // Choose to Accept Accept the Consequences // Get More Support MAKE AN INFORMED CHOICE With the information and the understanding you have gained, knowing what kind of support you will need if you change, and with the knowledge of what will happen if you choose not to change, make an informed choice about this change facing you 4 TARGET S GUIDE TO CHANGE MANAGEMENT

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