PROFESSIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT

GGROUPROUP #: #: 1PPROGRAMROGRAM:: MBASSEMESTEREMESTER:: SPRING 2009CCOURSEOURSE C CODEODE:: MGT 201CCOURSEOURSE N NAMEAME:: PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT

SSUBMITTEDUBMITTED TOTO:: MUHAMMAD HUSSEIN KHORASANY

SSUBMISSIONUBMISSION D DATEATE:: APRIL 3, 2009NNAMEAME OFOF I INSTITUTENSTITUTE:: INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY BIZTEKRREPORTEPORT N NUMBERUMBER:: 1

PREPARED BY

Muhammad Imran HaroonAhsan

Syed Fayaz Ahmed ShahMubashir Sattar

Rabiya Riaz

Humra Ali

Acknowledgment

Preface

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

AN OVERVIEW OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

"If you focus on results, you'll never change. If you focus on change, you'll get results."

Jack Dixon

Change projects fail more often from lack of effective change management than any other single reason. Teams that ignore change management cite this as one of the “most important lessons learned” during their project. Teams that use change management techniques have:

Reduced turnover and the loss of valued employee. Accelerated the implementation of the change. Reduced productivity loss and employee resistance.

What many teams lack, however, is a solid understanding of what change management is and how to implement change management tactics. The article provides an overview of change management and will guide you to

other resources that can help your team manage change effectively.

WHAT IS CHANGE MANAGEMENT?

“Change is vital, improvement the logical form of change."

James Cash Penney

Change management can be viewed from two perspectives – from those implementing the change and from the recipients of change. Your view of change management varies dramatically if you are the executive demanding the change versus the front line employee who may be unsure why a change is even needed.

In many cases at the onset of a new change, neither the executive nor the front-line employee is knowledgeable about managing change. The executives want the change to happen now; the employees are simply doing their job. It is the project managers, consultants or members of the project team that first learn about the necessity for change management. They are the first to realize the two dimensions of change management: the top-down managers’ perspective and the bottom- up employees' perspective.

DEFINITION OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Change Management is the process of developing a planned approach to change in an organisation. Typically the objective is maximising the collective efforts of all people involved in the change.

OR

It is a structured approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. The current definition of Change Management includes both organizational change management processes and individual change management models, which together are used to manage the people side of change.

MOST USEFUL AND PRACTICAL DEFINITION OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Today, the term “change management” takes on a variety of meanings. The most practical and useful definition is:

Change management is the process, tools and techniques to manage the people-side of business change to achieve the required business outcome and to realize that business change effectively within the social infrastructure of the workplace.

This definition allows practitioners to separate change management as a practice area from business improvement techniques. So whether you are doing Six Sigma, BPR, TQM or some other technique to improve business performance, change management can be viewed as an essential competency to overlay and integrate with these methods.

 

EXPLANATION

In thinking about what is meant by “change management,” at least four basic things come to mind:

1) The task of managing change2) An area of professional practice

3) A body of knowledge

4) A control mechanism

1) THE TASK OF MANAGING CHANGE

The first and most obvious definition of “change management” is that the term refers to the task of managing change. The obvious is not necessarily unambiguous. Managing change is itself a term that has at least two meanings. 

One meaning of “managing change” refers to the making of changes in a planned and managed or systematic fashion. The aim is to more effectively implement new methods and systems in an ongoing organization. The changes to be managed lie within and are controlled by the organization. (Perhaps the most familiar instance of this kind of change is the “change control” aspect of information systems development projects.).  However, these internal changes might have been triggered by events originating outside the organization, in what is usually termed “the environment.” Hence, the second meaning of managing change, namely, the response to changes over which the organization exercises little or no control (e.g., legislation, social and political upheaval, the actions of competitors, shifting economic tides and

currents, and so on). Researchers and practitioners alike typically distinguish between a knee-jerk or reactive response and an anticipative or proactive response.

2) AN AREA OF PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

The second definition of change management is "an area of professional practice."

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of independent consultants who will quickly and proudly proclaim that they are engaged in planned change, that they are change agents, that they manage change for their clients, and that their practices are change management practices. There are numerous small consulting firms whose principals would make these same statements about their firms. And, of course, most of the major management consulting firms have a change management practice area. 

Some of these change management experts claim to help clients manage the changes they face – the changes happening to them. Others claim to help clients make changes. Still others offer to help by taking on the task of managing changes that must be made. In almost all cases, the process of change is treated separately from the specifics of the situation. It is expertise in this task of managing the general process of change that is laid claim to by professional change agents.

3) A BODY OF KNOWLEDGE

Stemming from the view of change management as an area of professional practice there arises yet a third definition of change management: the content or subject

matter of change management. This consists chiefly of the models, methods and techniques, tools, skills and other forms of knowledge that go into making up any practice. 

The content or subject matter of change management is drawn from psychology, sociology, business administration, economics, industrial engineering, systems engineering and the study of human and organizational behavior. For many practitioners, these component bodies of knowledge are linked and integrated by a set of concepts and principles known as General Systems Theory (GST). It is not clear whether this area of professional practice should be termed a profession, a discipline, an art, a set of techniques or a technology. For now, suffice it to say that there is a large, reasonably cohesive albeit somewhat eclectic body of knowledge underlying the practice and on which most practitioners would agree — even if their application of it does exhibit a high degree of variance.

4) A CONTROL MECHANISM

For many years now, Information Systems groups have tried to rein in and otherwise ride herd on changes to systems and the applications that run on them.  For the most part, this is referred to as “version control” and most people in the workplace are familiar with it.  In recent years, systems people have begun to refer to this control mechanism as “change management” and "configuration management." Moreover, similar control mechanisms exist in other areas.  Chemical processing plants, for example, are required by OSHA to satisfy some exacting requirements in the course of making changes.  These fall under the heading of Management of Change or MOC. 

To recapitulate, there are at least four basic definitions of change management: 

1.  The task of managing change (from a reactive or a proactive posture)

2.  An area of professional practice (with considerable variation in competency and skill levels among practitioners)

3.  A body of knowledge (consisting of models, methods, techniques, and other tools)

4.  A control mechanism (consisting of requirements, standards, processes and procedures).

5) CONTENT AND PROCESS

Organizations are highly specialized systems and there are many different schemes for grouping and classifying them. Some are said to be in the retail business, others are in manufacturing, and still others confine their activities to distribution. Some are profit-oriented and some are not for profit. Some are in the public sector and some are in the private sector. Some are members of the financial services industry, which encompasses banking, insurance, and brokerage houses. Others belong to the automobile industry, where they can be classified as original equipment manufacturers (OEM) or after-market providers. Some belong to the health care industry, as providers, as insureds or as insurers. Many are regulated, some are not. Some face stiff competition, some do not. Some are foreign-owned and some are foreign-based. Some are corporations, some are partnerships, and some are sole proprietorships. Some are publicly held and some are privately held. Some have been around a long time and some are newcomers. Some have been built up over the years while others have been pieced together through mergers and acquisitions. No two are exactly alike.

The preceding paragraph points out that the problems found in organizations, especially the change problems,

have both content and a process dimension. It is one thing, for instance, to introduce a new claims processing system in a functionally organized health insurer. It is quite another to introduce a similar system in a health insurer that is organized along product lines and market segments. It is yet a different thing altogether to introduce a system of equal size and significance in an educational establishment that relies on a matrix structure. The languages spoken differ. The values differ. The cultures differ. And, at a detailed level, the problems differ. However, the overall processes of change and change management remain pretty much the same, and it is this fundamental similarity of the change processes across organizations, industries, and structures that make change management a task, a process, and an area of professional practice.

WHY IS CHANGE MANAGEMENT A REQUIRED COMPETENCY FOR BUSINESS TODAY?

