Welcome to the course. We hope you have a productive and enjoyable time.

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3 Learning to Lead Change: Building System Capacity Welcome to the course. We hope you have a productive and enjoyable time. Table of Contents Overview i Module I The Change Process 1 Module II Leadership for Change 23 Module III Learning Communities at the Local Level 39 Module IV Role of the District 43 Module V Case Studies (separate handout) -- Module VI Sustaining Reform 67 Module VII Moral Imperative/Closing 83 Glossary 86 Library 88 Please feel free to use these resources to assist you with your training. We ask that the content be appropriately credited. June 2006 For further information please contact: changeforces@oise.utoronto.ca Michael Fullan

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5 Overview Learning to Lead Change: Building System Capacity is a series of publications developed for Microsoft s Partners in Learning initiative. The documents are: Core Concepts A Short Course Case Studies Facilitator Guide Annotated descriptions of the 20 best books on leading change (see Links to ten best online resources for ideas and tools for developing effective leadership for change Microsoft describes the purpose of the Partners in Learning initiative as "part of Microsoft's comprehensive commitment to promoting digital inclusion and to partnering with governments to bring the benefits of technology to communities and classrooms around the world. Microsoft believes that through our collaboration, we can empower schools, strengthen teacher leadership and increase student achievement throughout the world." In our publications the emphasis is not on technology, per se. In studies of successful organizations and school systems, time and again it has been found that technology must be conceptualised in the context of change in the culture of the system, and in schoolwide and systemwide purposes. The goal of the training modules is to provide awareness and understanding of key ideas for leading change. i

6 Learning to Lead Change: Building System Capacity For those wanting to delve deeper into the ideas, we have captured this growing knowledge base in several recent publications: The New Meaning of Educational Change, 3 rd Ed. (2001) This is the basic textbook and covers all phases of the change process and all roles Leading in a Culture of Change (2001) Focuses on what successful education and business leaders have in common Change Forces with a Vengeance (2003) The third in the Change Forces trilogy examines both how to understand complex systems and how to transform systems for the better The Moral Imperative of School Leadership (2003) Identifies school leadership as the key force for reform through the moral imperative of making a difference in students and teachers lives, as well as making a difference at the school, district, and societal levels Leadership and Sustainability: System Thinkers in Action (2005) Identifies eight core elements of sustainability, and shows how leadership at the school, district and system level can work towards embedding these eight elements Turnaround Leadership (2006) Shows limitation of focusing on a small part of the bigger problem (turning around individual failing schools), and instead make the case for transforming all schools. Based on closing the income and education gap in societies, the book first demonstrates the social consequences of not focusing on closing the gap of high and low achievement, and then presents specific ideas and successful case studies for success. Breakthrough (2006) Argues that the new standard for schools in the 21 st century needs to be 90%+ success (for example, in literacy proficiency) not 70 or 75%. Breakthrough documents the limitation of present strategies, and then builds a system for data-driven instruction. It shows what the elements of such a system are, and how to link them together. ii

7 Change Knowledge Overview Participants in the training sessions are asked to identify a specific change initiative or project in which they are currently engaged. There will be an opportunity throughout the modules to apply ideas and concepts to the selected project. The main objectives are: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) To deepen your understanding of educational change; To extend your knowledge of cutting edge research and practices of educational reform; To show what capacities are needed to bring about effective school/community, district and system reform; To provide you with an opportunity to apply these learnings to your own projects. There are seven main modules: Module I Module II Module III Module IV Module V Module VI Module VII The Change Process Leadership for Change Learning Communities at the Local Level Role of the District Case Studies Sustaining Reform Moral Imperative/Closing iii

8 Learning to Lead Change: Building System Capacity Tri-Level Reform Enlarging Your World School-Community Regional State School-Community Regional State iv

9 i The Change Process The purpose of this module is to provide an overview of the change process, to identify key drivers for successful change, and to enable participants to apply the ideas through (a) illustrative case studies, and (b) their own change projects. 1

10 Module i The Change Puzzle Change Saying Between the thought and action, between motion and the act falls the shadow. T.S. Eliot Four Barriers to System Transformation 1. Walls of the classroom 2. Walls of the school 3. Walls of the district 4. Walls between local and state interests 2

11 The Change Process S-t-r-e-t-c-h Your Thinking Cooperatively TASK Together: Why does education reform often fail? 1. List 10 or more underlying reasons for the problem. 2. Of all the reasons listed, which one is most at the "heart" of the problem? 3. All members must be prepared to present the team answer. Time: 10 minutes. Worksheet Team Answer Sheet

12 Module i The Pathways Problem What is Change? New materials New behaviour/practices New beliefs/understanding The Implementation Dip Inertia Identify and discuss the forces of inertia in your education reform project. 4

