“Attend our session on November 15th to get started and learn how to facilitate relevant change that improves our organizations and our world.”
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The Association Executive Blog from the Ottawa-Gatineau Chapter of the Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE).
Monday, 28 August 2017
Making change happen in 21st century: from amateur cook to master chef[1]
Making change happen in 21st
century: from amateur cook to master chef[1]
There is little doubt that we are all currently
facing unprecedented challenges in a world characterized by volatility,
uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA). Most of us feel the pressure to
grow and improve our services while resources are under greater pressure than
ever. We are asked to keep on top of a huge workload while juggling competing
priorities. It’s often hard to predict what will happen next; the future is not
like the past and the scale of disruption is large as we are all required to
change the way we do things. No one has immunity from the threats and
opportunities this new normal presents.
Change is an inevitable part of organizational life
in the 21st century so we need practical and effective ways to bring
about change. As if there is not enough change already, the way we change is
also changing and we need to adapt to the new reality of the 21st century. Most
organizations still use step-by-step, plan-driven change approaches conceived in more stable times when change was
slow, gradual and there was time for the dust to settle before the next change
emerged. This is pure fantasy in our
fast-paced, complex world. Like everything else our change approaches need to
be more dynamic and responsive involving and equipping leaders and change
agents. This mismatch of change approaches for our current complex
context results in failure of our change efforts. Indeed many experts estimate
that 70% of all change projects fail to achieve their desired outcomes. In this context there is no place for the old linear
models of unfreeze-change-refreeze, instead we need different and effective
approaches. This shift requires us to let go of following a step-by-step recipe
the way of an amateur cook and be more able to act like a master chef altering
a recipe depending on the changing context (available ingredients, the season,
needs of the customer, etc.).
The good news is there is growing evidence emerging
from academics and change leaders around the world that gives us useful ways to
make change happen that is successful, sustainable and puts us into the 30%
category of successful change efforts. In a departure from traditional
approaches to change a few key principles and practices have been consistently
identified as important enablers of successful change. What they all have in
common may surprise you. Essentially they focus away from linear, plan-based
methods and instead focus on people and stakeholders and on developing
leadership, true engagement, relationships, trust, influence, alignment and
collaboration. Dr. Peter Fuda, an international authority on
transformation, suggests that a robust change process is a people thing and a
community thing and not an intellectual thing. He goes on to say that
successful change is 10% technical competence (phases, steps, expertise)
and 90% emotional intelligence. While there is still a need for some
process, unprecedented change requires a much greater focus on people in order
to build a solid foundation for change. Capturing the minds and hearts of
intelligent people comes down to a few simple (yet not easy) things. There
is a strong link, supported by recent research, between successful change and these
people-driven approaches.
Create relevant and shared
purpose for the change
- Provide a powerful why and story that captures
the goal and what people want. Help people see it and feel it.
- Make it a community priority.
Build energy and readiness for
change
·
Work with
people, start small and grow a community for the change.
- Build trust by involving people. Give people a
stake in it and a hand in shaping the future. The more complex the change
the more involvement is required.
- Go local. Contact and trust your community -
those who need to adopt the change. Know where people are at by monitoring
and understanding levels of support and doubt.
- Connect and influence. It's the community being built as a result
of our change efforts that will determine if the change is successful,
relevant and sustainable.
Get started
- Make it less onerous and focus on elements
that will make the greatest difference.
·
Start with early adopters who will model the new way and begin to build
momentum.
- Change
habits. Habits are the building
blocks of behavioural change. All change is behavioural change.
Provide support and learn
together
- Learn together, leverage learning in the
community and adjust based on lessons learned.
- Remember this is not a one-time execution but
a journey.
Achieve and monitor Results
- Make progress visible starting with the small
early wins.
- Go for progress and not perfection.
Develop ourselves as change
agents
- Develop and practice new relational skills. We
need more than our expertise, knowledge and analytical abilities.
In a VUCA world
where change is constant and complex, where we are all required now to bring
about positive change, and where there is a gap between our current change
approaches and what works, the only viable solution is to up your
change-ability. Attend our session on November 15th to get started and learn how to facilitate relevant change that improves our organizations and our world.
Rhonda St.
Croix is a leadership
coach
specializing in change
leadership. She
works with leaders
and teams to
apply new change
thinking to
create positive change. She
is change
adviser at the Royal
College of
Physicians and Surgeons
of Canada.
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