In his best selling book Stewardship, Peter Block describes the traditional values that have been the center piece of traditional, patriarchal organizations: control, consistency and predictability. These values dictate that decision-making is at the top, leaving the execution and implementation to the middle and bottom layers of an organization.

Twenty-five years ago, if you wanted something changed as the CEO of a traditional company, you simply spoke the words. The culture and belief system of the organization was more akin to a military structure. The predictable behavior in that situation was compliance to the new business direction. As a leader in that organization, your control was typically not questioned and employees understood what was expected of them. The values of control, consistency and predictability created an environment where change was simply a plan to implement or an adjustment to a mechanical system.

Although helpful, change management was not a required competency in this environment.

A quarter of a century has passed. Business improvement initiatives – including Edward Deming’s teachings post World-War II, the earliest quality circles from Toyota, Six Sigma from Motorola, Total Quality Management (TQM) from AT&T and Ford, empowered teams, and many others initiatives – came to the forefront. Business leaders embraced, if at least for some period of time, one or more of these business initiatives.

Over the course of these 25 years and these improvement strategies, we have impressed new values and belief systems on employees. The new values include empowerment (make the right decision for the customer), accountability (take ownership and pride in your work), and continuous improvement (look for ways to improve everything you do, everyday). A new culture has evolved in many of today’s businesses where a new generation of employees:

Take ownership and responsibility for their work Have pride in workmanship and look to improve their

work processes Feel empowered to make decisions that improve

their product and the level of customer service

So what is the problem? The evolution from the traditional values of control, predictability and consistency – values that made change relatively simple to implement – to the new values focused on accountability, ownership and empowerment have made the implementation of business change more difficult. In many ways Peter Block’s advocacy for this shift has come true. Employees have been taught to question and analyze their day-to-day activities and are rewarded for doing so. Then why would we expect them not to question and resist new change initiatives?

The new values of business today require a different approach to the way businesses change. The response of the employee has shifted from “yes, sir” to “why are we doing that” – and the change leader must adapt.

In some cases of large-scale business process change in the early 1990’s the result was outright failure because business leaders had not shifted their actions to accommodate the new values. A CEO in the old value structure only had to issue the decree for change and it happened. But when a CEO tries this same approach today, employees shout back “Why?” “How does it impact me?” “If it isn’t broken, why are you trying to fix it?”

Research with more than 320 projects showed the primary reason for failure in major change initiatives was lack of change management. In other words, the inability to manage the people side of a business change in the presence of a new culture and new values is a major contributor to failed business changes.

HISTORY OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

THE CONVERGENCE OF TWO FIELDS OF THOUGHT

To understand change management as we know it today, you need to consider two converging and predominant fields of thought: an engineer's approach to improving business performance and a psychologist's approach to managing the human-side of change.

First, students of business improvement have been learning and practicing how to make changes to the operations of a business as a mechanical system since Frederick Taylor’s work in the late nineteenth century. This mechanical system perspective focuses on observable, measurable business elements that can be changed or improved, including business strategy, processes, systems, organizational structures and job roles.

From this perspective, a business is like a clock where each of the mechanical pieces can be changed or altered to produce a predictable and desirable solution. The change can be gradual as seen in continuous process improvement methods such as TQM, or radical, as advocated in business process reengineering that began with the best selling book, Reengineering the Corporation by Michael Hammer in the early 1990’s.

Historically companies embracing this mechanical approach to business improvement typically did not embrace change management concepts until their projects encountered resistance or faced serious problems during implementation. Even after this realization, many

organizations' approach to change management was ad hoc and lacked a solid framework for actively managing change through the process. The tendency from an engineer's perspective was to isolate this "people" problem and then eliminate it or design a quick fix for this perceived obstacle to their improvement initiative.

The other side of the story begins with psychologists. Concerned with how humans react to their environment, the field of psychology has often focused on how an individual thinks and behaves in a particular situation. Humans are often exposed to change, hence psychologists study how humans react to change. With his 1980 publication of Transitions, William Bridges became a predominant thinker in the field of human adaptation to change and his early text is frequently cited in Organization Development books on change management. However, only once or twice in this book does Bridges relate his theory to managing change in the workplace. It was not until later that Bridges began to write a significant body of work related to his theories of change and how they relate to workplace change management.

The net result of this evolution is that two schools of thought have emerged. The table below summaries the key differences and contrasts the two approaches in terms of focus, business practice, measures of success and perspective on change.

  Engineer Psychologist

FocusProcesses, systems, structure

People

Business practices

BPR, TQM, ISO 9000, Quality

Human resources, OD

Starting pointBusiness issues or opportunities

Personal change, employee resistance (or potential for resistance)

Measure of success

Business performance, financial and statistical metrics

Job satisfaction, turnover, productivity loss

Perspective on change

“Shoot the stragglers, carry the wounded.”

“Help individuals make sense of what the change means to them.”

Observers of business changes in real life have realized that the extreme application of either of these two approaches, in isolation, will be unsuccessful. An exclusively “engineering” approach to business issues or opportunities results in effective solutions that are seldom adequately implemented, while an exclusively “psychologist” approach results in a business receptive to new things without an appreciation or understanding for what must change for the business to succeed.

Not all practitioners have traveled down these two extremes. A few thought leaders in the change management field were advocating a structured change management process early on. Jeanenne LaMarsh was actively using her organizational change model in the 1980's with companies like AT&T Bell Laboratories and later with Ford and Caterpillar. She authored the book “Changing the Way We Change” in 1995 and recently introduced the Managed Change process.

In the book Managing at the Speed of Change, Daryl Conner begins with a emphasis on understanding the psychology of change and then moves to a structured change process. In the recent publication by Ackerman and Anderson, change management concepts are presented in a combined process with business improvement activities. John Kotter, in Leading Change, presents an 8-step model for leading change initiatives.

Contributions from both the engineering and psychology fields are producing a convergence of thought that is crucial for successful design and implementation of business change. In other words, a business must constantly examine its performance, strategy, processes and systems to understand what changes need to be made. Increasing external and internal factors have made this strategy essential for survival. However, an organization must also understand the implications of a new business change on its employees given their culture, values, history and capacity for change. It is the front-line employees that ultimately execute on the new day-to-day activities and make the new processes and systems come to life in the business.

What does this mean for the definition and field of change management? First, that it is important to recognize that both the engineering and psychological aspects must be considered for successful change. Second, is that business improvement methodologies must integrate these two disciplines into a comprehensive model for change. Finally, that when you read or study change management literature, be sure to identify how the term change management is used so that you can effectively apply that work to your current body of knowledge.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVES

INDIVIDUAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Understanding how one person makes a change successfully

Organizations don't change, individuals do. No matter how large of a project you are taking on, the success of that project ultimately lies with each employee doing their work differently, multiplied across all of the employees impacted by the change. Effective change management requires an understanding for and appreciation of how one person makes a change successfully. Without an individual perspective, we are left with activities but no idea of the goal or outcome that we are trying to achieve.

Individual change management is the management of change from the perspective of the employees. They are the ones who ultimately must implement the change. The focus here is around the tools and techniques to help an employee transition through the change process. The primary concerns are the coaching required helping individuals understand their role and the decisions they make in the change process. In this arena, you will need to provide tools that employees can use to navigate their way through the change.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Understanding what tools we have to help individuals make changes successfully

While change happen one person at a time, there are processes and tools that can be used to facilitate this change. Tools like communication and training are often the only activities when no structured approach is applied. When there is an organizational change management perspective, a process emerges for how to scale change management activities and how to use the complete set of tools available for project leaders and business managers.