13 The Change Process Change Knowledge Drivers Foundation Drivers 1. Engaging People s Moral Purpose 2. Capacity Building 3. Understanding the Change Process Activity Letter off A-D (groups of 4) Person A: Read Drivers 1-2 Person B: Read Driver 3, Understanding the Change Process, and 3i-ii Person C: Read Driver 3, Understanding the Change Process, 3iii-iv Person D: Read Driver 3, Understanding the Change Process, 3v-vi Share your part with the group 5

14 Module i The First Driver: Engaging Peoples Moral Purpose The first overriding principle concerns knowledge about the why of change, namely moral purpose. At a fundamental level, moral purpose in educational change is about improving society through improving educational systems and thus the learning of all citizens. In education, moral purpose involves a commitment to raising the bar and closing the gap in student achievement, for example, increasing literacy for all with special attention to those most disadvantaged. There is a wide gap, particularly in some countries between groups at the bottom and those at the top. Thus, schools need to "raise the floor" by figuring out how to speed up the learning of those who are at the bottom for whom the school system has been less effective. Improving overall literacy achievement is directly associated with economic productivity in a country. In countries where the gap between high and low performance of students is reduced, the economic health and well-being of citizens is measurably better. In change knowledge, moral purpose is not just a goal, but more importantly is a process of engaging educators, community leaders and society as a whole in the moral purpose of reform. If moral purpose is front and center, the remaining seven drivers become additional forces for enacting moral purpose. The Second Driver: CapacityBuilding The second driver is capacity building which involves policies, strategies, resources and other actions designed to increase the collective power of people to move the system forward (schools, districts, state levels). This will involve the development (collective development) of new knowledge, skills, and competencies, new resources (time, ideas, materials) and new shared identity and motivation to work together for greater change. In addition to individual and collective capacity as defined by increased knowledge, resources and motivation, organizational capacity involves improvements in the infrastructure. The infrastructure consists of agencies at the local, regional and state levels that can deliver new capacity in the system such as training, consultancy, and other support. Capacity is crucial because it is often the missing element even when people are in agreement about the need for change. For example, to improve literacy, teachers and principals must develop new skills and increased commitment in the face of inevitable obstacles (see the third driver). Similarly, in the case of new technologies not only must educators acquire new skills and understandings, they must integrate technology into curriculum, teaching and learning, and the assessment of learning. 1. It is a 'collective' phenomenon. Whole schools, whole districts and whole systems must increase their capacity as groups. This is difficult because it involves working together in new ways. 2. Capacity must be evident in practice and be ongoing. This is why front-end training is insufficient it does not transfer into improvements in the daily cultures of how people need to work in new ways. 6

15 The Change Process The Third Driver: Understanding the Change Process Understanding the change process is a big driver because it cuts across all elements. It is also difficult and frustrating to grasp because it requires leaders to take into account factors that they would rather not have to stop and deal with. They would rather lay out the purpose and plan and get on with it. Change doesn t work that way. For change to work you need the energy, ideas, commitment and ownership of all those implicated in implementing improvements. This is perplexing because the urgency of problems does not allow for long term ownership development (in fact more leisurely strategies do not produce greater ownership anyway). Ownership is not something you have at the beginning of a change process, but rather something that you create through a quality change process. Here are some of the things you need to know to push as hard as the process will allow while increasing your chances for success. Understanding the Change Process i. Strategizing vs strategy ii. Pressure and support iii. Know about the implementation dip iv. Understand the fear of change v. Appreciate the difference between technical and adaptive challenges vi. Be persistent and resilient 3. i Strategizing will help us to evolve and reshape ideas and actions. There is a great temptation to develop the complete strategic plan and then allocate mechanisms of accountability and support in order to implement it. This leads to the first lesson in the change process: the strategic plan is an innovation; it is not innovativeness. We need strategy and strategic ideas, but above all we need to think of the evolution of change plans as a process of shaping and reshaping ideas and actions. Henry Mintzberg, in his 2004 critique of existing MBA programs (Managers not MBAs) captures this idea precisely: Strategy is an interactive process, not a two-step sequence; it requires continual feedback between thought and action Strategists have to be in touch; they have to know what they are strategizing about; they have to respond and react and adjust, often allowing strategies to emerge, step-by-step. In a word, they have to learn. Effective change is more about strategizing which is a process than it is about strategy. The more that leaders practice strategizing the more that they hone their scientific and intuitive knowledge of the change process. 7

