In the middle of a change reaction

Not that many of us can admit that they truly enjoy change. And I don’t mean a change in holiday destination, choosing something different on a menu or even a new job from time to time. I mean the bigger changes taking place, mainly in the workplace. For most people, it’s just not in their make-up, particularly when it’s a major life change – and especially one that’s out of our control. Change can be scary; it can be threatening. Let’s face it at the end of the day we all have our lives to lead and bills to pay.

And goodness, if you are working in the public sector or know people that do, you will be acutely aware of just how much of that change thing is going on right now. A lot of my clients work in health or local government – both areas that have received a lot of press and political attention lately. The Chancellor’s focus in his budget was mainly around providing extra funding to these areas – perhaps recognition of the extent those areas have delivery problems and that something must change…but just not quite now huh?

So, the extent to which people are scared or threatened by nothing remaining the same makes change in the work place a difficult beast to manage. Many workplaces do it well but would it come as a shock to you if I declared, here and now, some don’t?

Over the years I have managed many change management projects. Most went well, some didn’t (although clearly that would not be my fault would it?). Although my experience lies in the management and implementation of the processes rather than the specific ‘people management’ field, I would like to think of myself as someone who staff can rely on to help them through a tricky change management process in the best way possible. Yes there are lots of books you can read and lots of techniques you can be taught that deal with the management of change. But at the heart of successful change are the hearts and minds of people.

And despite the number of change programmes I’ve been involved with, from time to time I am still surprised at the responses of people. I know it is what makes us unique but I still enjoy being surprised. There are also a lot of factors at play and how people react can often be a result of how the change is communicated to them. That applies to all parts of our life, not just work.

When I was writing this blog, I was reminded of some fabulous work a good friend of mine, Lucy Gower, has done to allocate an animal types to the way people innovate. Lucy delivers programmes that help develop creative confidence and innovation skills to ensure good ideas happen. She has identified a ‘whole zoo’ to capture the different traits we all have when we innovate and seek to deliver change. You can find out what animal you are for free here.

Although there are some similar animals in Lucy’s zoo, I though I would describe my own experiences of what I have seen over the years. See if you recognise anyone you know from the following:

The Ostrich

The easiest one to spot and probably the most common. If I don’t acknowledge it, it isn’t happening. You’d rather forget about the problem and worry about it later. Unfortunately, in my experience the problem is unlikely to go away. Little real insight there I am sure you will agree. Even if the change doesn’t affect you directly it may have an impact on your organisation, your team and your colleagues. Amongst the many problems of being an ‘ostrich’ is that you can become stagnant instead of being more proactive about the situation and boy is it sometimes difficult to extract your head from that sand quick enough.

The Cat

The laid-back one, you know, happy to bask in the sun and snooze a bit and not overreact too much when someone passes by with a big bag of change.

But you know they see everything but decide on their own pace of reaction. Sometimes having those ostrich-like reactions, cats are more likely to acknowledge the change but sometimes leave their destiny completely in the hands of others only to react vigorously later. Mew, I can’t stop change but I know it’s important to also not become stagnant. And any cat owner will tell you about the fine line between being laid back and reacting.

The Chicken 

Just the suggestion of change can understandably make some people go into panic mode. Just like when Mr Fox comes by and all the chicken types quickly infect each other with panic. Reminiscent of Lance Corporal Jones in the BBC sitcom, Dad’s Army and his “don’t panic, don’t panic” approach to just about everything, some people upon hearing that change could/may/possibly be taking place make reactive decisions before know all the full facts. I am sure we all know a couple of colleagues, friends or family members who fall into this category. I would generally say (fight or flight dinosaur situations aside) that it’s important to understand what changes are happening and then have a go at making an informed decision.

The Ant

These are the people who accept that change happens and waits to see what it means for them.  And then they adapt accordingly. Accepting I am stretching the term “animal” a little here, my description of people who are this adaptive is being like an ant. Not tiny or being susceptible to be trod-on, the sense of smell an ant has is preposterously good, they are up to five time stronger than other insects and just watch any nature programme to see how they can walk off with your casually laid down bar of chocolate or discarded animal carcass. These are fascinating creatures who survive in extreme conditions. And they group with other ants to continue their life if someone comes along and breaks up their cosy anthill. Do not underestimate the smallest beings.

The Dog

Finally, the category of people who embrace everything and are happy with what they have got if someone feeds them, pays them attention, provides leadership, keeps them warm and occasionally pats them. (Sure there is an old hierarchy of something or other that describes that lot). The aim must be to get all people to this stage. What better animal describes the embracer than a dog?

Of course I’m thinking ‘ideal world’ here of course where everyone accepts and embrace change relatively quickly. They find out exactly what the changes mean and make considered choices from this. There are obviously a lot of other factors to consider and it very much depends on the impact the change has on the individual.

Clearly these are wild generalisations and I am happy you treat them as such. But I would also be pretty sure most people will recognise themselves and other people in one of the ways outlined above. Some may be a hybrid of more than one so you may need additional work by a respected naturalist to identify your sub-species.

Remember that change is all around you. However, think about all the animals I have identified living together under one roof and how zoo keepers would react if they suddenly found they had 100% of one species one day.

Mike Gill is partner at Libre Advisory and best-selling author of How to Survive Austerity.