Organizational change management is the management of change from the perspective of a manager or project team. It is the perspective of “business leadership” from the “top” looking down into the organization. The focus is around broad change management practices and skills that will help the organization understand, accept and support the needed business change. The primary focus is around change management strategies, communication plans and training programs. The involved parties include project team members, human resources and key business leaders that sponsor the change.

Organizational change management provides the knowledge and skills to implement a methodology and tools for managing change throughout an organization

CRITICAL ELEMENTS FOR MANAGING CHANGE

Given this model or framework for change management, you can break down the required elements to effectively manage change. You can also initiate your research using books and resources (including training) based on these two perspectives of change management.

For organizational change management, you will need to build knowledge and abilities in the following areas

Change management team structures Change management roles Critical barriers to implementing change Change management planning and strategies Managing employee resistance Organizational change management methodologies Building executive sponsorship Creating communication plans Creating training and educational programs Incentive and recognition programs

For individual change management, you will need to build knowledge in the following areas:

Diagnosing resistance to change Models for managing individual change Decisions and consequences around supporting

change that face employees Coaching tools and techniques for helping employees

navigate the change process Activities and exercises for supervisors to use with

their employees to manage change

WHY ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE EFFORTS FAIL?

"It is always the start that requires the greatest effort."

James Cash Penney

In his book “Force for Change: How Leadership Differs from Management“, Kotter lists the following as the main reasons why change fails:

1. Allowing too much complacency

2. Failing to create a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition

3. Underestimating the power of vision

4. Under communicating the vision by a factor of 10 (or 100 or even 1000)

5. Permitting obstacles to block the new vision

6. Failing to create short-term wins

7. Declaring victory too soon

8. Neglecting to anchor changes firmly in the corporate culture

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR CHANGE MANAGEMENT

"The key to why things change is the key to everything."

James E. Burke

What is it that successful organisations have that makes the difference?

The following success factors seem to be consistent in organisations who radically transform themselves:

1) STRONG LEADERSHIP

The CEO drives the change process, leading the organisation to greater heights. There is no substitute for a strong leader. He sets the direction, and the priorities.

2) CONSENSUS AT THE TOP

The CEO and first reports agree wholeheartedly on the need for dramatic change, and all work together in defining the vision and the resources required for success. Teamsmanship is real, not feigned. Contributions are sincere, not politicised.

3) A SHARED VISION

A well articulated vision of where the organisation will be in three to five years, expressed in specific performance outcomes, cascades throughout the organisation. Every employee has personal objectives that tie to the vision. Each has a direct effect on the outcome, and a well-defined personal stake in achieving the vision.

4) CONTINUOUS CATALYTIC ACTIVITY AT THE CEO LEVEL

Executives realise they do not have the objectivity, skills and experience to enact radical change. External, objective, apolitical, and experienced catalysts and consultants are used to help navigate, find direction, and implement plans.

5) TRUSTWORTHY COMMUNICATIONS TOP DOWN/BOTTOM UP

The CEO and first reports continuously, repetitively, and consistently meet with all groups for two-way communications. The CEO is highly visible to all. Weekly or bi-weekly employee exchanges take place. Fears are addressed. Truth and honesty prevails. 

6) THE RIGHT ATTITUDE

Hidden personal agendas in top and middle management are cast aside to make room for a major collective effort. The theme is "get on board, or get out of the way." Those who block the effort are quickly disposed.

7) LOTS OF GUTS

A willingness to take risks and attack sacred cows to achieve substantial results is prevalent. The focus is longer term, replacing the monthly P&L as the driver for everyday operations. Problems are anticipated and directly addressed.

8) A COMPREHENSIVE AND SYSTEMATIC APPROACH

A comprehensive master plan is created that addresses key integrated leverage areas: culture, reward systems, strategy, process, structure, and staffing/skills. All leverage areas are linked and the plan is structured in manageable phases. The process is continuous.  

9) HIGH EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT

All employees participate heavily in achieving team-based performance objectives. Individualism is not lost in the team environment, but reinforced. Problems are diagnosed and solved through teams that run their own operation. All participate in continuously improving personal, team, and organisation performance. The focus is on quality, cost, delivery, and customer satisfaction.

10) PERMANENTLY EMPOWERED EMPLOYEES

Decisions are driven downward to the team level on a permanent basis, not a special project or temporary basis. Layers of management that get in the way of fast decisions are removed, and accountability rests with the team. Team leaders provide direction, priorities, and facilitation to the team. Teams evolve to self-management.

11) OWNERSHIP OF CHANGE BY A VAST MAJORITY OF EMPLOYEES

High employee involvement in problem solving, finding solutions, and implementing them creates authorship and ownership of the process. Peer pressure makes things happen. Employees are trained and learn new skills. Motivation is provided by the vision, strong leadership, team involvement, and reward systems that reflect achievement of the vision.

12) FINANCIAL RESOURCES

Equipment and staffing is provided as part of the master plan. Substantial investments are made to reduce non-value added time on the shop floor and in the office. Cost/benefit analyses identify the results that will be achieved.

13) EXTENSIVE EDUCATION AND TRAINING AT ALL LEVELS

Most employees, including upper and middle management, have been conditioned over the years to be individuals and stars. Our society teaches this. They simply do not know how to behave as team members should. Courses in dealing with personality differences, team building, stress management, conflict management, and many others can go a long way in getting people to work cohesively. In addition, courses in process mapping, set-up reductions, statistical process control, etc., can provide the techniques for re-engineering the processes.

14) COMMITMENT TO SEE IT THROUGH

Plans do not get derailed at the signs of resistance or difficulty. Solutions to problems are found and implemented. If something does not work, something else is tried.

THEORIES OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

1. Managers have to look at change management

models and judge when change is needed and also

adapt to changes of their organization. Therefore,

change management is an essential skill for the

modern manager.

2. However, one change management theory is

that real and lasting change cannot be achieved

without a radical change in the management itself.

3. Managers have to look at change management

models and judge when change is needed and also

adapt to changes of their organization. Therefore,

change management is an essential skill for the

modern manager.

4. However, one change management theory is

that real and lasting change cannot be achieved

without a radical change in the management itself.

FIVE BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Principle ONE

Different people react differently to change

The following diagram represents a spectrum of change: Stability - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Change

Different people have different preferences for where they like to be on this spectrum. Some people like to be at the STABILITY end of the spectrum - they like things to be the way they have always been. Other people like to be at the CHANGE end of the spectrum - they are always looking for something different and new.

Problems arise when the individual's preferences differ from the situation they find themselves in. That is, if:

a stability-oriented person finds that circumstances are changing quite rapidly, or

a change-oriented person finds that everything is the same and there is nothing new

In these situations, the individuals involved can experience:

strong dissatisfaction stress negative attitudes towards individuals with preferences

at the other end of the spectrum (e.g.: distrust, dislike)

resistance (to change, or to the status quo) intense emotions loss of rational judgment

People tend to resist, therefore, approaches on other parts of the spectrum than where they themselves prefer to be.

Principle TWO

Everyone has fundamental needs that have to be met

A famous psychologist called Will Schutz identified three basic needs that people have in interpersonal relations. These basic needs are also of fundamental importance in people's reaction to change:

The need for control

The need for inclusion The need for openness

Whilst the need for these can vary between people, in any change process there is always some degree of need for control over one's environment/destiny, some degree of need to be included in the process of forming the change that is taking place, and some degree of need for managers/leaders to be open with their information.

If a change program fails to meet the control, inclusion and openness needs of the individuals affected by it then that program is likely to encounter a range of negative reactions, ranging from ambivalence through resistance to outright opposition.