16 Module i 3. ii Pressure means ambitious targets. Support involves developing new competencies. The second element of understanding change dynamics concerns the realization that all large scale reform requires the combination and integration of pressure and support. There is a great deal of inertia in social systems which means that new forces are required to change direction. These new forces involve the judicious use of pressure and support. Pressure means ambitious targets, transparent evaluation and monitoring, calling upon moral purpose, and the like. Support involves developing new competencies, access to new ideas, more time for learning and collaboration. The more that pressure and support become seamless, the more effective the change process is at getting things to happen. As the eight drivers of change begin to operate in concert, pressure and support in effect, get built into the ongoing culture of interaction. 3. iii Knowledge of the implementation dip can reduce the awkwardness of the learning period. The third aspect of understanding the change process is to understand the finding that all eventual successful change proceeds through an implementation dip. Since change involves grappling with new beliefs and understandings, and new skills, competences and behaviors, it is inevitable that it will not go smoothly in the early stages of implementation (even if there has been pre-implementation preparation). This applies to any individual, but is much more complex when (as is always the case) many people simultaneously are involved. Knowledge of the implementation dip has helped in two important ways in our work with change initiatives. First, it has brought out into the open and given people a label for what are normal, common experiences, namely that all changes worth their salt involve a somewhat awkward learning period. Second, it has resulted in us being able to reduce the period of awkwardness. By being aware of the problem, we are able to use strategies (support, training, etc) that reduce the implementation dip from (in the case of school change) three years to half that time. This obviously depends on the starting conditions and complexity of the change, but the point is that without knowledge of the implementation dip, problems persist and people give up without giving the idea a chance. Shorter implementation dips are more tolerable and once gains start to be made earlier, motivation increases. Note that motivation is increasing (or not) during the implementation process. This is a sign of a quality (or poor) change process. 8

17 The Change Process The next two elements of understanding the change process the fear of change, and technical vs adaptive challenges delve deeper into the implementation dip. 3. iv Mastering implementation is necessary to overcome the fear of change. The fear of change is classical change knowledge. What people need to know for starters is that at the beginning of the change process the losses are specific and tangible (it is clear what is being left behind), but the gains are theoretical and distant. This is so by definition. You cannot realize the gains until you master implementation, and this takes time. More than this, you don t necessarily have confidence that the gains will be attained. It is a theoretical proposition. Black and Gregersen (2002) talk about brain barriers such as the failure to move in new directions even when the direction is clear: Their answer: The clearer the new vision, the more immobilized people become! Why? (p. 69). The clearer the new vision the easier it is for people to see all the specific ways in which they will be incompetent and look stupid. Many prefer to be competent at the [old] wrong thing than incompetent at the [new] right thing (p. 70). In other words, an additional element of change process knowledge involves realizing that clear, even inspiring, visions are not sufficient. People need the right combinations of pressure and support to become adept and comfortable with the new right way. 3. v Identify the distinction between 'technical problems' and 'adaptive challenges'. The fifth element comes from Heifetz and Linsky s (2004) distinction between technical problems and adaptive challenges. Technical problems are ones in which current knowledge is sufficient to address the problem. Technical problems are still difficult, and people will experience the usual implementation dip, but they are solvable in terms of what we know. Adaptive challenges are more complex and the solutions in a sense go beyond what we know. Heifetz and Linsky identify some properties of adaptive challenges as follows: Adaptive challenges demand a response beyond our current repertoire; Adaptive work to narrow the gap between our aspirations and current reality requires difficult learning; The people with the problem are the problem and are the solution; Adaptive work generates disequilibrium and avoidance; Adaptive work takes time. Most of the big moral purpose goals we aspire to these days tend to be 'adaptive challenges'. The change knowledge, then, involves strategizing with Heifetz's five assumptions in mind. When you do this, you set up a sounder and more realistic change process. 9

18 Module i 3. vi Engaging others in change requires persistence to overcome the inevitable challenges. The final aspect of understanding change as a process is a kind of retrospective overlay of the previous five components. Engaging others in the process of change requires persistence in order to overcome the inevitable challenges to keep on going despite setbacks but it also involves adaptation and problem-solving through being flexible enough to incorporate new ideas into strategizing. Both focus and flexibility are needed. The concept that captures persistence and flexibility is resilience. Because change processes are complex, difficult and frustrating it requires pushing ahead without being rigid; regrouping despite setbacks; and not being discouraged when progress is slow. The reason we emphasize persistence and resilience is that people often start with grand intentions and aspirations, but gradually lower them over time in the face of obstacles and in the end achieve precious little. Thus, armed with change knowledge, people should approach the change process with a commitment to maintain, even increase high standards and aspirations. Obstacles should be seen as problems and barriers to be resolved in order to achieve high targets rather than reasons for consciously or not lowering aspirations. 10

19 The Change Process Brain Barriers BB #1: Failure to see BB #2: Failure to move BB #3: Failure to finish Black & Gregersen, 2002 BB #1: Failure to See The comprehensiveness mistake The I get it mistake Illuminate the right thing Black & Gregersen, 2002 BB #2: Failure to Move The clearer the new vision the more immobilized people become! Why? Black & Gregersen, 2002 Right Thing Poorly The clearer the new vision, the easier it is for people to see all the specific ways in which they will be incompetent and look stupid. Many prefer to be competent at the wrong thing than incompetent at the right thing. Black & Gregersen, 2002 BB #3: Failure to Finish Breaking Through Barriers Technical vs Adaptive Challenge People get tired. People get lost. Conceive Believe Achieve Black & Gregersen, 2002 Black & Gregersen, 2002 Heifetz distinguishes between technical problems and adaptive challenges. Technical problems are ones for which our current know-how is sufficient. Adaptive challenges are more complex and go beyond what we know. Heifetz identifies several properties of adaptive challenges: Adaptive challenges demand a response beyond our current repertoire; Adaptive work to narrow the gap between our aspirations and current reality requires difficult learning; The people with the problem are the problem and are the solution; Adaptive work generates disequilibrium and avoidance; Adaptive work takes time. Heifetz & Linsky,

