Change Leadership

Whether navigating a major organisational restructuring, implementing new technology, or driving cultural shifts, the ability to lead change effectively is a critical leadership skill.

Many executive leaders vastly underestimate the need for the change function within an organisation and are thus unprepared for the challenges they will face in delivering transformational change into an organisation.

Year on year Gartner estimates 70% of all change efforts fail to deliver successfully.

This article is aimed at senior executive leadership and asks the question:

Are you prepared for the next organisational change initiative

After over 30 years of successful transformational change delivery we have put together some key insights to empower them with the knowledge [WHY] and strategies needed [HOW] to drive successful change initiatives within an organization.

Some of the core elements include:

• Leading Change, supporting the need for change management, to give an overview of what it means to lead a change initiative successfully
• Change Management Structures, Practical advice on everything from establishing a sense of urgency to transforming company culture from within;
• Power + Impact (Emotional Intelligence), Helping key stakeholders to understand and appreciate the need for change leadership and most importantly alignment and buy-in for the initiative;
• Clear Messaging: Communicating to the right audience effectively, Enabling and articulating a clear and aligned leadership vision for the initiative;
• Guide to Managing Strategic Initiatives, Assembling the right organisational change team to manage the initiative and maintain the confidence of stakeholders through the process.

For this to be effective we need to understand that it is a journey. Change is a process and often needs a course correction along the way which then in turn requires re-alignment.

Leading our leadership through the critical stages of change successfully

• Establish a sense of urgency
• Overcome addiction to the status quo
• Transforming company culture
• Minimising the pain of change
• Getting reorganisation right
• Reshape the organisation for climate sustainability
• Scale agile practices throughout the company
• Lead change when business is goo — but also when times are tough

Putting a strategy into action.

Managing a successful strategic initiative may be the key to transforming your company and propelling this initiative forward. Yet running a cross-functional team on a high-profile project can present a multitude of challenges and risks, causing even the most experienced manager to struggle. This is definitely not a part time task our “look at Managing Strategic Initiatives" provides practical tips and advice to help manage all the stages of an initiative's life cycle, from buy-in to launch to scaling up.

Our support will aim to provide the how to succeed and the enablement for the initiative

• Thus moving rapidly from approval to implementation
• Assemble transformative, high-performing teams
• Maintain the confidence of sponsors and stakeholders
• Stay on schedule and within budget
• Avoid initiative overload by killing projects that aren't meeting business needs
• Keeping multiple key initiatives in strategic alignment and focus

With formal authority comes power.

But few people really understand or even realise that informal power (the kind that doesn't come with a title) can also have just as much impact (if not greater influence) in how people respond.

How do we use this power for greater influence?

We believe that this power affects our emotions, our behaviour, and how we work with others. So learning how to use self-awareness to keep this power in check, connect with the right people to create more value, respond to abuses of power, and leave a lasting impression.

Most importantly removing road-blocks and serving others in our care to enable them to work better and more efficiently is a key consideration and a very good use of this power.

Leading Change

"Leading Change" is widely recognised as a key to successful transformational change delivery, and is an important precursor to effectively managing operations while seizing new opportunity.

Needed more today than at any time in the past, Change Leadership is more critical today than it has ever been and serves as both a visionary guide and a practical toolkit on how to approach the difficult yet crucial work of any organisational leadership.

We welcome thoughts and comments on this and any of our other articles and look forward to helping and supporting you on your change journey.