Principle THREE

Change often involves a loss, and people go through the "loss curve"

The relevance of the "loss curve" to a change management program depends on the nature and extent of the loss. If someone is promoted to a more senior position, the 'loss' of the former position is rarely an issue because it has been replaced by something better. But if someone is made redundant with little prospect of getting a new job, there are many losses (income, security, working relationships) that can have a devastating effect.

There are many variations of the "loss curve". One is known as "Sarah" - that is, the individual experiences (in this order):

S-hock A-nger R-ejection A-cceptance H-ealing

The common factors amongst all "loss curves" are: 1. That there can be an initial period where the change

does not sink in. For example, feelings may be kept high by the individual convincing themselves that the change is not going to happen.

2. That when the loss is realized, the individual hits a deep low. The depth of this 'low' is deepened if the loss is unexpected.

3. That the period of adjustment to the new situation can be very uncomfortable and take a long time. In the case of bereavement, the period of adjustment can be as long as two years.

Principle FOUR

Expectations need to be managed realistically

The relationship between expectations and reality is very important. You can see this in customer relations - if a supplier fails to meet expectations then the customer is unhappy; if the supplier exceeds expectations then the customer is happy.

To some extent the same principle applies to staff and change. If their expectations are not met, they are unhappy. If their expectations are exceeded, they are happy.

Sometimes, enforced change (e.g. redundancies) inevitably involves the failure to meet expectations: there had been an expectation of job security, which has now been taken away.

What leaders/managers have to do, however, is make sure they don't pour petrol on the fire by making promises that can not or will not be kept. Expectations have to be set at a realistic level, and then exceeded (e.g. in terms of the degree of outplacement support that will be provided).

Principle FIVE

Fears have to be dealt with

In times of significant change rational thought goes out of the window. This means that people often fear the worst - in fact, they fear far more than the worst, because their subconscious minds suddenly become illogical and see irrational consequences.

Our company is reducing staff, which means... They will make people redundant, and... I'll be the first to be kicked out, and... I'll have no hope of getting another job, and... I won't be able to pay the mortgage, so... I'll lose the house, so... My family won't have anywhere to live, and... My wife won't be able to cope, so... She'll leave me, and... I'll be so disgraced the children won't speak to me

ever again.

Such fears need to be addressed, e.g. by helping people to recognize that most people who are made redundant find a better job with better pay and have a huge lump sum in their pocket! Or, where appropriate, by explaining how the

reductions in staff numbers are going to be achieved (by natural wastage or voluntary redundancy).

PROSCI’S 3 PHASE PROCESS

Prosci's organizational change management process was first introduced in 2002 after the third change management benchmarking study was conducted. Prosci felt that with the third study, there was a strong enough research basis for the process below. This process is built in steps that a project team can complete for a particular change or initiative they are supporting.

Phase 1 - Preparing for change (Preparation, assessment and strategy development)

Phase 2 - Managing change (Detailed planning and change management implementation)

Phase 3 - Reinforcing change (Data gathering, corrective action and recognition)

JOHN KOTTER

John Kotter, the Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership at the Harvard Business School, has developed a model for leading change that offers a valuable tool to

project management professionals. His model is a result of many years of experience in consulting with hundreds of organizations. He observed the myriad difficulties associated with change efforts, distilled the common themes and turned them around into a prescriptive framework.

KOTTER’S EIGHT STAGE CHANGE PROCESS

 "Your success in life is based on your ability to change faster than your competition, customers and business." 

Mark Sanborn

1. ESTABLISHING A SENSE OF URGENCY

2. CREATING THE GUIDING COALITION

3. DEVELOPING A VISION AND STRATEGY

4. COMMUNICATING THE VISION

5. EMPOWERING BROAD-BASED ACTION

6. GENERATING SHORT-TERM WINS

7. CONSOLIDATING GAINS AND PRODUCING MORE CHANGE

8. ANCHORING NEW APPROACHES IN THE CULTURE

OTHER APPROACHES TO MANAGING CHANGE

Appreciative Inquiry, a collaborative approach to organizational change, is partly based on the assumption that change in a system is instantaneous ('Change at the Speed of Imagination')

Scenario Planning: Scenario planning provides a platform for doing so by asking management and employees to consider different future market possibilities in which their organizations might find themselves.

Organize with Chaos of Rowley and Roevens, who describe Change as a process where certain events need to be managed whereas others need to be under managed, left alone to self-organize and improve the business naturally.

Theory U of Otto Scharmer who describes a process in which change strategies are based on the emerging future rather than on lesson from the past.

The Solution focused brief therapy approach to change, developed to assist individuals, and is equally useful for organizations.

The Closework theory of intervention says change is driven by the champions, be they internal project

teams or consultants, working alongside the delivery team, individuals and management in the places where the work gets done. Champions should get involved rather than instruct and bring practical and implementable ideas.

Kübler-Ross

Some change theories are based on derivatives of the Kübler-Ross model from Elizabeth Kübler-Ross's book, "On Death and Dying." The stages of Kübler-Ross's model describe the personal and emotional states that a person typically encounters when dealing with loss of a loved one. Derivatives of her model applied in other settings such as the workplace show that similar emotional states are encountered as individuals are confronted with change.

SCOPE OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

The purpose of defining these change management areas is to ensure that there is a common understanding among readers. Tools or components of change management include:

Change management process Readiness assessments Communication and communication planning Coaching and manager training for change

management Training and employee training development Sponsor activities and sponsor roadmaps Resistance management Data collection, feedback analysis and corrective

action Celebrating and recognizing success

CHANGE MANAGEMENT PROCESS

The change management process is the sequence of steps or activities that a change management team or project leader would follow to apply change management to a project or change.

It is important to note what change management is and what change management is not, as defined by the majority of research participants.

Change management is not a stand-alone process for designing a business solution.

Change management is the processes, tools and techniques for managing the people-side of change.

Change management is not a process improvement method.

Change management is a method for reducing and managing resistance to change when implementing process, technology or organizational change.

Change management is not a stand-alone technique for improving organizational performance.

Change management is a necessary component for any organizational performance improvement process to succeed, including programs like: Six Sigma, Business Process Reengineering, Total Quality Management, Organizational Development, Restructuring and continuous process improvement.

Change management is about managing change to realize business results.

READINESS ASSESSMENTS

Assessments are tools used by a change management team or project leader to assess the organization's readiness to change. Readiness assessments can include

organizational assessments, culture and history assessments, employee assessments, sponsor assessments and change assessments. Each tool provides the project team with insights into the challenges and opportunities they may face during the change process.

Assess the scope of the change, including: How big is this change? How many people are affected? Is it a gradual or radical change?

Assess the readiness of the organization impacted by the change, including: What is the value- system and background of the impacted groups? How much change is already going on? What type of resistance can be expected?

Assess the strengths of your change management team.

Assess the change sponsors and take the first steps to enable them to effectively lead the change process.

 

COMMUNICATION AND COMMUNICATION PLANNING

Many managers assume that if they communicate clearly with their employees, their job is done. However, there are many reasons why employees may not hear or understand what their managers are saying the first time around. In fact, you may have heard that messages need to be repeated 6 to 7 times before they are cemented into the minds of employees. That is because each employee’s readiness to hear depends on many factors. Effective communicators carefully consider three components: the audience, what is said and when it is said.

For example, the first step in managing change is building awareness around the need for change and creating a desire among employees. Therefore, initial

communications are typically designed to create awareness around the business reasons for change and the risk of not changing. Likewise, at each step in the process, communications should be designed to share the right messages at the right time.

Communication planning, therefore, begins with a careful analysis of the audiences, key messages and the timing for those messages. The change management team or project leaders must design a communication plan that addresses the needs of front-line employees, supervisors and executives. Each audience has particular needs for information based on their role in the implementation of the change.