20 Module i Triple I Model Activity 1. Review the list of factors in the Triple I model. 2. Which of the three stages best characterizes your project at this time? 3. Use the list of factors at the stage selected to assess your own project: - How does each factor apply? - Are there other factors that you would add? Worksheet Triple I Model (One Model for Understanding Change Initiatives) Initiation Factors Linked to high profile need Clear model Strong advocate Active initiation Comments Action Implications Implementation Factors Orchestration Shared control Pressure and support Technical assistance Rewards Institutionalization Factors Embedding Links to instruction Widespread use Removal of competing priorities Continuing assistance Miles, M. 12

21 The Change Process Change Knowledge Drivers Enabling Drivers 4. Developing Cultures for Learning 5. Developing Cultures of Evaluation 6. Focusing on Leadership for Change 7. Fostering Coherence-Making 8. Cultivating Tri-Level Development Change Without Pain Creative destruction (destroys, removes) vs Creative re-combination (recombines and adds to existing assets) Abrahamson, 2004 Repetitive Change Syndrome Initiative overboard Change-related chaos Employee cynicism Abrahamson, 2004 Activity Letter off A-D (groups of 4) Person A: Read Driver 4 Person B: Read Driver 5 Person C: Read Driver 6 Person D: Read Drivers 7 and 8 Share your part with the group. 13

22 Module i The Fourth Driver: Developing Cultures for Learning The fourth driver, cultures for learning, sounds like a general statement, but it means something specific in establishing the conditions for success. It involves a whole set of strategies designed so that people can learn from each other (the knowledge dimension) and become collectively committed to improvement (the affective dimension). Strategies for learning from each other involve: Developing learning communities at the local, school and community levels Learning from other schools regional and otherwise (lateral capacity building) Successful change involves learning during implementation. One of the most powerful drivers of change involves learning from peers, especially those who are further along in implementing new ideas. We can think of such learning inside the school and local community, and across schools or jurisdictions. Within the school there is a great deal of practical research that demonstrates the necessity and power of Professional Learning Communities. Newmann and his colleagues (2000) identified five components of change capacity within the school which includes the development of new knowledge and skills, establishing professional learning communities, program coherence, access to new resources, and principal/school leadership. Schools and their local villages and communities must develop new cultures of learning how to improve. When school systems establish cultures of learning they constantly seek and develop teachers knowledge and skills required to create effective new learning experiences for students. In addition to within school and community learning, a powerful new strategy is evolving which we call lateral capacity building. This involves strategies in which schools and communities learn from each other within a given district or region and beyond. This widens the pool of ideas and also enhances a greater we-we identity beyond one school (Fullan, 2005). Knowledge sharing and collective identity are powerful forces for positive change, and they form a core component of our change knowledge, i.e., we need to value these aspects and know how to put them into action. Pfeffer and Sutton (2000) reinforce this conclusion in their analysis of The Knowing-Doing Gap. They claim that we should embed' more of the process of acquiring new knowledge in the actual doing of the task and less in formal training programs that are frequently ineffective (p. 27). Change knowledge has a bias for action. Developing a climate where people learn from each other within and across units, and being preoccupied with turning good knowledge into action is essential. Turning information into actionable knowledge is a social process. Thus, developing learning cultures is crucial. Good policies and ideas take off in learning cultures, and go nowhere in cultures of isolation. 14

23 The Change Process The Fifth Driver: Developing Cultures of Evaluation Cultures of evaluation must be coupled with cultures of learning in order to sort out promising from not so promising ideas and especially to deepen the meaning of what is learned. One of the highest yield strategies for educational change recently developed is Assessment for Learning (not just assessment of learning). Assessment for learning incorporates: Accessing/gathering data on student learning Disaggregating data for more detailed understanding Developing action plans based on the previous two points in order to make improvements Being able to articulate and discuss performance with parents, external groups When schools and school systems increase their collective capacity to engage in ongoing assessment for learning, major improvements are achieved. Several other aspects of evaluation cultures are important including: school-based self-appraisal, meaningful use of external accountability data, and what Jim Collins (2001) found in great organizations, namely, a commitment to confronting the brutal facts, and establishing a culture of disciplined inquiry. Cultures of evaluation serve external accountability as well as internal data processing purposes. They produce data on an ongoing basis which enables groups to use information for action planning as well as for external accounting (see Black, et al, 2003, and Stiggins, 2001). One other matter: technology has become an enormously necessary and powerful tool in our work on assessment as it makes it possible to access and analyze student achievement data on an ongoing basis, take corrective action, and share best solutions. Developing cultures of evaluation and capacity to use technology for improvement must go hand in hand; both are seriously underdeveloped in most systems we know. 15

