by DeAe Aguirre aguirre_deae@bah.com Louisa Fi fi_louisa@bah.com Ashley Harshak harshak_ashley@bah.com Ready, Willig, ad Egaged A Practical Guide for Sposors of Chage
Ready, Willig, ad Egaged A Practical Guide for Sposors of Chage The ext time you face a major chage iitiative, cosider this cautioary tale. Not so very log ago, a large U.S. publisher cofrotig ew global ad olie competitio resolved to overhaul its operatios. Not oly did it eed to reduce its aual costs by US$20 millio, it had to recofigure ad realig its etire busiess model to support a solutios-based approach ad a higher-quality product lie. It embarked o othig short of a complete trasformatio. Did it succeed? Oly o paper, as it turs out. The seior maagemet team plotted a soud ad effective pla for trasformig the compay ad turig its fortues aroud but the employees did ot care to implemet it. After three ew CEOs i five years ad a log list of former failed programs of the moth ligerig i the compay s collective cosciousess, people were bured out o chage, ad seior maagemet had ot put i place a clear, credible, ad carefully itegrated chage maagemet program to cultivate their iterest ad buy-i. The trasformatio program ultimately failed to achieve the desired outcomes. Ufortuately, this story is all too familiar but it does t have to be. Despite their iitial resistace, people will chage if they believe that doig so will make a real differece ad persoally beefit them. But how ca you, as a leader charged with makig chage happe, tap ito that uderlyig desire ad uleash sustaiable chage mometum withi your orgaizatio? What Is Chage Maagemet? Chage maagemet is a process for egagig people at all levels i the orgaizatio s trasitio to a desired future. Its goal is to esure that people are both willig ad able to adopt the ecessary ew behaviors while lettig go of those that are o loger appropriate. Chage maagemet is ot a commuicatios pla; commuicatios is a vital compoet of a effective chage maagemet program, but it is o substitute. Chage maagemet is far broader; it is a comprehesive, systematic, prove methodology that ecompasses the people side of makig chage happe all the myriad orgaizatioal ad behavioral adjustmets (e.g., workforce plaig, learig ad developmet) that ot oly accommodate large ad small busiess trasformatios, but sustai them over the log haul. These trasformatios ca take place o a large scale, as i itroducig a ew operatig model, or o a small scale, as i reegieerig a part of operatios. Whether large or small, all chage ivolves people adoptig ew mid-sets, processes, policies, practices, ad behaviors. Helpig people make the trasitio ad sustai the chage is what chage maagemet is all about. Most trasformatio efforts succeed i the strategy or techical solutio; seior executives uderstad itellectually what eeds to chage to improve
performace. Where chage fails is i the executio, i the hearts ad mids of the tes or thousads of idividuals tasked with makig chage a edurig reality. However, if your compay has the foresight to pla ad commit to a chage maagemet program i cocert with the busiess trasformatio iitiative, it ca implemet major chage successfully. As the project sposor, you play a pivotal role i shapig ad esurig that success. The secret to implemetig ad sustaiig chage is gettig your people ready, willig, ad egaged i the chage. Although that might soud easy or soft it is aythig but. Chage maagemet is both a art ad a sciece that is ofte udertake far too late ad far too lightly to be effective. For trasformatios to succeed, chage maagemet issues eed to be idetified ad icorporated i project maagemet plas from the start ad the revisited agai ad agai throughout the implemetatio process to shape the desired strategic outcome (see Exhibit 1). Chage maagemet caot be relegated to a isolated work stream (commoly represeted as a simple arrow across the bottom of a project pla), or ca chage maagemet be tacked o as a afterthought whe executio falters ad a fix is required. Not oly is such a approach to chage maagemet doomed to failure, but it breeds edurig cyicism. Iterative Approach to Executig Chage How do you get people ready, willig, ad egaged to make major chage? Booz Alle Hamilto s approach features eight primary levers: 1. Defiig the Chage 2. Creatig a Shared Need 3. Developig a Shared Visio 4. Leadig the Chage 5. Egagig ad Mobilizig Stakeholders 6. Creatig Accoutability 7. Aligig Systems ad Structures 8. Sustaiig the Chage Exhibit 1 Embed Chage Maagemet i the Trasformatio Pla Diagostic Desig Desig Implemetatio Typical Busiess Deliverables Opportuity assessmet Busiess case Orgaizatioal baselie Project maagemet office/ Steerig committee Desig workshops Process mappig Program evaluatio Beefits realizatio assessmet Strategic Objectives Busiess Requiremets Feasibility Impact Magitude ad Complexity of Chage Typical Chage Maagemet Deliverables Case for chage People impact aalysis Decisio rights Chage readiess assessmet Chage road map Stakeholder mappig Commuicatios pla People desig Stakeholder egagemet Commuicatio of quick wis Progress trackig & evaluatio Lessos leared workshops Source: Booz Alle Hamilto