COACHING AND MANAGER TRAINING FOR CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Supervisors will play a key role in managing change. Ultimately, the direct supervisor has more influence over an employee’s motivation to change than any other person at work. Unfortunately, supervisors as a group can be the most difficult to convince of the need for change and can be a source of resistance. It is vital for the change management team and executive sponsors to gain the support of supervisors and to build change leadership. Individual change management activities should be used to help these supervisors through the change process.

Once managers and supervisors are on board, the change management team must prepare a coaching strategy. They will need to provide training for supervisors including how to use individual change management tools with their employees.

TRAINING AND TRAINING DEVELOPMENT

Training is the cornerstone for building knowledge about the change and the required skills. Project team members will develop training requirements based on the skills,

knowledge and behaviors necessary to implement the change. These training requirements will be the starting point for the training group or the project team to develop training programs.

SPONSOR ACTIVITIES AND SPONSOR ROADMAPS

Business leaders and executives play a critical sponsor role in change management. The change management team must develop a plan for sponsor activities and help key business leaders carry out these plans. Sponsorship should be viewed as the most important success factor. Avoid confusing the notion of sponsorship with support. The CEO of the company may support your project, but that is not the same as sponsoring your initiative.

Sponsorship involves active and visible participation by senior business leaders throughout the process. Unfortunately many executives do not know what this sponsorship looks like. A change agent's or project leader's role includes helping senior executives do the right things to sponsor the project.  

RESISTANCE MANAGEMENT

Resistance from employees and managers is normal. Persistent resistance, however, can threaten a project. The change management team needs to identify, understand and manage resistance throughout the organization. Resistance management is the processes and tools used by managers and executives with the support of the project team to manage employee resistance.

DATA COLLECTION, FEEDBACK ANALYSIS AND CORRECTIVE ACTION

Employee involvement is a necessary and integral part of managing change. Managing change is not a one way street. Feedback from employees is a key element of the change management process. Analysis and corrective

action based on this feedback provides a robust cycle for implementing change.

CELEBRATING AND RECOGNIZING SUCCESS

Early successes and long-term wins must be recognized and celebrated. Individual and group recognition is also a necessary component of change management in order to cement and reinforce the change in the organization.

The final step in the change management process is the after-action review. It is at this point that you can stand back from the entire program, evaluate successes and failures, and identify process changes for the next project. This is part of the ongoing, continuous improvement of change management for your organization and ultimately leads to change competency.

IMPORTANCE OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Change management plays an important role in any organization since the task of managing change is not an easy one. When we say managing change we mean to say that making changes in a planned and systemic fashion. With reference to the IT projects we can say the change in the versions of a project and managing these versions

properly. Changes in the organization or a project can be initiated from within the organization or externally. For example a product that is popular among the customers may undergo a change in design based on the triggering factor like a competitive product from some other manufacturer. This is an example of external factor that triggers a change within the organization. How the organization responds to these changes is what that is more concerned. Managing these changes come under change management. Reactive and proactive responses to these changes are possible from an organization.

MANAGEMENT'S ROLE IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT

"Leadership should be born out of the understanding of the needs of those who'll be affected by it."

Marian Anderson

Management's first responsibility is to detect trends in the macro environment so as to be able to identify changes and initiate programs. It is also important to estimate what impact a change will likely have on employee behaviour patterns, work processes, technological requirements, and motivation. 

Management must assess what employee reactions will be and craft a change programme that will provide support as workers go through the process of accepting change.

The Change Management programme must then be implemented, disseminated throughout the organisation, monitored for effectiveness, and adjusted where necessary. In general terms, a change programme should:

Describe the change process to all people involved and explain the reasons why the changes are

occurring. The information should be complete, unbiased, reliable, transparent, and timely.

 

Be designed to effectively implement the change while being aligned with organisational objectives, macro environmental trends, and employee perceptions and feelings.

Provide support to employees as they deal with the change, and wherever possible involve the employees directly in the change process itself.

ROLES IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Change management cannot be done by one person sitting alone in his or her office.

Driving successful change requires a system of actors all moving in unison to help employees to understand why the change is happening, get them board with the change and ultimately ensure that they adopt the changes required in their day-to-day work. It is not necessarily easy to get all of the change management pieces moving; but by better understanding the roles that support effective change management, you and your projects will be more successful.

There are five roles related to change management:

Change management resource/team

Executives and senior managers Middle managers and supervisors Project team Project support functions

Learn why each role is important and what is required of the role in times of change. Let concludes with some observations on the "employee-facing" roles in change management and the "enabling" roles in change management.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT RESOURCE/TEAM

WHY THE ROLE IS IMPORTANT:

Having dedicated resources for change management was on the list of overall greatest contributors to success.

There is a growing body of data that shows a correlation between the success of a change initiative and how well the people side was managed.

Without dedicated resources, change management activities will not be completed. Unfortunately, when budgets and schedules are squeezed, change management is pushed to the bottom of the priority list if there are not dedicated resources.

WHAT THE ROLE REQUIRES: 

1. Apply a structured change management methodology - instead of operating in an ad hoc manner, approach change management with purpose and intent.

2. Formulate strategy - evaluate how big the change is and who will be impacted to develop a customized strategy

3. Develop plans - based on the strategy work, create a customized set of plans for moving people forward - including a communication plan, a sponsor roadmap, a coaching plan, a training plan and a resistance management plan.

4. Support other ‘doers’ - the change management resource is the coach and the go-to person for the other roles described below.

EXECUTIVES AND SENIOR MANAGERS

WHY THE ROLE IS IMPORTANT:

The active and visible participation of the senior leader was cited as the #1 contributor to success. Bottom line - their role is crucial to success.

Employees want to see and hear the executive's commitment to the change. The authority they provide carries over to other change management actors.

Effective sponsorship is a predictor of success or failure on the project.

WHAT THE ROLE REQUIRES: 

1. Participate actively and visibly throughout the project - there are three key words here: active, visible and throughout - sponsors must be present and seen by employees

2. Build a coalition of sponsorship and manage resistance - the sponsorship coalition describes the group of managers and leaders who will take the change back to their department, division, workgroup, etc - the primary sponsor must build and maintain a healthy coalition

3. Communicate directly with employees - employees want to hear the business reasons for the change from someone at the top

MIDDLE MANAGERS AND SUPERVISORS

WHY THE ROLE IS IMPORTANT:

Managers and supervisors are close to the action - it is their teams who must change how they do their jobs for the change to be successful.

In any organization there are two types of change constantly happening: 1) top-down initiatives launched by senior leaders (macro-changes) and 2) responses to daily demands from customers and suppliers (micro-changes). Managers and supervisors support their employees through both types of changes.

The attitude and actions of a manager will show up in his or her people - whether the attitude is one of support or one of opposition.

WHAT THE ROLE REQUIRES: 

These five roles of managers and supervisors during change are:

1. Communicator - employees prefer to hear messages about how the change directly impacts them and their team from the person they report to

2. Advocate - if the manager opposes the change, chances are that his or her people will as well - in many cases, the opposite is also true

3. Coach - helping employees through their own personal transitions is the essence of change coaching by middle managers and supervisors

4. Liaison - the role of liaison involves interacting with the project team, taking direction and providing feedback

5. Resistance manager - research shows that the best intervention to mitigate resistance comes from the employee's immediate supervisor.

PROJECT TEAM

WHY THE ROLE IS IMPORTANT:

The project team is tasked with managing the technical side of the change. In the end, they are the people who design how things will be done differently than they are today.

Without direction and management, the technical side of the project will not move forward.

The project team also plays a role in ensuring that change management is part of the project - by providing the appropriate resources (budget and personnel) and time.

Change management will be most effective when it is pulled in at the launch of the project.

