Changing the Way We Change

    

A participant in a recent Leadership development program took a page from an earlier learning change-seasonsmodule on developing innovation skills and “challenged the status quo” of the way we train leaders to be better at leading change.

“There are so many old ways of thinking about change and we even used a quote from the early 1990s – ‘People don’t resist change, they resist being changed’ by Peter Senge – I have to wonder if the current workforce sees change leadership and the skills and tools required to be change leaders in a different way?” she asked.

It was a great question, so I promised the group that I’d do some research on how we in Talent Development have changed the way we teach leading change.  It was a challenging assignment as there is an infinite amount of content in existence on this topic of Change Leadership.

One of the most impactful Change Leadership articles I’ve read over the past couple of years was in the Harvard Business Review and written by MIT professor, Douglas Ready.  Based on my work with global leaders in this area, I think “4 Things Successful Change Leaders Do Well” presents a modern and practical look at the things Change leaders have to do well in 2018 and beyond.  Below are Ready’s tips and my commentary:

RECONGNIZE EMBEDDED TENSIONS AND PARADOXES

Most professionals can work well in business environments that have clear lines of authority and specific goals and objectives.  But things have changed…

In the matrixed organizations of today, too many employees find themselves in situations where they are working on teams and in functions with different leaders and sometimes different goals and objectives.  As Ready points out for example, there is a built-in tension between implementing a transformative digital disruption strategy and the human part of organizational culture.

In my opinion, today’s change leader must be able to understand and diffuse these tensions and paradoxes through transparent and open conversations.

HOLD EVERYONE ACCOUNTABLE

With virtual, 24/7 communications, enterprise-wide change isn’t something that can be done in small packets.  It has to be big, bold and robust…

Leaders must understand that change is not something “they” will take care of; in transformational change efforts, “we” are “them” and it’s everyone’s responsibility to communicate new strategies, set new goals and objectives, and make sure that all employees to embracing the change.

In my opinion, today’s change leader must be able to proactively and aggressively understand the needs and styles of their people and hold them accountable for embracing change by setting the right goals and providing the right feedback.

INVEST IN NEW ORGANIZATIONAL CAPABILITIES

Thinking that leaders will go to the store to purchase Magic Change Fairy Dust and then sprinkle it on their people isn’t going to happen.  Leaders and employees going through transformational change must have opportunities to expand their skills.

I’ve been very fortunate in my career to have worked with innovative progressive thinkers about Change Leadership.  One of the best and modern methodologies of building Change leadership skills are digital leadership business simulations that enable participants to learn the best practices of change.  Another new and potentially game-changing digital technology is artificial intelligence in the form of “SimBots” that a change leader can use to practice with and learn from.

In my opinion, today’s change leader must be able to do whatever is takes to acquire the right budgets and the right programs to execute a strategy of organizational capabilities.

EMPHASIZE CONTINUOUS LEARNING

Developing capabilities is one thing, creating a culture of continuous learning is something else.  I’ve seen too often that organizations will throw money at a change with a learning approach “du jour”, and then have some highly paid consulting organization come in with “the next new thing” as soon as it’s over.  Unfortunately, too many change leadership initiatives fall into this category.  As I mentioned in the previous section on organizational capabilities, investing in new skills is critical, but I will also share that creating a continuous learning environment where those skills can be reinforced is actually more important.

But what is continuous learning?  It’s a process where people have the opportunity to practice new skills, gain exposure to new ideas, and try things in a risk-free, blameless way.  And that’s up to the effective change leader to invest the time and resources to make it happen.

In my opinion, today’s change leader must be willing to dedicate the time to identify the right strategies, people, and tools to create a continuous learning environment.

In summary, this was a great blog to write because it was requested by one of our program participants and it is extremely relevant to things going on in today’s business world. I’m so glad the idea was raised and even more pleased to identify some more modern ways of thinking about change; and that process starts by challenging the status quo every day!

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Robert Brodo

About The Author

Robert Brodo is co-founder of Advantexe. He has more than 20 years of training and business simulation experience.