24 Module i The Sixth Driver: Focusing on Leadership for Change As might be expected, one of the most powerful lessons for change involves leadership. Here change knowledge consists of knowing what kind of leadership is best for leading productive change. It turns out that high-flying, charismatic leaders look like powerful change agents, but are actually bad for business because too much revolves around themselves. Leadership, to be effective, must spread throughout the organization. Collins (2001) found that charismatic leaders were negatively associated with sustainability. Leaders of the so-called great organizations were characterized by deep personal humility and intense professional will. Collins talks about the importance of leadership which builds enduring greatness in the organization rather than just focusing on short-term results. To provide a specific illustration, the main mark of a school principal at the end of his or her tenure is not just their impact on the bottom line of student achievement, but rather how many leaders they leave behind who can go even further. Mintzberg (2004) makes the same point: Successful managing is not about one s own success but about fostering success in others. (p. 16) While managers have to make decisions, far more important, especially in large networked organizations of knowledge works, is what they do to enhance decision-making capabilities of others. (p. 38) Change knowledge, then, means avoiding leaders who represent innovation, and seeking those who represent innovativeness the capacity to develop leadership in others on an ongoing basis. We need to produce a critical mass of leaders who have change knowledge. Such leaders produce and feed on other leadership through the system. There is no other driver as essential as leadership for sustainable reform. 16

25 The Change Process The Seventh Driver: Fostering Coherence-Making When innovation runs amok, even if driven by moral purpose, you get overload and fragmentation. To a certain extent this is normal in complex systems. Change knowledge is required to render overload into greater coherence. This is a never-ending proposition that involves alignment, connecting the dots, being clear about how the big picture fits together. Above all, it involves investing in capacity building so that cultures of learning and evaluation through the proliferation of leadership can create their own patterns of coherence on the ground. Change knowledge is not about developing the greatest number of innovations, but rather about achieving new patterns of coherence which enable people to focus more deeply on how things interconnect. The Eighth Driver: Cultivating Tri-Level Development The eighth and final driver lies in the realization that we are talking about system transformation at three levels. Those interested in change knowledge must realize that we are not just talking about changing individuals, but also about changing systems what we call the tri-level model. A tri-level lens on this problem: What has to happen at the school and community level? What has to happen at the district level? What has to happen at the level of the state? We need to change individuals, but also to change contexts. We need to develop better individuals while we simultaneously develop better organizations and systems. This is easier said than done, and it involves what we have recently called developing system thinkers in action (Fullan, 2005). For our purposes, we need only say beware of the individualistic bias where the tacit assumption is that if we change enough individuals then the system will change. It won t happen. We need to change systems at the same time. The single guideline we will provide here is that in order to change individuals and systems simultaneously, we must provide more learning in context, that is, learning in the actual situations we want to change. Mintzberg (2004) focuses on this when he says, Leadership is as much about doing in order to think as thinking in order to do (p. 10). We need programs designed to educate practicing managers in context (p. 193). Leadership has to be learned not just by doing it but by being able to gain conceptual insight while doing it (p. 200). In any case, tri-level development involves focusing on all three levels of the system and their interrelationships, and giving people wider learning opportunities within these contexts as a route to changing the very contexts within which people work. 17

26 Module i Lived Action Think about the drivers. What two things do you want to do in your role to act on these ideas? Give One and Get One 18

27 The Change Process Follow-Up Reading 10 Do and Don t Assumptions About Change Fullan, 2001b, pp Do not assume that your version of what the change should be is the one that should or could be implemented. On the contrary, assume that one of the main purposes of the process of implementation is to exchange your reality of what should be through interaction with implementers and others concerned. Stated another way, assume that successful implementation consists of some transformation or continual development of initial ideas. 2. Assume that any significant innovation, if it is to result in change, requires individual implementers to work out their own meaning. Significant change involves a certain amount of ambiguity, ambivalence, and uncertainty for the individual about the meaning of the change. Thus, effective implementation is a process of clarification. It is also important not to spend too much time in the early stages on needs assessment, program development, and problem definition activities school staff have limited time. Clarification is likely to come in large part through reflective practice. 3. Assume that conflict and disagreement are not only inevitable but fundamental to successful change. Since any group of people possess multiple realities, any collective change attempt will necessarily involve conflict. Assumptions 2 and 3 combine to suggest that all successful efforts of significance, no matter how well planned, will experience an implementation dip in the early stages. Smooth implementation is often a sign that not much is really changing. 4. Assume that people need pressure to change (even in directions that they desire), but it will be effective only under conditions that allow them to react, to form their own position, to interact with other implementers, to obtain technical assistance, etc. It is alright and helpful to express what you value in the form of standards of practice and expectations of accountability, but only if coupled with capacity building and problem-solving opportunities. 5. Assume that effective change takes time. It is a process of development in use. Unrealistic or undefined time lines fail to recognize that implementation occurs developmentally. Significant change in the form of implementing specific innovations can be expected to take a minimum of two or three years; bringing about institutional reforms can take five or ten years. At the same time, work on changing the infrastructure (policies, incentives, capacity of agencies at all levels) so that valued gains can be sustained and built upon). 19