Exhibit 2 Chage Maagemet Is a Iterative Process Defiig the Chage Aligig Systems ad Structures Creatig a Shared Need Creatig Accoutability Ready, Willig, ad Egaged Developig a Shared Visio Sustaiig the Chage Egagig ad Mobilizig Stakeholders Leadig the Chage Source: Booz Alle Hamilto As Exhibit 2 illustrates, ad your ow experiece has o doubt reiforced, the chage process is iterative. Maagig chage is ot a team-buildig exercise, a series of workshops, or a substitute for project maagemet, or ca it be reduced to some plai vailla formula. Because it is predicated o motivatig huma behavior, it is iheretly repetitive ad ever-chagig as it adapts to idividual, team, ad orgaizatioal feedback. You take oe step back for every two steps forward, ad you apply each of these eight practical levers over ad over agai as you desig ad implemet. 1. Defiig the Chage You lay the foudatio for the chage iitiative by idetifyig the purpose, scope, ad outcome of the proposed chage ot oly for the orgaizatio as a whole, but for each key fuctio ad role withi it. This lever addresses key questios such as: Do we have clarity o what the iitiative is ad how we are goig to proceed? What chages are eeded to ispire people to brig their best to work? I aswerig these questios ad layig out the process for embeddig chage (e.g., roles, time lie), you ll have a clearer picture of the magitude ad complexity ivolved. As imperative as this lever is, it is ofte overlooked as seior maagemet becomes cosumed with the busiess chages, assumig that the people issues will resolve themselves over time. They do t. If you as project sposor take the time to defie for the orgaizatio the full implicatios of the proposed chage up frot, you ca effectively embed chage maagemet ito the desig of the trasformatio. For example, if the project requires breakig dow fuctioal silos, you ca implemet the chage usig cross-fuctioal teams. Project sposors who adequately defie the chage develop more realistic ad therefore more credible chage maagemet plas. You will avoid hearig these kids of commets i the hallways: We re ever goig to pull this off. Sales ever bought i it is t happeig. What makes them thik it will work this time? To defie the chage, we recommed that compaies coduct a prelimiary assessmet of the aticipated impact o people. For each key elemet of the chage program, you should idetify ad aalyze the people ad orgaizatioal impacts (e.g., skills ivetory,
head-cout implicatios, evolutio of specific roles/ relatioships, trade uio issues, chages to pay or motivators, learig eeds). This baselie aalysis feeds the busiess trasformatio desig ad is cotiually revisited as the chage program ufolds. 2. Creatig a Shared Need I additio to defiig the chage ad its impact, you eed to build a commo uderstadig of the case for chage across the orgaizatio. Is the seior leadership team aliged o the scope of the trasformatio ad the busiess case? Does the whole orgaizatio kow why the iitiative is importat ad why it must be udertake ow? Do people kow how the trasformatio coects to the orgaizatio s overall purpose? A sposor s first priority is to build uderstadig ad aligmet o the eed for chage, iitially with the seior team, the amog key stakeholders ad the orgaizatio as a whole. PowerPoit presetatios o the case for chage will ot suffice. Creatig a shared eed is more about showig tha tellig. You must demostrate to people how chage will improve ot oly the compay s fortues but their ow persoal prospects. There are two key steps. The first is uderstadig the various perceptios of whether or why chage is ecessary. The secod is solicitig iput ad providig opportuities to discuss the eed for chage i a way that geerates isight ad builds collective commitmet. This time is well spet; without aligmet o the imperative for chage you will have o foudatio upo which to build the trasformatio. 3. Developig a Shared Visio Desigig ad executig chage ivolves establishig a clear visio that liks key actios to expected results. People, geerally speakig, wat to be part of somethig larger tha themselves. By developig a shared visio, sposors ca capitalize o a importat opportuity to ispire ad egage people i a worthy udertakig. This visio of life after the chage should be cosistet with ad reiforce the values ad missio of the compay. To develop this shared visio, ask people the followig questios: If we were fully realizig the potetial of this orgaizatio, what would that look like? What is most compellig about this visio? Their aswers highlight the qualitative, values-based focus of your chage program, revealig isights ito what people fid most motivatig, as well as what sort of behavior shifts will be required. 