How do you measure the impact of change on your business performance?

In my experience leading teams in a variety of enterprises there is only one constant and that is "change". I think a good leader must instill in her/his team a culture of continuous improvement which allow the team to challenge the status quo and be challenged by other stakeholders. That allows a successful team and an organization to continue to grow revenues, enter new businesses and develop good teams. A good leader communication skills are paramount to convince her/his team that the change is needed. Being transparent always pays dividend for the good leader!

Change is hard and people fear it, but provided they are in the loop on how the changes being proposed tie into a bigger picture and why it's the vision forward, they can be less apprehensive. In my experience, communication is the cause of and solution to most change management challenges. Communicating the "why" behind it all, making it easy for people to ask honest questions, and providing honest answers (even if ones people don't want to hear) is imperative to ensuring success.

My entire career I have seen nothing but change. To expect anything else is naivety. But the other constant to change is our number one resource, people. People will do extraordinary things when the synergy isn't fear of losing their job, but opportunities on the other side of uplifting the team/company. Rather than leading with fear, try leading with opportunity when change comes about. If your response to change is average or below average, don't be surprised when your business results are also average or below average.

- In my early stage, saas, startup experience, leveraging Dr. John Kotter's 8 step process framework (and resources) for change management and sharing them with clients WORKS - Credit: https://www.kotterinc.com/methodology/8-steps/ - Sharing change management best practices and SHOWING customers how you think deeply about this on calls is a great way to lead change externally (and internally)

I agree, but would also add, ensure your vision is large enough to encompass the vision of those you lead. If you have a vision to take your company to $100M as a whole, but one individual on your team has a vision to build a book of business billing $100M, chances are this person will at some point see your vision isn't large enough to encompass theirs and leave. John C. Maxwell calls it the Law of the Lid! What's your lid on a scale of 1-10 leaders?

Communication is so critical it comes to change. Without it, the team can’t get aligned on a path forward. With my executive advisees, I always recommend using “WIT”when communicating change within their organization: Worst case outcome - What’s the worst it could be, so the team can work on contingencies? Ideal outcome - What’s the best outcome and what would the organization be positioned for if it is reached? Target outcome - What outcome do they know with certainty they can hit, which helps focus on hitting the win first and then looking for stretch goal opportunities?

Great leaders and managers always share why the change is occurring, painting a clear and compelling picture of what the organization and employees stand to gain. They also clearly outline the destination, the route, and milestones along the way. This helps employees start to focus on what good may come and can lessen their worry about potential losses/threats. The best change leaders and managers also think about what behaviors or habits employees need in order to be successful in making the transition and thriving in the new state after the change is completed.

In any valued relationship, overcommunicating is better than under communicating. We only have one shot to make a first impression of our change management abilities as leaders. By chance, if we mess that opportunity up, are we humble enough to own it and eat crow to regain trust? Leading is not for the faint of heart, which is why so few are great at it. it is a responsibility to every person and their families under our leadership.

When measuring change from an emotional intelligence perspective, here are KPI's my clients use in their your workplace: 1. Count the number of breaths per minute. Just counting itself allows people to slow down, be in their body, and pay attention to their breath. I've found out with high achieving clients most start off at 15-20 breaths though 4-6 breaths is ideal for being in a flow state. 2. Number of days off from work Time off allows you to gain perspective from whether what you are doing is working or even relevant anymore and the ability to synthesize 3. Scoring Your Energy State Get a baseline by scoring your health, happiness, and peace of mind that corresponds to energy centers in your gut, heart, and mind.

A tip for Analyzing KPIs that Exist Pre-Change: - Understand that after change your metrics are a Slingshot, not a Rocket. After implementing change you may notice that your metrics begin to under perform. That is okay, don’t panic. There may be a required ramp phase to proficiency, so it’s best to compare your KPI at the point of full ramp vs. the baseline. Not Day 1 vs. baseline. Performance doesn’t always go in a positive direction like a Rocket. Instead, sometimes it’s like a Slingshot. You have to pull back to launch forward.

Sometimes data doesn't tell the truth. Reading data in context is the whole story. What came before the data? What came after the data? Think of data as a "sound bite", a moment in time. I can pull data from the 80's and 90's that labeled me a statistic. My high school guidance counselor corroborated said data, and many of my peers and I proved them wrong. Remember, data should be used in context. Study the who, what, when, where, why rather than make knee jerk reactions to only partial truth.

I think each leader has her/his own style and there is no clear cut way or magic formula to become a good leader. Personally I think that a good leader has to empower her/his team and put the development of the team as priority number one. After that, a good leader is a person that recognizes the strengths and weaknesses of each team member and who put each one of her/his direct reports in the position that maximizes their strengths.

Constantly learning and submitting yourself to personal development and mentorship greatly helps when leadership and communication are areas you wish to grow in. Empowering mentors to tell you when you're out of alignment without sugar coating, not neccessarily being disrespectful, but being straight with you. You can tell how great a leader is by looking into who they're following. The greatest leaders are the greatest followers.

Most people see obstacles as obstacles, but an opportunist sees obstacles as an opportunity. "This is where most people would quit, so this is where I make my mark!" T.S. Elliott said, "Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go."