28 Module i 6. Do not assume that the reason for lack of implementation is outright rejection of the values embodied in the change, or hard-core resistance to all change. Assume that there are a number of possible reasons: value rejection, inadequate resources to support implementation, insufficient time elapsed, and the possibility that resisters have some good points to make. 7. Do not expect all or even most people or groups to change. Progress occurs when we take steps (e.g., by following the assumptions listed here) that increase the number of people affected. Our reach should exceed our grasp, but not by such a margin that we fall flat on our face. Instead of being discouraged by all that remains to be done, be encouraged by what has been accomplished by way of improvement resulting from your actions. 8. Assume that you will need a plan that is based on the above assumptions and that addresses the factors known to affect implementation. Evolutionary planning and problem-coping models based on knowledge of the change process are essential. 9. Assume that no amount of knowledge will ever make it totally clear what action should be taken. Action decisions are a combination of valid knowledge, political considerations, on-the-spot decisions, and intuition. Better knowledge of the change process will improve the mix of resources on which we draw, but it will never and should never represent the sole basis for decision. 10. Assume that changing the culture of institutions is the real agenda, not implementing single innovations. Put another way, when implementing particular innovations, we should always pay attention to whether each institution and the relationships among institutions and individuals is developing or not. 20

29 The Change Process The change process, as we have seen, is complex, but can be understood. Module I provides insights in the form of essential change knowledge. If change is complex, the remaining modules represent strategies for addressing change effectively. 21

30 Notes

31 ii Leadership for Change It has become increasingly clear that leadership at all levels of the system is the key lever for reform, especially leaders who (a) focus on capacity building and (b) develop other leaders who can carry on. 23

32 Module ii The Change Puzzle Framework for Leadership Fullan, 2001a Collins Hierarchy of Leadership Level 5 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1 Executive (builds enduring greatness) Effective Leader (catalyses commitment to vision and standards) Competent Manager (organizes people toward objective) Contributing Team Member (individual contribution to group objectives) Highly Capable Individual (makes productive contributions) Collins,

33 Leadership for Change Collins Flywheel Collins, 2001 Charismatic Leadership is negatively associated with sustainability. Sustaining Leaders Have deep personal humility and intense professional will. 25

34 Module ii Dealing with Resistance/Emotional Intelligence Think of a situation where you encountered strong resistance. What actions did you take initially? Using the worksheet below, pair up and interview your partner. Worksheet Dealing with Resistance The Situation Initial Action/Reaction Person 1 Person 2 26

35 Leadership for Change Making Matters Worse Making Matters Worse When we face resistance to our ideas, most of us react with an assortment of ineffective approaches. These are our default positions. Use power Manipulate those who oppose Apply force of reason Ignore resistance Play off relationships Make deals Kill the messenger Give in too soon Mauer, 1996 Why Default Strategies Don t Work and may often escalate and strengthen opposition to your goals They increase resistance The win might not be worth the cost They fail to create synergy They create fear and suspicion They separate us from others Mauer, 1996 Getting Beyond the Wall: Five Fundamental Touchstones 1. Maintain clear focus Keep both long and short view Persevere 2. Embrace resistance Counterintuitive response Understand voice of resistance 3. Respect those who resist Listen with interest Tell the truth 4. Relax Stay calm and stay engaged Know their intentions 5. Join with the resistance Begin together Change the game Find themes and possibilities Consider strategies that incorporate most (or all) of the touchstones! Mauer,

