Staying on Top of the Change Process

Engaging workplace change can be an unpredictable experience, because processes and people evolve in diverse ways as they undergo change. No two individuals will respond in exactly the same way to workplace changes. In the same way, identical changes implemented in multiple areas of an organization can produce distinctly different outcomes. Here are some tips to show you how to stay on top of the change engagement process, by thoroughly preparing for it, while allowing for various outcomes. These tips allow you to take a structured approach to organizational change, and still maintain flexibility.
Motivation for Change
Change begins at the point where the organization finds a motivation for change. Sometimes external issues drive the change, like reorganizations, management changes, relocations, or acquisitions/mergers. Other times internal forces drive the change, such as upgraded technology, expansions and growth, or continuous improvement.
Analyze the Situation
As the organization becomes progressively more motivated to change, leadership undertakes a thorough analysis of the risks and opportunities associated with the proposed change:
• What are the potential gains in undertaking the change?
• What are the costs?
• What are the risks of making the change?
• What are the risks of not making the change?
Plan the Direction
Once the determination is made that opportunities outweigh the risks of making the change, a plan is developed for change implementation. Many organizational change initiatives fail because of lack of careful, thorough planning. In this step, the stage is set for the ultimate success or failure of the change. Key elements of the plan must include:
• Planning for the impact of the change on individuals who will be most affected.
• Planning for the impact of the change on the systems within the organization that will be most affected.
• A step-by-step plan for integrating the change into the organization.
• A review plan to measure the success of the proposed change.
Implement the Change
Depending on the type and scope of the change, implementation within the organization may be gradual or abrupt. Changes such as layoffs or acquisitions often are implemented with little prior warning, while staffing, reorganization, or technology changes may be phased in over a period of time. The team’s most critical role in this step of the change process is to maintain open, honest lines of communication with each other.
• Define individual responsibilities.
• Announce and launch the change.
• Adhere to timetables.
• Promote the anticipated benefits of the change.
Review the Direction
Once change has been implemented, you monitor the outcomes of the new structure and system. As team members in a changing work environment, you can’t assume that the change will evolve exactly as planned, or that every individual affected by the change will react as anticipated. Your role is to observe review checkpoints that will reveal whether the change is working as anticipated and is producing the desired results.
• Establish ways of measuring results.
• Communicate criteria for successful change outcomes.
• Coordinate the gathering and measuring of change effects.
• Inform key team members consistently during the review process.
Adopt
When the change implementation has been reviewed and found to be succeeding as planned, the change is adopted, and becomes part of the new organizational norm. The review process is not terminated, but it transitions to the ongoing monitoring of the changed systems and relationships within the organization.
How well is the change meeting planned outcomes?
How well have I adjusted to the new status quo?
What aspects of the change have not met expectations?
What is my role in making those aspects more successful?
Adjust
If the review process concluded that the change is not working as planned, adjustments need to be made to the change implementation. Assuming that our change analysis and plan have been executed accurately, we ought to be able to adjust the implementation of the organizational change in order to achieve our desired results.
• Determine where the outcomes are falling short of your plan.
• Engage key individuals in determining adjustments that need to be made.
• Keep the lines of communication open with everyone involved.
• Make adjustments to the review process as well as the change implementation.

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Principle #19: Appeal to the nobler motives.

Principle #18: Be sympathetic with the other person's ideas and desires.

How to Stay on Track as an Effective Team

Frequent, open Communication –Most team dysfunction is rooted in communication breakdowns, such as poor listening, interrupting, rambling, inability to get to the point, and simply not communicating frequently enough to create team cohesion.
Take time to create team cohesion – Relationships cannot develop in a vacuum. Spending less time together will not create stronger team bonds. Building effective team cohesion involves taking the time to get to know working styles, personalities, and preferences.
Give honest, regular feedback –Everyone on the team needs to get feedback in order to feel connected to the team effort. Even if that feedback is critical, the team member knows that their contributions are being noticed and evaluated. For the team to stay on track and avoid retreating into dysfunction, everyone needs to be talking with each other about expectations, goals, performance, and processes.
Build Cooperation--In a strong team, individuals rely on each other to make processes and interactions function as planned. Strong teams root out uncooperative members and either replace them with people who will move the team process forward, or coach them to more cooperative behavior.
Function Democratically--In a strong team, every team member's voice is heard. Each member of the team has a right to question the process, add input, and evaluate the progress of the team.
Assure Team Members are Well Trained--Any team is only as strong as it's weakest member. Team members are expected to function in a specific role that has its own set of experience and knowledge requirements. Newer members of the team may bring less experience to the team effort. They can make up this gap through training, education, study, and dedication. Assure team members have access to training that can help them contribute at their highest level.
Recognize Strengths--It can be hard to see the strengths in other team members. In a business climate where appreciation is often in short supply, many of us get out of the habit of looking for the strengths in others. It takes a change in mindset to start seeing individuals in terms of what we admire and appreciate in them. Take time to give honest and sincere appreciation to team members.
Celebrate Diversity--If we stop and think about it, most of us would be bored by having to work with a team whose members all had the same personalities. Team interaction is much more stimulating and interesting when the team has a variety of personal styles and characteristics. When we celebrate our differences, we acknowledge that all of us are enriched by our opportunity to work together.
Manage Results, Not Tasks--Ultimately, what matters is each team member's contribution to the team's goals and mission. Strong teams, with diverse personalities, learn to focus on the results each team member achieves, rather than trying to make individuals achieve the results in a certain way. This allows the individuals to express their personalities through their work, and still contribute significantly to the team effort.
Leverage Competitive Spirit to Create Cooperation--Friendly competition generates results. Keep the competition between the team and its own past results, not between individual team members. Make competition exciting. Review past successes and find ways to positively challenge the team to exceed those results.

Principle #17: Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view.

Principle #16: Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers

Controlling Employees Emotions

Strong emotions are both a cause and result of conflict. People in conflict have a variety of strong and often negative emotions. These emotions often conceal the issue in dispute. The emotions are real though, and must be addressed for the conflict to be resolved comfortably for everyone involved.

Maintaining emotional control when we deal with relationship conflicts is probably the most important step, and the most difficult. People can reduce escalation of negative attitudes by learning methods to process anger, create healthy alternatives to destructive responses, and create dialogue to discuss the issue while maintaining control. Here are some actions to take when trying to maintain control. 

1. Stop and cool off- There is little point in trying to talk through the issues when both people are upset. Give it a little time and let tempers cool down. Come together when each party has achieved some sort of equilibrium.
2. Have everyone talk and listen to each other – Make sure that nobody is hiding from the issue at hand. Keep everyone talking and expressing themselves honestly and openly. 
3. Find out what everyone needs – Sometimes these dialogues can focus on complaints rather than developing solutions. Determine what everyone needs from the situation and strive for a solution where everyone’s needs are met. 
4. Brainstorm solutions – Everyone will have their own vision of an ideal outcome for themselves. The challenge will be to avoid forcing our solutions on the conflict situation, and allow solutions to emerge out of creative thinking on everyone’s part. 
5. Choose the idea that everyone can live with – One of the ways to break from a negative conflict cycle is to find solutions that you all feel are fair under the circumstances. 
6. Create a plan and implement it – To make sure that the conflict does not re-emerge, you must make a blueprint. Plan ways of working together that will keep emotional outbursts to a minimum.

 

Principle #15: Let the other person do a great deal of the talking.