WHAT THE ROLE REQUIRES: 

1. Design the actual change - create the solution that ultimately impacts how people do their jobs

2. Manage the ‘technical side’ - with tools like the charter, business case, schedule, resources, work breakdown structure, budget, etc.

3. Engage with CM team/resource - work with the change management resource or team to ensure that the technical-side and the people-side of the change progress in unison, provide timely project information

4. Integrate CM plans into project plan - begin change management at the start of the project and weave the change management strategy and plans into the technical-side plans to create one seamless project plan

PROJECT SUPPORT FUNCTIONS

WHY THE ROLE IS IMPORTANT:

Project support functions bring expertise in a particular area - these groups include: Human Resources staff, Organization Development staff, Training specialists, Communication specialists, solution specific Subject Matter Experts, etc.

In some cases, one of these project support functions might operate as the change management team or resource.

WHAT THE ROLE REQUIRES: 

1. Experience and expertise - project support functions bring experience on past changes that can be applied to the current change

2. Knowledge - each of these groups have specialized knowledge that can help the project team and the change management resource or team

3. Tools - each of the areas brings specific tools that support change management activities - just be sure the tools align with change management best practices.

A FINAL OBSERVATION ON TWO DIFFERENT ROLES

In the sections above, we outlined the key roles of the different actors involved in making changes successful in any organization. It is interesting to note that in all of the roles presented in the right hand column, two of the roles have direct contact with front-line employees impacted by the change while three of the roles do more of their work behind the scenes.

EMPLOYEE-FACING ROLES

One-to-one interactions One-to-many interactions

  Why are the employee-facing roles?

Because these are the people that employees want to hear from!

ENABLING ROLES

Create and implement the plans that are executed by the employee-facing roles within the business 

Why are these not employee-facing roles? Because employees don't know who they are and don't really care what they have to say!

IMPLICATIONS OF EMPLOYEE-FACING AND ENABLING ROLES

This is one of the most important takeaways from the discussion about roles. Change managers in organizations - whether they are the project manager, an HR consultant, an OD consultant or from a specialist change management group must ultimately work through others. They play the role of enablers in most cases, creating easy-to-implement plans and supporting the executives, senior leaders, middle managers and supervisors throughout the organization.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT PROCESS/MODELS

There are numerous models/process of change management some models are as follows.

UNFREEZE-CHANGE-REFREEZE

The process of change has been characterized as having three basic stages: unfreezing, changing, and re-freezing. This view draws heavily on Kurt Lewin’s adoption of the systems concept of homeostasis or dynamic stability.

What is useful about this framework is that it gives rise to thinking about a staged approach to changing things. Looking before you leap is usually sound practice.

What is not useful about this framework is that it does not allow for change efforts that begin with the organization in extremis (i.e., already “unfrozen”), nor does it allow for organizations faced with the prospect of having to “hang loose” for extended periods of time (i.e., staying “unfrozen”).

In other words, the beginning and ending point of the unfreeze-change-refreeze model is stability — which, for some people and some organizations, is a luxury. For others, internal stability spells disaster. A tortoise on the move can overtake even the fastest hare if that hare stands still.

KÜBLER-ROSS MODEL

The Kübler-Ross model, first introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book "On Death and Dying", describes, in five discrete stages, a process by which people allegedly deal with grief and tragedy, especially when diagnosed with a terminal illness or catastrophic loss. The stages are known as the Five Stages of Grief.

The stages are:

1. Denial: o Example - "I feel fine."; "This can't be

happening, not to me," 2. Anger:

o Example - "Why me? It's not fair!"; "How can this happen to me!"; "Who is to blame?"

3. Bargaining: o Example - "Just let me live to see my children

graduate."; "I'll do anything for a few more years."; "I will give my life savings if..."

4. Depression: o Example - "I'm so sad, why bother with

anything?"; "I'm going to die . . . What's the point?"; "I miss my loved one, why go on?"

5. Acceptance: o Example - "It's going to be okay."; "I can

handle it with change"; "I can't fight it, I may as well prepare for it."

Kübler-Ross originally applied these stages to people suffering from terminal illness, and later to any form of catastrophic personal loss (job, income, freedom). This may also include significant life events such as the death of a loved one, divorce, drug addiction, or an infertility diagnosis. Kübler-Ross also claimed these steps do not necessarily come in the order noted above, nor are all steps experienced by all patients, though she stated a person will always experience at least two. Often, people will experience several stages in a "roller coaster" effect -

switching between two or more stages, returning to one or more several times before working through it. Significantly, people experiencing the stages should not force the process. Don't rely on others saying "you should be over this by now"; "you're taking too long", or, "you haven't waited long enough". The grief process is highly personal and should not be rushed, or lengthened, on the basis of another's imposed timeframe or opinion. One should merely be aware that the stages will be worked through and the ultimate stage of "Acceptance" will be reached. Those that experience problem working through the stages should consider professional grief counseling or support groups.

The most common factor is when the person doesn't have the capacity to change their situation, at least not without considerable loss to themselves, thus a person who would go through these stages would not need to continue if they found a way out of the situation: e.g., If a person losing their house was at the bargaining stage but then somehow found a way out of the situation, then they'd have no reason to become depressed. So the 'stages of grief' could be linked to a lack of control or ability, e.g., people who have lost limbs, people on the bad end of an ultimatum, people under threat, and so on.

PCI (PEOPLE CENTERED IMPLEMENTATION)

PCI is a change management methodology developed by Changefirst, which has been continuously improved since the 1990s. It has been applied in the field of people change management by organizations and their change agents in over 35 countries around the world.

PCI describes the six critical success factors that must be managed to build commitment to change initiatives and create behavior change.

1. Shared Change Purpose - create and share a powerful case for change in the organization.

2. Effective Change Leadership - develop strong change leadership for the initiative.

3. Powerful Engagement Processes - build and deliver plans to engage people in the change.

4. Committed Local Sponsors - build understanding and commitment of middle and front-line managers.

5. Strong Personal Connection - create commitment and behavior changing actions for front-line people.

6. Sustained Personal Performance - support people as they learn to adapt, managing their resistance sensitively and empathetically.

ADKAR

The ADKAR model for individual change management was developed by Prosci with input from more than 1000 organizations from 59 countries. This model describes five required building blocks for change to be realized successfully on an individual level. The building blocks of the ADKAR Model include:

1. Awareness – of why the change is needed 2. Desire – to support and participate in the change 3. Knowledge – of how to change 4. Ability – to implement new skills and behaviors 5. Reinforcement – to sustain the change

ADKAR describes successful change at the individual level. When an organization undertakes an initiative, that change only happens when the employees who have to do their jobs differently can say with confidence, "I have the Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement to make this change happen."

Because it outlines the goals or outcomes of successful change, ADKAR is an effective tool for:

Planning change management activities Diagnosing gaps Developing corrective actions Supporting managers and supervisors

DYNAMIC CONSERVATISM

This model by Donald Schön explores the inherent nature of organizations to be conservative and protect them from constant change. Schön recognizes the increasing need, due to the increasing pace of change for this process to become far more flexible. Very early on Schön recognized the need for what is now termed the 'learning organization'. These ideas are further expanded on within his frame work of 'reflection-in-action, the mapping of a process by which this constant changes could be coped with.

FORMULA FOR CHANGE

A Formula for Change was developed by Richard Beckhard and David Gleicher and is sometimes referred to as Gleicher's Formula. The Formula illustrates that the combination of organizational dissatisfaction, vision for the future and the possibility of immediate, tactical action must be stronger than the resistance within the organization in order for meaningful changes to occur.

D x V x F > R

Three factors must be present for meaningful organizational change to take place. These factors are: D = Dissatisfaction with how things are now; V = Vision of what is possible;

F = First, concrete steps that can be taken towards the vision.