36 Module ii Emotional Intelligence Goleman et al., 2002, Appendix B, pp Self Awareness Emotional self-awareness. Leaders high in emotional self-awareness are attuned to their inner signals, recognizing how their feelings affect them and their job performance. They are attuned to their guiding values and can often intuit the best course of action, seeing the big picture in a complex situation. Emotionally selfaware leaders can be candid and authentic, able to speak openly about their emotions or with conviction about their guiding vision. Accurate self-assessment. Leaders with high self-awareness typically know their limitations and strengths, and exhibit a sense of humour about themselves. They exhibit a gracefulness in learning where they need to improve, and welcome constructive criticism and feedback. Accurate self-assessment lets a leader know when to ask for help and where to focus in cultivating new leadership strengths. Self-confidence. Knowing their abilities with accuracy allows leaders to play to their strengths. Self-confident leaders can welcome a difficult assignment. Such leaders often have a sense of presence, a self-assurance that lets them stand out in a group. Self Management Emotional self-control. Leaders with emotional self-control find ways to manage their disturbing emotions and impulses, and even to channel them in useful ways. A hallmark of self-control is the leader who stays calm and clear-headed under high stress or during a crisis or who remains unflappable even when confronted by a trying situation. Transparency. Leaders who are transparent live their values. Transparency an authentic openness to others about one s feelings, beliefs, and actions allows integrity. Such leaders openly admit mistakes or faults, and confront unethical behaviour in others rather than turn a blind eye. Adaptability. Leaders who are adaptable can juggle multiple demands without losing their focus or energy, and are comfortable with the inevitable ambiguities of organizational life. Such leaders can be flexible in adapting to new challenges, nimble in adjusting to fluid change, and limber in their thinking in the face of new data or realities. Achievement. Leaders with strength in achievement have high personal standards that drive them to constantly seek performance improvements both for themselves and those they lead. They are pragmatic, setting measurable but challenging goals, and are able to calculate risk so that their goals are worthy but attainable. A hallmark of achievement is in continually learning and teaching ways to do better. Initiative. Leaders who have a sense of efficacy that they have what it takes to control their own destiny excel in initiative. They seize opportunities or create them rather than simply waiting. Such a leader does not hesitate to cut through red tape, or even bend the rules, when necessary to create better possibilities for the future. Optimism. A leader who is optimistic can roll with the punches, seeing an opportunity rather than a threat in a setback. Such leaders see others positively, expecting the best of them. And their glass half-full outlook leads them to expect that changes in the future will be for the better. 28

37 Leadership for Change Social Awareness Empathy. Leaders with empathy are able to attune to a wide range of emotional signals, letting them sense the felt, but unspoken, emotions in a person or group. Such leaders listen attentively and can grasp the other person s perspective. Empathy makes a leader able to get along well with people of diverse backgrounds or from other cultures. Organizational awareness. A leader with a keen social awareness can be politically astute, able to detect crucial social networks and read key power relationships. Such leaders can understand the political forces at work in an organization, as well as the guiding values and unspoken rules that operate among people there. Service. Leaders high in the service competence foster an emotional climate so that people directly in touch with the customer or client will keep the relationship on the right track. Such leaders monitor customer or client satisfaction carefully to ensure they are getting what they need. They also make themselves available as needed. Relationship Management Inspiration. Leaders who inspire both create resonance and move people with a compelling vision or shared mission. Such leaders embody what they ask of others, and are able to articulate a shared mission in a way that inspires others to follow. They offer a sense of common purpose beyond the day-to-day tasks, making work exciting. Influence. Indicators of a leader s powers of influence range from finding just the right appeal for a given listener to knowing how to build buy-in from key people and a network of support for an initiative. Leaders adept in influence are persuasive and engaging when they address a group. Developing others. Leaders who are adept at cultivating people s abilities show a genuine interest in those they are helping along, understanding their goals, strengths, and weaknesses. Such leaders can give timely and constructive feedback and are natural mentors or coaches. Change catalyst. Leaders who can catalyse change are able to recognize the need for the change, challenge the status quo, and champion the new order. They can be strong advocates for the change even in the face of opposition, making the argument for it compellingly. They also find practical ways to overcome barriers to change. Conflict management. Leaders who manage conflicts best are able to draw out all parties, understand the differing perspectives, and then find a common ideal that everyone can endorse. They surface the conflict, acknowledge the feelings and views of all sides, and then redirect the energy toward a shared ideal. Building bonds. Leaders who are effective cultivate a web of relationships. They relate well to diverse individuals, establishing trust and rapport within the organization and with external partners and networks. Teamwork and collaboration. Leaders who are able team players generate an atmosphere of friendly collegiality and are themselves models of respect, helpfulness, and cooperation. They draw others into active, enthusiastic commitment to the collective effort, and build spirit and identity. They spend time forging and cementing close relationships beyond mere work obligations. 29

38 Module ii Emotional Intelligence Personal Competence (how we manage ourselves) Self-awareness Self-management Social Competence (how we manage relationships) Social awareness Relationship management Goleman, et al, 2002 RATING Self-Awareness Low High Emotional self-awareness (reading one s own emotions and recognizing their impact; using gut sense to guide decisions) Accurate self-assessment (knowing one s strengths and limits) Self-confidence (a sound sense of one s self-worth and capabilities) Self-Management Emotional self-control (keeping disruptive emotions and impulses under control) Transparency (displaying honesty and integrity; trustworthiness) Adaptability (flexibility in adapting to changing situations or overcoming obstacles) Achievement (the drive to improve performance to meet inner standards of excellence) Initiative (readiness to act and seize opportunities) Optimism (seeing the upside in events) Social Awareness Empathy (sensing others emotions, understanding their perspective, and taking active interest in their concerns) Organizational awareness (reading the currents, decision networks, and politics at the organizational level) Service (recognizing and meeting client or customer needs) Relationship Management Inspiration (guiding and motivating with a compelling vision) Influence (wielding a range of tactics for persuasion) Developing others (bolstering others abilities through feedback and guidance) Change catalyst (initiating, managing, and leading in a new direction) Conflict management (resolving disagreements) Building bonds (cultivating and maintaining a web of relationships) Teamwork and collaboration (cooperation and team building) How could you improve on these dimensions? Identify 3-5 items on which you are relatively high (4 or 5) How could you sustain your strengths on these dimensions?

