You’re struggling with change management. What’s the most common mistake you’re making?

One of the most likely mistakes that you are making is that you are too focused on the change and not on the people who are integral to helping you define, implement, and use the change over time to bring the benefits that you are aiming to realize from the change. To address change effectively you need a People-centered approach to change. The PCI approach focuses on identifying what are the personal, organizational, and cultural concerns that may put the change at risk for failure and building an effective engagement strategy that helps paint a vision people can buy into and see themselves in and one that motivates them to adjust their values, beliefs, attitudes, behaviour and performance that will get you to benefits realization!

Having a clear vision is paramount in navigating change. It provides direction, motivation, and alignment, preventing resistance and fostering perseverance. Define and communicate your vision effectively, emphasizing benefits, values, and goals, serving as a guiding beacon through challenging times. ??????

Without a clear vision, teams can become disoriented and lose motivation. We've found it key to articulate a compelling and inclusive vision that everyone understands and aligns with - your North Star. To turn things around, involve your team in refining the vision, ensuring it resonates and provides a clear direction for everyone's efforts. Focus on your organization's purpose and find the things you do well and are passionate about - think forward and lean in. You've got this.

Trying to sell the solution before getting buy-in that there’s a problem is just silly. Nay sayers are gonna “nay” if you do that. This is something that tech folks do over and over- trying to sell a new technology before establishing that there’s a business problem that needs to be solved and getting buy-in that the problem is actually a problem in the organization (with an estimate of how much it is costing the organization as a whole) and being able to convey how the problem will actually be solved by the technology and at what price.

The most common mistake in struggling with change management is likely a lack of effective communication. Change management involves not only implementing changes but also ensuring that individuals affected by the changes understand why they are happening and how they will be impacted. Failure to communicate the reasons behind the change, the expected outcomes, and the support available for those affected can lead to resistance, confusion, and ultimately, the failure of the change initiative. Therefore, clear, transparent, and continuous communication is crucial throughout the change process to address concerns, build trust, and gain buy-in from stakeholders.

Change management is not linear. You need a plan but you also need to be responsive to events and feedback. Change management activities need to be aligned to the other project activities and deadlines. Manage your deliverables in an agile way. For example, as implementation progresses, a process may be adjusted, which may impact your change impact assessment. You will need to update it, update the mitigation, e.g., incorporate into your training plans and materials, and communicate the changes in your next change toolkit drop.

When your change is not going as expected, explore to what extend you had a robust Change strategy. Then did this change strategy led to a solid change management plan. Did you set up the measures of success? Are the milestones clearly set? Make sure that the plan is set up in such a way so that it could be adjustable to any fluctuations.

More often than not, lack of communication and transparency is a major factor leading to failure or breakdown of a project. Another important aspect is it needs to be a dialogue more than a monologue so you can identify and clarify any assumptions or insecurity stemming from change management. When it comes to communication in the context of change, more is less.

There are a few basic principles to take note of: #1 - START SMALL. Communication does not mean you have to wait for something big or major before you start to communicate. Change Management is something which requires CONSTANT updates. #2 - You must make Communication your BESTIE. Don't shy away from creating a "sending-message-receiving-message" relationship with your audience through regular communication. #3 - There is no such thing as OVER-COMMUNICATION. The more you communicate the better off you are because you manage the 4Cs of communication well (clarity, coherence, control & credibility). #4 - Be RESOURCEFUL with CREATIVE THINKING. Always share refreshing content from various "news angles" in every communication piece.

In my experience, overthinking this is a big factor. A typical clouded mind that gets bogged down due to over-analysis, over-thinking and over-reading further increases the fear of failure. While you focus on delivering small improvements for the change, keep the big picture in mind and not vice versa. In my opinion, over-focusing on the big picture often lets us miss out on the ground reality and that furthers the change astray. While we all work to focus on successful outcomes, some of the best change implementers had their best lessons from the biggest failures. ( few examples that come to my mind are Microsoft Zune, Apple Next, SpaceX's initial launches and Mercedes overdeveloped early 90's engine that eventually became classics)

2 things that I believe can make or break change success. 1) A very clear and compelling why - reframe it for different audiences if you need to. Even if the why works for one it may not work for another, because WORDS MATTER. 2) Sponsorship, sponsorship, sponsorship. An engaged sponsor is so critical for success. A disengaged sponsor can thwart your best efforts.