4. Leadig the Chage The first three levers just discussed ecompass the diagostic phase of the typical busiess trasformatio program. As it moves ito the desig phase, you will eed to develop the chage leadership ad executio capabilities eeded to drive ad sustai chage over the log term. I terms of chage leadership, there is o substitute for seior executive attetio. Compaies are trasformed from the top; owership for the chage maagemet ageda like the busiess trasformatio program itself caot be delegated. Leadig the chage meas that seior executives must ot oly be o top ad i frot of the chage maagemet program; they must also model the ew behaviors ad hold themselves ad others accoutable. To be successful, the sposor must be a busiess uit executive who actively, visibly, ad cotiuously egages i the chage iitiative ad who advocates that other leaders do so as well. Chage maagemet caot be a huma resources udertakig. What must leaders do to drive the chages ad demostrate their commitmet? How will leaders ispire others to chage? What support do leaders eed? These are the questios addressed by this lever. As a project sposor, your job is to address these questios by cultivatig seior chage leaders ad layig out the road map they should follow i drivig/ challegig the orgaizatio to reach the ext level of performace. A Middle Easter oil compay foud chage leader traiig to be the key to ulockig the results of its recet major reorgaizatio. Facig sigificat
Sceario Role Play: Lack of Egagemet A Tool for Buildig Chage Leadership Skills Situatio Global Egieerig Solutios (GES) has grow rapidly over the past five years, primarily i iteratioal markets. The compay recetly decided to ivest i ew techology ad a multiyear effort to improve employees skills. Seior leaders cosider this effort critical to remai competitive. Some of the biggest impacts will be o developmet ad career path optios, especially for techical staff. Mohammed has bee asked to oversee the commuicatio effort ad is plaig o a series of iformatioal workshops for employees. Iitial, iformal feedback from the grapevie is that this effort is a excuse for massive layoffs, ad employees are upset ad agry. Morale is low. The rapid growth has resulted i additioal challeges: a workforce that has quadrupled employees i multiple locatios ad varyig levels of loyalty to GES ad trust i seior leadership. Objective Help Mohammed address these chage maagemet issues. Dos Cosider how to take advatage of iformal etworks (i.e., the grapevie) by usig emissaries ad ambassadors (peer-to-peer commuicatio). Make the case for chage very clear. Allow time for vetig upfrot i the workshop, workig toward a positive resolutio by the ed. Aalyze the chagig cotract betwee employee ad employer ad make it explicit: What is the ew employee value propositio? Do ts Focus o structural solutios oly (itraet site, e-mail, ad tow halls). Use oly oe tool (such as workshops). Thik oe size will fit all cosider how best to strategically positio messages for each audiece. workforce maagemet challeges as a result of its sharp growth, the compay decided to redesig its orgaizatio ad selected a group of maagers to udergo chage leadership traiig. The seior team ackowledged that chage maagemet was a key success factor ad a major weakess. Few of the maagers resposible for the trasformatio program had led a effort of this magitude before; they did t kow how to motivate ad model such extesive chage. Fewer still had a idea of what this meat for them persoally as agets of chage. Durig the oeday workshop, these chage leaders were traied i a variety of chage maagemet cocepts ad tools, which eabled them to lead the trasitio to the ew orgaizatio successfully. Role plays were used to help leaders hoe the iterpersoal skills eeded to effectively hadle lack of employee egagemet. 5. Egagig ad Mobilizig Stakeholders Egagig ad mobilizig the whole orgaizatio is a matter of reachig diverse audieces that are affected by the iitiative through multiple vehicles, icludig well-coceived commuicatios. These are the idividuals ad groups who could exert exceptioal
ifluece either positively or egatively. Examples iclude formal ad iformal leaders, fuctioal uits, uios, ad shareholders. First, you egage these key groups ad idividuals i idetifyig ad resolvig issues through workshops, focus groups, or iterviews, for example. These iteractive activities secure their buy-i. The, you help them ivest i the project ad alter their ow actios ad behaviors to support ad embed the chage. That s how you cemet project credibility ad trust. Although you always wat to pay early ad earest attetio to resisters i ay chage program, as they may wield disproportioate ifluece, you should ot do so at the risk of igorig those who are actively egaged. Ask yourself: What must we do to build commitmet to the iitiative ad miimize resistace? How ca we help recoect employees to the missio ad what is meaigful to them? Stakeholder mappig is a tool used to idetify all those who ca affect the extet to which the trasformatio is successful. There are a few key poits for effective stakeholder mappig. The first is to create a comprehesive list. Too frequetly, some stakeholders are overlooked, oly to surface later i some uexpected way. Secod, thik creatively about the ways i which each perso or group could make a tagible cotributio to the trasformatio s success. It s surprisig how ofte people sit o the sidelies because they were ever give a role or asked to participate! Third, idetify explicit steps to mitigate potetial resistace. Fially, refer to ad update stakeholder maps as the project progresses ad ew issues emerge. Mobilizig stakeholders requires surroud soud commuicatio. As project sposor, you must utilize multiple chaels ad vehicles to reach these opiio leaders with a visceral message that coveys the urgecy ad beefits of the chage. The beefit to you, the sposor, is the ability to leverage these ew ifluetial recruits i rollig chage out across the orgaizatio amog their peers ad colleagues. 