Shouldn't we all consider Change Management

I’m at home, I’ve been here a lot recently, and it’s easier than ever to understand how my family are feeling as they react to the changes taking place around them.

My career has been built within Change Management, I assume I’m good at the rational and understanding behaviour you need to exhibit to give stakeholders confidence in me and in what I’m delivering. I’m learning why it’s important to be able to detach myself to a certain extent, I can’t do this with family, but I’ve been able to appreciate what made me effective during my career and why the management of change should never be just about “getting it done”

 As more stores, schools and businesses prepare to open, I’m asking how effectively companies are protecting and preparing their most important asset – their people. This is central to my belief in the value of an effective Change Management approach. Not only should people be protected, consulted and engaged as a matter of course, but to rely on them to truly deliver for you they need to feel that they’re part of the solution and can influence the journey. Although the world is hugely uncertain right now, there’s no excuse for heightening that uncertainty in people by failing to properly plan on how to communicate. 

Anyone who has delivered a change that affects people and changes their “normal” will know it’s an incredibly emotive journey – indeed one of my biggest learns as a Change Manager was failing to get this element right.  

Every business re-opening has a project plan, however detailed it may be, that has included all the steps needed to complete to allow them to open their services to the public. How many companies though have allowed for the creation of a detailed people workstream within their plan, and are considering this as an essential delivery as “live date” approaches?

I can see a lot of uncertainty and nervousness being created as messages are being received from multiple sources at different times, not all of them official, which is creating the challenging scenario of whispers beginning to drive outcomes. How can a business expect to succeed if their people are all singing from different song sheets?

An effective and clearly published plan of what you will hear, how, and when you’ll hear it allows you to feel in control in some way – I may not understand the message yet, but I know what I’m going to hear and where to look for that message. If a date isn’t achieved, then I can follow up to ask why and feel back in control.

The following 8 simple steps would set you in the right direction. These may seem time consuming, which is why they’re often not completed but, get it right and you save time in the long run.

1.      What is your message and purpose?

2.      Identify your stakeholder groups, this should allow you to see if anyone has been missed

3.      Determine whether each group needs to be involved in what their message looks like, or whether they simply need to receive it then validate this.

4.      What channels will be used to communicate and on what dates 

5.      Who will be responsible for delivery of the message?

6.      Once delivered, how will we answer questions and concerns raised. 

7.      At every stage, stop and check that the plan is still relevant or whether parameters have changed. Plan for the “what if’s” to allow a swift reaction.

8.      Equally, after each message has been delivered check for understanding and, if possible, engagement rates - has everyone accountable done what they said they would. If you’re not confident then plan how to become confident. Shouldn’t we all consider Change Management

Working in a hugely challenging environment can allow us to start thinking we don’t have time to properly plan, and that the result is what matters – regardless of how well delivered that result may be.

I argue that there should never be an excuse not to plan, not to consider your people and your customers and therefore not to deliver change in the best possible way.