39 Leadership for Change Emotional Blueprint: Managing You: Applying Your Emotional Intelligence Skills: Step 1 Objective What to Do Identifying Emotions Using Emotions Understanding Emotions Managing Emotions Stay open to your emotions and those of others around you. Reflect on these emotions and consider their influence on thinking. Examine the causes of feelings and what may happen next. Don t minimize the feelings, and don t blow the feelings out of proportion. Observe, listen, ask questions, confirm understanding. Determine how these feelings influence thinking. Change the tone if necessary. Consider reasons for the feelings and how they will likely change if various events occur. Include rational, logical information with emotional data for an optimal decision. Caruso & Salovey, 2005 Objective: The four parts of this section can help you to become more aware of your confidence and understanding of your emotional intelligence skills. Instructions: Simply read each question and select one response A, B, or C that you feel best describes yourself. 31

40 Module ii Part 1. Identifying Emotions: Assess our emotional awareness 1. Awareness of emotions A [ ] Almost always aware of how I feel B [ ] At times am aware of my feelings C [ ] Don t pay much attention to my feelings 2. Expression of feelings A [ ] Can show others how I feel through emotional expression B [ ] Can show some of my feelings C [ ] Not good at expressing my feelings 3. Reading of other people s emotions A [ ] Always know how someone else feels B [ ] Sometimes pick up on others feelings C [ ] Misread people s feelings 4. Ability to read subtle, nonverbal emotional cues A [ ] Can read between the lines and pick up on how the person feels B [ ] At times, can read nonverbal cues such as body language C [ ] Don t pay much attention to these cues 5. Awareness of false emotions A [ ] Always pick up on lies B [ ] Usually am aware of when a person is lying C [ ] Can be fooled by people 6. Perception of emotion in art A [ ] Strong aesthetic sense B [ ] At times can feel it C [ ] Am uninterested in art or music 7. Ability to monitor emotions A [ ] Always aware of feelings B [ ] Usually aware C [ ] Rarely aware 8. Aware of manipulative emotions A [ ] Always know when a person is trying to manipulate me B [ ] Usually know C [ ] Rarely know 32

41 Leadership for Change Part 2. Using Emotions to Facilitate Thought: Assess your ability to generate emotions and use them to think 1. When people describe experiences to me, A [ ] I can feel what they feel B [ ] I understand what they feel C [ ] I focus on facts and details 2. I can generate an emotion on demand A [ ] Easily, for all emotions B [ ] For most emotions C [ ] Rarely, or with great difficulty 3. Before an important event, A [ ] I can get into a positive, energetic mood B [ ] I may be able to psych myself up for it C [ ] I keep my mood just the same 4. Is my thinking influenced by my feelings? A [ ] Different moods affect thinking and decision making in different ways B [ ] It may be important to be in a certain mood at certain times C [ ] My thinking is not clouded by emotions 5. What is the influence of strong feelings on my thinking? A [ ] Feelings help me focus on what s important B [ ] Feelings have little impact on me C [ ] Feelings distract me 6. My emotional imagination is A [ ] Very strong B [ ] Mildly interesting C [ ] Adds little value 7. I can change my mood A [ ] Easily B [ ] Usually C [ ] Rarely 8. When people describe powerful emotional events, A [ ] I feel what they feel B [ ] My feelings change a bit C [ ] My feelings stay the same 33

42 Module ii Part 3. Understanding Emotions: Assess your emotional knowledge 1. My emotional vocabulary is A [ ] Very detailed and rich B [ ] Above average C [ ] Not very large 2. My understanding of why people feel the way they do usually yields A [ ] Excellent insights B [ ] Some insight C [ ] Some missing pieces 3. My knowledge of how emotions change and develop is A [ ] Sophisticated B [ ] Somewhat developed C [ ] Limited and of little interest to me 4. Emotional what-if thinking yields A [ ] Accurate prediction of outcome of various actions B [ ] At times, good prediction of feelings C [ ] Tend not to project how people will feel 5. When I try to determine what causes emotions, I A [ ] Always link the feeling to an event B [ ] Sometimes link a feeling to a cause C [ ] Believe that feelings don t have a cause 6. I believe that contradictory emotions A [ ] Can be felt, such as love and hate at the same time B [ ] May be possible C [ ] Make little sense 7. I think emotions A [ ] Have certain patterns of change B [ ] Sometimes can follow other emotions C [ ] Usually occur in a random order 8. My emotional reasoning could be described this way: A [ ] I have a sophisticated emotional vocabulary B [ ] I can usually describe emotions C [ ] I struggle for words to describe feelings 34