6. Creatig Accoutability Mechaisms for measurig results ad holdig idividuals ad teams accoutable are critical to the success of ay strategic iitiative. As project sposor, you wat to esure that the work pla is robust, milestoes are achievable, ad the appropriate resources will be committed to do the work. Equally importat, the pla should idetify the key decisios that must be made, by whom, ad by whe. How do you esure that there is accoutability for results ad that project work is viewed as real work? First, set clear expectatios up frot regardig the amout of time idividuals ad teams must commit to the effort. Seior maagemet must formally sactio time away from regular resposibilities ad offload as much oessetial work as possible. Settig aside specific days for project work is a effective way to maage this. Fially, determie i advace how idividual ad team performace will be icorporated as part of the regular appraisal process. Cotributios to the success of the trasformatio must be formally rewarded. These thigs may seem like simple project maagemet, but a surprisig umber of projects falter because of failure i these factors. This is a shame cosiderig how easy it is to achieve them. 7. Aligig Systems ad Structure To eable lastig chage, you eed to esure that all HR systems, structures, processes, ad icetives are aliged ad cosistet with the goals of the trasformatio. Will they drive ad support the kids of behaviors eeded i the future state? If there is misaligmet, for example, betwee the ew expected behavior ad the old icetive system, you ca be sure the behavior will revert to what is rewarded. To alig systems with the desired future state, you eed to evisio the various people elemets of the future orgaizatio ot oly its structure, but idividual ad team roles, as well as required competecies, skills, ad behaviors. Thigs like performace maagemet, learig ad developmet,
7 workforce strategy, ad retetio programs are key eablers of the chage program, whether you re itroducig a ew operatig model or reorietig the way your sales team goes to market. Recetly we worked with a compay makig the trasitio from paper-based processig to moder call ceters. Naturally, this shift had profoud implicatios for its orgaizatioal systems ad structures. IT systems were itroduced to a orgaizatio that was reduced by two-thirds. I the flatter orgaizatioal structure, the workforce was expected to perform their jobs o the telephoe with more rigorous ad sophisticated performace maagemet systems ad processes i place. The impact o the compay s huma resources was profoud. Shift schedules, cotract terms, traiig programs, compesatio structures, ad more had to be overhauled to meet call ceter requiremets. Performace appraisals ad rewards were modified as well to reflect ew performace stadards. For those who could ot make the trasitio, the orgaizatio exercised alterative arragemets or redeploymet optios. Without aligig the HR systems, the busiess processes would ot have bee supported, ad the trasformatio would have failed. 8. Sustaiig the Chage Sposors ofte declare victory too soo, divertig leadership, commitmet, ad focus from the ogoig effort. To embed the chage ad esure that it sticks, you should cosciously ackowledge lessos leared ad improved ways of workig. These commuicatios should address the core questios: How ca we cotiue to egage ad ivolve employees over the log term? What lessos have we leared ad how ca we istitutioalize best practices to capture the full beefit of the chage? Sustaiig the chage is a iterative process that uses may of the tools already discussed. Sposor Checklist Chage Lever 1. Defiig the Chage What You Ca Do Clarify the purpose, scope, ad expected outcomes iclude people ad orgaizatioal impacts. 2. Creatig a Shared Need 3. Developig a Shared Visio Build aligmet o a compellig case for chage that addresses: Why is this critical? Why ow? Create a clear picture of what the trasformed busiess will look like after the chage has bee fully implemeted. Use the visio of success to ispire commitmet ad egage people. 4. Leadig the Chage Esure seior executives walk the talk ad play a active role i maagig the chage. Develop chage leadership skills i maagers resposible for executig the trasformatio. 5. Egagig ad Mobilizig Stakeholders Create a stakeholder map to idetify areas that will require attetio ad resources. 6. Creatig Accoutability Develop a robust work pla that clearly defies roles ad resposibilities Idetify the key decisios that must be made ad by whe. 7. Aligig Systems ad Structures Assess curret HR ad orgaizatioal policies ad programs these may eed to chage i order to embed ew behaviors. 8. Sustaiig the Chage Commuicate lessos leared ad quick wis to sustai positive mometum.
