Change Management + PMP- Changing the Individual.

For those looking to pass the PMP, and others interested in Change Management concepts, I have broken things down into 3 levels. Individual, Team, and Organizational change. Below is the individual change info.

A PMP Perspective on Change: Part 1, The Individual.

I’m going to hit change management in a three part series; individual, teams, and organization. This week I will discuss factors in changing the individual applying my own experience and a very informative book that covers four vetted approaches as well as discusses everything from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to various behavioral theories. The book is Making Sense of Change Management: A Complete Guide to the Models, Tools & Techniques of Organizational Change, Cameron, E., & Green, M. (2009). I highly suggest putting this on the shelf in your office; it is packed full of a broad spectrum of management tools. The book also touches on some key names and theories that those studying for the PMP exam should research prior to testing.

We all know that when organizational change hits, it hits hard. The easiest level to work at is the individual level, but who gets to sit for an hour each day and discuss the psychological aspects and intrinsic motivators to make change more accepting to the individual? I’ll quickly cover four various approaches then parallel them to my own experiences. I’ll then skim across some alternate variables to broaden your perspectives on applying these.

The Behavioral approach to change focuses upon how reward and punishment can achieve the desired outcomes. This theory illustrates that an individual’s behavior is cause for performance. Change the behavior, and you can change the performance. Popular names within this genre are Pavlov (dogs), Skinner (rats), McGregor (Theory X & Theory Y), and Herzberg (Hygiene factors). Studying these gentlemen’s research will better assist you with understanding how rewarding behavior of an individual can trigger response. In my own experience, I have learned that within my industry the only form of reward that summons the intended performance is financial gain of some form for the individual (generally speaking). There are a few who do value social recognition or just good old positive feedback. As for truly changing the behavior of individuals, this is very challenging in my industry. Bomb technicians are very settled in their mannerisms. Though performance may increase, behaviors rarely change. Sometimes a PM must tailor a team for a specific task by stacking it with individuals based on their mannerisms if individual behavior is not susceptible to change. 

The Cognitive approach to change focuses upon how an individual’s performance is based on the way they think. This theory was contradicting to the behaviorists and claimed that performance can be manipulated by understanding an individual’s thought process. To go a bit further, this theory targets what is in an individual; what drives them and how far they can go (remember the “goal approach”). Popular names within this genre include Rokeach (Belief System Theory), Beck (Cognitive therapy), and Neisser (Cognitive Psycology). A significant concept from this system is the goal approach in which you set goals for the individual to achieve. Set them to high and you lose morale, set them too low and you lose credibility. I suggest every PM should dabble in the works from the authors above. It has been my experience that with the video-game era of employees on the rise, this method is very practical. I have experienced that setting goals, like video game levels, will cause these employees to try and “level up”. It is also my belief that the conditioning of “incremented” achievement developed through game playing can be exploited for your benefit. This approach is also an excellent tool to apply when meeting with employees for coaching or annual reviews.

The Psychodynamic approach to change focuses upon the various psychological phases an individual sustains when confronted with external change. In other words, as change comes, an individual will go through predictable psychological stages, comparable to the Tuckman Model of team development. A manager who understands the psychology within each stage can manage an individual through them easier than one who does not. Popular names within this genre include Kublar-Ross (The Kubler-Ross model), Satir (Virginia Satir model), Freud (Ego, Id, Super-Ego), and Carl Jung (the multiplicity of psyche and psychic life). The Kublar-Ross Model covers the stages as denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. If you have ever terminated more than 10 employees you must have seen these stages flash across your desk at one time or another. I perform contract work and nearly every time a longer contract comes towards an end, I see these cycles surface. The short-term contract people get spoiled on long-term contracts and a sedentary mindset encompasses them. They tend to believe that the contract will continue long past the projected date. Breaking the news to them about long-term contract end must be a subtle process as these stages will prevail and performance as well as safety may be impacted in the final days.  

The Humanistic Psychology approach is a merger of the first three approaches but goes even further into the realm of the human self. Essentially, this approach focuses upon the needs of the individual, rather than performance, behavior, or thoughts. This approach through psychological jargon explains that the individual’s needs dictate performance and behavior. Two key names within this genre every manager should become familiar with are Abraham Maslow (Hierarchy of needs), and Carl Rogers (Pioneer of this theory). I believe that a successful PM in today s ever-growing and diverse workplace should become intimate with this approach. When I first exited the military, I worked as a civilian bomb technician with other military veterans. That significant trait left few with individual needs due to our shared background and structure. We all shared a common goal; a team goal. The Humanistic Psychology approach was unnecessary. Today, more technicians have joined the ranks of my projects that were never in the military. They do not have the deprivation background like the veterans, nor were they groomed under the “team-goal” environment that the service demanded. The Humanistic Psychology approach is critical for navigating the diversity upon my projects to better understand individual development, team composition, and project performance.   

Now that we have four approaches to understanding the individual’s behavior, thoughts, emotional changes, and needs, how does a manager put them together? What other factors can we consider to be obstacles that would make an individual resistant to change? Cameron and Green point out a few significant factors that illustrate an individual’s propensity for change.

1.     What is the organization’s history of change? Successful, hostile, layoffs?

2.     What is the individual’s history? Where are they in their career? How have they been affected previously?

3.     What are the consequences for change? Who wins? The board, shareholders, the employees, the management staff?

I noted these areas because I have walked into similar issues while trying to navigate projects. Though I was trying to summon positive change, I was not aware of the perceived history by the employees prior to my inception. I also think it is important for a new PM to not gather all influence from the incumbent managerial staff, but to review resumes and hold interviews prior to promotions as I have not seen this done too many times in my days prior. 

My recipe for putting it together:

After you have done your research and have some familiar comprehension of the four approaches, try to relate each approach to good and bad examples that you have sustained in your life or career. Once cognition is gained, weigh out how each approach is necessary to your industry; maybe they all apply, maybe only a few? Here are steps I have gathered in both education and practice for changing the individual:

1.     Establish your plan; goals, methods, and time frame (assess the individual with the four approaches).

2.     Model the desired method.

3.     Communicate the necessity for change to the individual.

4.     Coach the individual with positive dialog (and model that method).

5.     Assess the progress of change (continue coaching and assess your method).

6.     If successful; write it down in a lessons learned log and keep it for the future. Spread the knowledge to your management staff and help everyone become great.

7.     If not successful; you must evaluate where things went wrong? Was it your approach? The organization’s history? The employee’s history? Failure in coaching? Find it and fix it. Failures eventually lead to excellence if improved upon.

To this point I have been successful leading change and my secret is honesty. When I understand the change, I navigate the project team though it like a champion. When I have to lead change that I am unfamiliar with, I let the staff know we will all tread new waters together. I also let them know that project failure is on my shoulders. I do remain significantly vigilant through new change, but the honesty sets their anxiety at ease because I am forthright with honesty and not a fa?ade.