Navigating Organizational Change: A People-First Approach

Organizational change — it’s a loaded term, and one that comes with a reputation. Any organization that survives long enough will eventually find itself faced with the necessity of making a major shift, whether in response to outside factors or as a method of improvement and scaling upward. These periods are as inevitable as they are anxiety-inducing.

For leaders, it means uncertainty and stress, navigating new sets of demands while keeping teams strong and confident throughout. Leading the way through major organizational change is a task that requires dedication, and with the right preparation, it is possible to achieve meaningful results.

The unfortunate reality is that large-scale organizational changes often fail. A 2020 comprehensive study by Boston Consulting Group reports that 70% of these transformations do not meet their objectives, and come with far more negative consequences than positive ones. There are a variety of factors behind these failures.

Commonly cited reasons from this research and other studies include a lack of adequate planning on the part of management, leadership focus on abstracts rather than practical steps, and communication breakdowns at team levels. But blaming a deficient outcome on one component distracts from the fact that failure is often the result of structure-wide weaknesses.

Additionally, we cannot be distracted from the real toll: burnt-out employees, eroding trust in leadership, and a fractured culture that may not be able to survive the next incident. When needed changes continually collapse, the effects over time will only pile up.

With these daunting barriers in mind, what can motivated leaders do to ensure that their organizational change plan succeeds?

Understanding Why Transformation Fails

Failure occurs for companies at every level, no matter how competent they are or how foolproof the plan appears on paper. Even the most intensive strategies will fall apart when faced with reality, and if leadership is unable to adapt, they may not recover at all.

In their study of over 60 corporate changes, IMD found that many of the sources of these breakdowns occurred at the management level. Leaders showed a tendency to incorrectly identify what precisely needed to change, instead focusing on broad, nonspecific, or aspirational goals that did not actually address the problems in their organization or drive innovation forward. By beginning at the wrong point, they steered their teams into uncertain waters, and ultimately floundered.

Another common factor was overambitious planning that did not account for the reasonable capabilities of the organization. Research also determined that these companies ignored culture and employees in favor of pushing these larger ideas. Before undergoing huge, ill-informed shifts, leaders must understand that culture, not concept, comes first.

Are You Prepared for Innovation?

Organizational change is frequently spurred on by new technology. This is especially prevalent now, with the rise of AI, machine learning, SaaS, and other digital solutions gaining popularity. The possibilities they offer are as shiny and exciting as they are efficient — but in times of innovation, leaders may tend to leap before they look.

Not every digital solution is right for your specific organization, and it may ultimately result in disruption, rather than productivity. For example: McKinsey found that out of the companies surveyed that were planning shifts to digital solutions, 60% did not have sufficient agile teams capable of handling the technology. Who will use this technology? What labor will be needed to make it function as intended? What burden will it place on existing teams? All these questions are vital moving forward. The first step should always include proper training and education for every employee, opening up the conversation and establishing goals before new tech ever enters the picture.

Fostering A Resilient Culture

There’s a reason every discussion around successful leadership prioritizes organizational culture. Culture is the foundation of your company; it determines how well employees respond under pressure, whether or not your authority is trusted, and the resilience of teams regardless of outside circumstances.

A robust culture will remain steady through the most dramatic of shifts, united under commonly shared values and goals that are reinforced at every level. We as people have a tendency to rely on “the way things have always been” — enacting major changes in an organization that has previously never anticipated them destabilizes employees and causes stress, anxiety, and subpar performances. Rushing transformation before the culture is primed for it is one of the greatest causes of management failure.

Is your organization’s culture one that celebrates change, or shies away from it?

Including Everyone in the Conversation

Large-scale change does not occur without team buy-in. In fact, the consequences of a failure can be long-lasting and dire. The APA 2017 Work and Well-Being Survey painted a grim picture: employees affected by organizational change reported monumentally higher levels of stress, negativity, and even physical health symptoms. They also expressed intentions to quit their jobs and move on as a result of poorly led shifts that led to feelings of destabilization and confusion.

Every decision you make as a leader trickles down to your workforce. If employees feel they have been left out of the conversation, or have no say in the shifts that directly affect their jobs, they may seize the opportunity to move on to a position where they are properly recognized. It is essential chat our change management strategies be iterative, multichannel, and personal. Just because management has a Town Hall doesn’t mean that change management is over. In fact, it’s just beginning.

We need to constantly reinforce how a change manifests itself in day-to-day corporate activity, and—importantly—what it means for each individual and their careers, daily activities, and measures of success. By including everyone in the discussion, you confirm their value in the organization, which goes a long way to foster buy-in and trust.

Putting People First

Productive organizational change hinges on people, not tech or strategy. If we as leaders are unable (or unwilling) to start from a place of compassion, with a realistic understanding of what our organizations truly need, we set ourselves up to fail.

It’s true that executing a transformation is no small task. Rather than being intimidated, it’s possible to move with confidence, secure in the knowledge that teams and individuals have all the tools they need to thrive. In these changing times, our ability to remain agile and open to change is no longer a benefit, but a necessity, and one that will determine an organization’s longevity in the exciting times ahead. Embracing the people-first approach outlined here maximizes the chances of success while retaining strong teams and a stronger culture.