1. Organizational Culture

Imagine a day when your leader announces a major change to take place on Monday. You had no prior knowledge, you received no further detail, you had not been involved in the discussions and decisions leading up to this moment. The desired outcome and indicators of success have not been mentioned. You have no access to the reasons why the change is happening, nor what will be required of you. Due to this reality, it is likely your confidence levels would decrease when it comes to leading others through the change.

Organizational Culture can be a great source of resistance if this description typifies the way a company operates, and seems beyond the sphere of influence of middle managers.

2. Lack of Awareness and Knowledge about the Change

Adults are babies in big bodies. We know that a child will always ask ‘why’; so too an adult, as this provides the reasons for the need to change and also the consequences of not changing. Through receiving that information, a middle manager would also understand more about the nature of the change. Yet, even with Awareness (the ‘why’ of change), there is still a need for greater depth to Knowledge (the ‘how to’ of change). 

• Imagine a Chef who has been told to change the pie menu, yet not given the recipe nor an understanding of why the prior item is ‘off the menu’.
• Imagine an Accountant who has been informed by the CFO the accounting system is currently outdated and must change, yet provided no insights into its failings and what is required to close the gaps.
• Imagine the IT Officer’s app has just been scrapped, with no reasons being shared, and no idea or direction as to how to evolve to a higher standard.
• Imagine the HR Officer receiving a directive to change the company’s uniform with no understanding of the what, why or new priorities.

The ‘why’ and ‘how to’ of change is imperative for a middle manager as it will fill in the blanks, opening the pathway to clarity, and further action.

Lack of Buy-In

We’re back to middle managers being real people, with real human needs first and foremost. You are a real person too, and consciously or unconsciously filter any change requests through your values, opinions, background experiences, history and credibility of the sender, and the list goes on. When something does not align to your realm of reality, why would you accept to adopt any change?

A middle manager is almost superhuman, stuck between those above (often out of touch with what’s really happening on the ground) and those below (who depend heavily on the one closest to them for support). Being there for both parties is a balancing act for any middle manager – how long could you continue to serve all those around you, compromising the very core of what matters most to yourself? 

Many moons ago, my mentor taught me to behold resistance, grab it and serve it; after all, it is only showing up to be heard. It simply wants attention, answers and opportunity for  alignment. 

If you lead a middle manager:

• Anticipate, and provide for the needs of the manager during change, before resistance shows up.
• Provide the what, why and how of change, so the puzzle is as complete as possible. 
• Allow time for the manager to process and explore the WIFM (What’s In It For Me) factor.
• Walk alongside the middle manager during change, providing consistent and relevant support.

The post The Top Three Reasons why Middle Managers struggle with Change @ Work appeared first on business en motion.

Have you ever…

• Had a conference participant unable to write key points on a chart during a meeting?
  • We have!
    • He had not physically written for many years; keyboard strokes are the only language he ‘speaks’ right now.
• Had a person convince you to employ them through providing a business case, with an invitation to you to mold it as desired?
  • We have!
    • They knew exactly how their portfolio of skills would benefit as a step to their next accomplishment
• Spent time with a mind you don’t understand initially, only to discover it has a super-power that would bring such value to existing resources?
  • We have!
    • We continue to seek more perspectives as an avenue to open our own mind wider.

 …..and that’s why we surround ourselves with this new generation. We learn so much from them! As we move businesses and leaders ahead through change, they equally lead us, ourselves, through change. This allows us to co-create, fully, together, alongside difference.

•  Who are you surrounding yourself with currently?

• Who else would you like to be surrounded by?
• How will you attract that into your business ecosystem?

The post Surprize will no longer surprize! appeared first on business en motion.

introduction

Working in the arena of change is both challenging and rewarding. It is often said that during change, workplaces can feel as if it’s 3 steps forward, then 4 back. And in those ‘4 steps back’ times, sometimes referred to as the ‘knock-on effect’ from change, what are three suggested actions to take?

Changes in the workplace will result in a knock-on effect, thereby facilitating further impact from the change.

Take the example of BYOD, a dilemma that some organizations are facing currently. For those who live in a non-geek world, BYOD stands for ‘bring your own device’, which results in individuals using their own devices in workplaces. What a great idea; less company capital investment, more responsible ownership of technology by individuals, higher degree of happiness (just look at the faces of Apple users when this corporate decision is taken) and the list continues.

Yet with that one change of BYOD comes more change; the 4 steps back! Some of the knock-on effects will be anticipated and prepared for whilst others occupy the realm of the unknown or unexpected! For example, if the workplace culture is one of separating personal from corporate, how does one truly know when work is underway? How will the workplace represent only that which it agrees to or could a person’s social media choices place the organization at risk? Is that healthy? absolutely yes, because change should not be an activity or event but ongoing process for the business and the people! Change will always cascade, providing opportunity for ongoing further change.

How can one ensure that a resulting knock-on effect from a change is welcomed? In other words how can we build change as a competency in our organizations and people?

Talk and ‘be’ change at every possible opportunity. Challenge the people to find opportunities to change before having to react to change. Ask the team to anticipate ’cause and effect’ of change.

Build ‘change’ into your communication forums and techniques. For example, add the topic of change to the weekly or monthly agenda, and share the responsibility for all to apply that section to something they would like to see changed, and be willing to spearhead. Encourage them to present a business case for the change and to identify roles for which they’d like assistance. Add a new ‘award’ to those currently existing, possibly recognizing the individual who embraced or anticipated change in the best possible way that month.

At a special occasion eg the 20th anniversary of the company, challenge people to pictorially represent the company’s milestones of success and link them to changes that were taken.

When building change into an organization as a leadership competency and priority, not only does it allow us to cope with knock-on effects of change, but even design them in the name of continuous improvement.

The post a change that brings more change! appeared first on business en motion.