8 A effective commuicatios strategy is critical to the success of ay chage program. All eight of the levers we ve discussed are predicated o the twoway flow of clear ad compellig iformatio. Yet, commuicatio frequetly falls off after the busiess trasformatio has bee implemeted, whe, i fact, it is more importat tha ever. As the sposor, you eed to covey ogoig ews ad the achievemet of key milestoes ad beefits to keep people focused, motivated, ad egaged. Oftetimes, the sposor will circulate a survey to evaluate the success ad effectiveess of the chage program. Typically, it s admiistered partway through the chage process so that early lessos leared ad quick wis ca be icorporated ito the ogoig implemetatio ad agai upo the program s completio. As with all elemets of the chage maagemet pla, the program evaluatio should be coducted i cojuctio with the overall busiess trasformatio evaluatio. It should assess ot oly the realizatio of desired busiess beefits, but also the degree to which the desired outcomes were achieved from a people perspective. Applyig This Approach to Your Orgaizatio Give the particular circumstaces of the chage iitiative you are leadig, where should you focus your time ad attetio? A useful first step is to coduct a chage diagostic to assess your project s stregths ad weakesses across each of the eight levers. This diagostic ca be used with oe or more groups to pipoit areas where there are differeces betwee groups ad serious threats to success (see Exhibit 3). A pla for the trasformatio ca the be developed to mitigate these issues ad capitalize o the stregths. The diagostic should be used regularly throughout the trasformatio to test the impact of chage activities ad make adjustmets. After all, implemetig chage is iterative ad you will eed to accommodate cotiuous revisios to the pla based o ogoig feedback from employees ad other stakeholders. Exhibit 3 Idetifyig Where the Chage Opportuities ad Challeges Are We re Exceptioal 5 We re Good 4 Effectiveess We re Fair 3 This is Problematic 2 This is a Roadblock 1 Defiig the Chage Creatig a Shared Need Developig a Shared Visio Leadig the Chage Egagig & Creatig Mobilizig Accoutability Stakeholders Aligig Systems & Structures Sustaiig the Chage Chage Levers Seior Leaders Staff Improvemet Opportuity Source: Booz Alle Hamilto
I our experiece, successful trasformatio iitiatives have three commo attributes. They are itegrated ito the pla for the trasformatio from the start. They are iterative ad accommodate cotiuous revisios based o ogoig feedback from employees ad other stakeholders. Ad they are grouded i the comprehesive applicatio of practical, broad-reachig tools that help you produce lastig results. As project sposor, you ca play a istrumetal role i desigig ad executig trasformatio that delivers o the busiess solutio ad embeds real chage. Also cotributig to this piece was Soo M. Rabb. What Booz Alle Brigs Booz Alle Hamilto has bee at the forefrot of maagemet cosultig for busiesses ad govermets for more tha 90 years. Providig cosultig services i strategy, operatios, orgaizatio ad chage, ad iformatio techology, Booz Alle is the oe firm that helps cliets solve their toughest problems, workig by their side to help them achieve their missios. Booz Alle is committed to deliverig results that edure. With 19,000 employees o six cotiets, the firm geerates aual sales of $4 billio. Booz Alle has bee recogized as a cosultat ad a employer of choice. I 2007, for the third cosecutive year, Fortue magazie amed Booz Alle oe of The 100 Best Compaies to Work For, ad for the past eight years, Workig Mother has raked the firm amog its 100 Best Compaies for Workig Mothers. To lear more about the firm, visit the Booz Alle Web site at www.boozalle.com. To lear more about the best ideas i busiess, visit www.strategy-busiess.com, the Web site for strategy+busiess, a quarterly joural sposored by Booz Alle. Cotact Iformatio: CHICAGO LONDON McLEAN Adrew Tippig Vice Presidet 312-578-4633 tippig_adrew@bah.com Richard Rawliso Vice Presidet 44-20-7393-3415 rawliso_richard@bah.com Ashley Harshak Pricipal 44-20-7393-3405 harshak_ashley@bah.com Terry Madable Seior Associate 703-909-5156 madable_terece@bah.com SAN FRANCISCO SYDNEY DeAe Aguirre Seior Vice Presidet 415-627-3330 aguirre_deae@bah.com Louisa Fi Seior Associate 415-627-3369 fi_louisa@bah.com Victoria Sherwood Executive Advisor 61-2-9321-1998 sherwood_victoria@bah.com Dowloadable digital versios of this article ad other Booz Alle Hamilto publicatios are available from www.boozalle.com.
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