If the product of these three factors is greater thanR = Resistance, then change is possible. Because of the multiplication of D, V and F, if any one is absent or low, then the product will be low and therefore not capable of overcoming the resistance.

To ensure a successful change it is necessary to use influence and strategic thinking in order to create vision and identify those crucial, early steps towards it. In addition, the organization must recognize and accept the dissatisfaction that exists by communicating industry trends, leadership ideas, best practice and competitive analysis to identify the necessity for change.

Some documentation also refers to the resistance to change as the cost of change. It is then subdivided into the economic cost of change (monetary cost) and the psychological cost of change. What this tries to demonstrate is that even if the monetary cost of change is low, the change will still not occur should the psychological resistance of employees be at a high level and vice versa. In this case the formula for change is represented as:

D x V x F > C (e + p)

What this allows managers to do is to isolate the actual problem areas of change and develop unique strategies specifically designed to resolve the correct form of resistance.

THE KOTTER EIGHT STAGE CHANGE PROCESS

1. ESTABLISHING A SENSE OF URGENCY

Examining the market and competitive realities Identifying and discussing crises, potential crises, or

major opportunities.

2. CREATING THE GUIDING COALITION

Putting together a group with enough power to lead the change.

Getting the group to work together as a team.

3. DEVELOPING A VISION AND STRATEGY

Creating a vision to help direct the change effort. Developing strategies for achieving that vision.

4. COMMUNICATING THE VISION

Using every vehicle possible to communicate the new vision and strategies.

Having the guiding coalition role model the behaviour expected of employees.

5. EMPOWERING BROAD-BASED ACTION

Getting rid of obstacles. Changing systems or structures that undermine the

change vision. Encouraging risk taking and non-traditional ideas,

activities, and actions.

6. GENERATING SHORT-TERM WINS

Planning for visible performance improvements, or "wins"

Creating those wins. Visibly recognising and rewarding people who made

the wins possible.

7. CONSOLIDATING GAINS AND PRODUCING MORE CHANGE

Using increased credibility to change systems, structures, and policies that don't fit together and don't fit the transformation vision.

Hiring, promoting and developing people who can implement the change vision.

Reinvigorating the process with new projects, themes, and change agents.

8. ANCHORING NEW APPROACHES IN THE CULTURE

Creating better performance through customer- and productivity-oriented behaviour, more and better leadership, and more effective management

Articulating the connections between new behaviours and organisational success.

Developing means to ensure leadership development and succession

PROSCI’S 3 PHASE PROCESS

Prosci's organizational change management process was first introduced in 2002 after the third change management benchmarking study was conducted. Prosci felt that with the third study, there was a strong enough research basis for the process below. This process is built in steps that a project team can complete for a particular change or initiative they are supporting

PHASE 1 - PREPARING FOR CHANGE

The first phase in Prosci's methodology is aimed at getting ready. It answers the question: "how much change management is needed for this specific project?" The first phase provides the situational awareness that is critical for effective change management.

OUTPUTS OF PHASE 1:

Change characteristics profile Organizational attributes profile Change management strategy Change management team structure Sponsor assessment, structure and roles

PHASE 2 - MANAGING CHANGE

The second phase of Prosci's process is focused on creating the plans that are integrated into the project activities - what people typically think of when they talk about change management. Based on Prosci's research, there are five plans that should be created to help individuals move through the ADKAR Model.

OUTPUTS OF PHASE 2:

Communication plan Sponsor roadmap Training plan Coaching plan Resistance management plan

PHASE 3 - REINFORCING CHANGE

Equally critical but most often overlooked, the third phase of Prosci's process helps project teams create specific action plans for ensuring that the change is sustained. In this phase, project teams develop measures and mechanisms to see if the change has taken hold, to the see if employees are actually doing their jobs the new way and to celebrate success.

OUTPUTS OF PHASE 3:

Reinforcement mechanisms

Compliance audit reports Corrective action plans Individual and group recognition approaches Success celebrations After action review

The linkage between individual change management and organizational change management is the key - and is what sets Prosci's approach apart from other change management methodologies. There are numerous models available that address individual change. There are also numerous models available that give guidance and structure to project activities for change management resources.

The difference with Prosci's methodology is that it integrates individual change management and organizational change management to ensure the achievement of business results.

The image below shows the connection between the change management tools developed in the organizational change management process and the phases of individual change described by the ADKAR model. This picture is the essence of effective change management and is the core of Prosci's change management methodology.

Connecting organizational and individual change management

THE CHANGE PROCESS AS PROBLEM SOLVING AND PROBLEM FINDING

A very useful framework for thinking about the change process is problem solving. Managing change is seen as a matter of moving from one state to another, specifically, from the problem state to the solved state. Diagnosis or problem analysis is generally acknowledged as essential. Goals are set and achieved at various levels and in various areas or functions. Ends and means are discussed and related to one another. Careful planning is accompanied by efforts to obtain buy-in, support and commitment. The net effect is a transition from one state to another in a planned, orderly fashion. This is the planned change model.

The word “problem” carries with it connotations that some people prefer to avoid. They choose instead to use the word “opportunity.” For such people, a problem is seen as a bad situation, one that shouldn’t have been allowed to happen in the first place, and for which someone is likely to

be punished — if the guilty party (or a suitable scapegoat) can be identified. For the purposes of this paper, we will set aside any cultural or personal preferences regarding the use of “problem” or “opportunity.” From a rational, analytical perspective, a problem is nothing more than a situation requiring action but in which the required action is not known. Hence, there is a requirement to search for a solution, a course of action that will lead to the solved state. This search activity is known as “problem solving.”

From the preceding discussion, it follows that “problem finding” is the search for situations requiring action. Whether we choose to call these situations “problems” (because they are troublesome or spell bad news), or whether we choose to call them “opportunities” (either for reasons of political sensitivity or because the time is ripe to exploit a situation) is immaterial. In both cases, the practical matter is one of identifying and settling on a course of action that will bring about some desired and predetermined change in the situation.

THE CHANGE PROBLEM

At the heart of change management lie the change problem, that is, some future state to be realized, some current state to be left behind, and some structured, organized process for getting from the one to the other. The change problem might be large or small in scope and scale, and it might focus on individuals or groups, on one or more divisions or departments, the entire organization, or one or on more aspects of the organization’s environment.

At a conceptual level, the change problem is a matter of moving from one state (A) to another state (a’). Moving from A to A’ is typically accomplished as a result of setting up and achieving three types of goals: transform, reduce, and apply. Transform goals are concerned with identifying differences between the two states. Reduce goals are

concerned with determining ways of eliminating these differences. Apply goals are concerned with putting into play operators that actually effect the elimination of these differences (see Newell & Simon).

 As the preceding goal types suggest, the analysis of a change problem will at various times focus on defining the outcomes of the change effort, on identifying the changes necessary to produce these outcomes, and on finding and implementing ways and means of making the required changes. In simpler terms, the change problem can be treated as smaller problems having to do with the how, what, and why of change.

CHANGE AS “HOW” PROBLEM

The change problem is often expressed, at least initially, in the form of a “how” question. How do we get people to be more open, to assume more responsibility, to be more creative? How do we introduce self-managed teams in Department W? How do we change over from System X to System Y in Division Z? How do we move from a mainframe-centered computing environment to one that accommodates and integrates PCs? How do we get this organization to be more innovative, competitive, or productive? How do we raise more effective barriers to market entry by our competitors? How might we more tightly bind our suppliers to us? How do we reduce cycle times? In short, the initial formulation of a change problem is means-centered, with the goal state more or less implied. There is a reason why the initial statement of a problem is so often means centered and we will touch on it later. For now, let’s examine the other two ways in which the problem might be formulated — as “what” or as “why” questions.

CHANGE AS A “WHAT” PROBLEM

As was pointed out in the preceding section, to frame the change effort in the form of “how” questions is to focus the

effort on means. Diagnosis is assumed or not performed at all. Consequently, the ends sought are not discussed. This might or might not be problematic. To focus on ends requires the posing of “what” questions. What are we trying to accomplish? What changes are necessary? What indicators will signal success? What standards apply? What measures of performance are we trying to affect?

CHANGE AS A “WHY” PROBLEM

Ends and means are relative notions, not absolutes; that is, something is an end or a means only in relation to something else. Thus, chains and networks of ends-means relationships often have to be traced out before one finds the “true” ends of a change effort. In this regard why questions are proving extremely useful?

Consider the following hypothetical dialogue with yourself as an illustration of tracing out ends-means relationships. 

1.      Why do people need to be more creative?

2.     I’ll tell you why! Because we have to change the way we do things and we need ideas about how to do that.

3.      Why do we have to change the way we do things?

4.      Because they cost too much and take too long.

5.      Why do they cost too much?

6.      Because we pay higher wages than any of our competitors.

7.      Why do we pay higher wages than our competitors?

8.      Because our productivity used to be higher, too, but now it’s not.

9.      Eureka! The true aim is to improve productivity!

10.  No it isn’t; keep going.

11.  Why does productivity need to be improved?

12.  To increase profits.

13.  Why do profits need to be increased?

14.  To improve earnings per share.

15.  Why do earnings per share need to be improved?

16.  To attract additional capital.

17.  Why is additional capital needed?

18.  We need to fund research aimed at developing the next generation of products.

19.  Why do we need a new generation of products?

20.  Because our competitors are rolling them out faster than we are and gobbling up market share.

21.  Oh, so that’s why we need to reduce cycle times.

22.  Hmm. Why do things take so long?

To ask “why” questions are to get at the ultimate purposes of functions and to open the door to finding new and better ways of performing them. Why do we do what we do? Why do we do it the way we do it? Asking “why” questions also gets at the ultimate purposes of people, but that’s a different matter altogether, a “political” matter, and we’ll not go into in this paper.

 

CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

WHY YOU NEED A CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

A "one-size-fits-all" approach is not effective for change management. Think about these changes:

Acquiring a company of near equal size Getting suppliers to use a new web-based form and

process Relocating office spaces within an existing building

Implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning solution

Reorienting around processes instead of functions Releasing a new product

These are all distinctly different changes, but each requires change management to be successful. Each impacts people and how they do their job. Each can suffer from slower adoption and lower utilization. Each has risks associated with people not becoming engaged or resisting the change.

While each of the initiatives needs change management to be successful, the right amount and approach for change management will be different. The change management strategy defines the approach needed to manage change given the unique situation of the project or initiative.

Change Management Strategy elements

Situational awareness - understand the change and who is impacted

Supporting structures - team and sponsor structures

Strategy analysis - risks, resistance and special tactics

WHAT GOES INTO THE CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

SITUATIONAL AWARENESS:

CHANGE CHARACTERISTICS - Begin by understanding the change that is being introduced. Changes can be formalized projects, strategic initiatives or even small

adjustments to how the organization operates. Understanding the characteristics of the change requires you to answer questions like: What is the scope of the change? How many people will be impacted? Who is being impacted? Are people being impacted the same or are they experiencing the change differently? What is being changed - processes, systems, job roles, etc? What is the timeframe for the change?

ORGANIZATIONAL ATTRIBUTES - Next, work to understand the people and groups being impacted by the change. The organizational attributes are related to the history and culture in the organization and describe the backdrop against which this particular change is being introduced. What is the perceived need for this change among employees and managers? How have past changes been managed? Is there a shared vision for the organization? How much change is going on right now?

IMPACTED GROUPS - The final step in building the situational awareness is developing a map of who in the organization is being impacted by the change and how they are being impacted. A single change - say the deployment of a web-based expense reporting program - will impact different groups very differently. Employees that do not have expenses to report will not be impacted at all. Staffs that travel once a quarter will be only slightly impacted. Associates who are on the road all the time will be more impacted, although filing expenses is only a portion of their day-to-day work. And for those in accounting who manage expense reporting, their jobs will be completely altered. Outlining the impacted groups and showing how they will be impacted enables specific and customized plans later in the change management process.

SUPPORTING STRUCTURE:

TEAM STRUCTURE - The change management team structure identifies who will be doing the change management work. It outlines the relationship between the project team and the change management team. The most frequent team structures include 1) change management being a responsibility assigned to one of the project team members or 2) an external change management team supporting a project team. The key in developing the strategy is to be specific and make an informed decision when assigning the change management responsibility and resources.

Sponsor coalition - The sponsor coalition describes the leaders and managers that need to be on-board for the change to be successful. Starting with the primary sponsor (the person who authorized and funded the change), the sponsor model documents the leaders of the groups that are being impacted by the change. The change characteristics will determine who must be part of the coalition. Each member of the sponsor coalition has the responsibility to build support and communicate the change with their respective audiences.

 STRATEGY ANALYSIS:

RISK ASSESSMEnt - The risk of not managing the people side of change on a particular change is related to the dimensions described in the situational awareness section. Changes that are more 'dramatic' and father reaching in the organization have a higher change management risk. Likewise, organizations and groups with histories and cultures that resist change face higher change management risk. In developing the strategy, overall risk and specific risk factors are documented.

ANTICIPATED RESISTANCE - Many times, after a project is introduced and meets resistance, members of the team reflect that "they saw that reaction coming." In creating the change management strategy, identify where resistance can be expected. Are particular

regions or divisions impacted differently than others? Were certain groups advocating a different solution to the same problem? Are some groups heavily invested with how things are done today? Note particular anticipated resistance points depending on how each group is related to the change.

SPECIAL TACTICS - The final step of the change management strategy is the identification of any special tactics that will be required for this particular change initiative. The special tactics formalize many of the learning’s from the strategy development related to the change and how it impacts different audiences in the organization. Throughout the change implementation, special tactics may need to be revisited and updated. 

WHAT'S NEXT

Formulating the change management strategy is the first critical step in implementing a change management methodology. The strategy provides direction and results in informed decision making throughout the change process. A well-formulated strategy really brings the project or change to life, describing who and how it will impact the organization.

The change management strategy also contributes to formulation of the rest of the change management plans. For instance, the groups identified in the strategy should each be addressed specifically in the communication plan. Steps for building and maintaining the coalition identified in the strategy are part of the sponsorship roadmap. Each of the subsequent change management plans and activities are guided by the findings in the change management strategy.

Change management

strategy 

Change management

plans

Situational awareness

Supporting structure

Strategy analysis

>drives>

Communication plan

Sponsorship roadmap

Coaching plan Training plan Resistance

management plan

Reinforcement planning

EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES FOR PROFESSIONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Not long ago, the concept of change management was dismissed by the corporate old guard as a threat to tradition and a fatal concession to inconsistency. Yet in reality, change is unavoidable. Change management acknowledges this and allows organizations to thrive as a result. Strategies of change management are themselves changing, focusing less on business and more on the human element of change management for greater success. They include:

Learning and capitalizing on the benefits of change

Identifying approaches to change that create opportunities, not crises

Acknowledging and addressing previous difficulties and losses

Broadening awareness of the change process and avoiding victimization

Converting tension and fear into confidence and excitement

Establishing positive internal dialogue with greater adaptability

Though it's commonly met with resistance by traditionalists and/or the fearful, change can prove very beneficial when administered through proven change management strategies. For customized professional development through change management.

SUMMARY

REFERENCES