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Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Five Elements of Effective Implementation of Organizational Change
An aggressive manager, striving to maximize return on investment and organizational profitability, could easily develop a litany of various programs and policies impacting personnel and operations from the Mailroom to the Board of Directors. However, within the operational environment of a given organization, human beings, with tradition, familiarity, and comfort zones behind them, will wreak havoc on the best of plans. The fluidity of today’s marketplace, rapid technological developments, and governmental policy changes regarding virtually every aspect of business functioning, demands change. The manager’s challenge then, is to implement good ideas with minimal resistance and maximum acceptance.
The purpose of this article is to discuss the five elements believed critical to the successful implementation of change within an organization. The five points were designed to test an idea before it is put into place. These points do not guarantee that the idea will reduce operational costs, improve productivity, or enhance the organization’s profit line. That is up to the validity of the planned change itself. Rather, an idea that meets the following five points will receive wider and quicker acceptance within the organization, and will therefore improve operations, or just as quickly, destroy them.
The first test of an idea is to determine if the planned change will define or change acceptable employee behavior in any way. The role of impacted people, namely employees, is the root of success or failure of change. For example, a new dress code policy changes what is and is not acceptable attire in the workplace. Is the dress code policy spelled out in clear and non-biased terms? From an employee’s perspective, does the new policy clearly delineate acceptable behavior? And, does the policy meet the expectations of impacted employees based on the existing corporate culture, or does it represent a significant departure from the norm? Answering “no” to any of these questions is an immediate indicator of potential resistance, or possible failure of effective implementation of the new dress code policy.
Similar to an employee’s need to understand the implications of change, the various department and section leaders, such as Transportation or Marketing, must also understand how a change in policy or procedures impacts how they operate. Therefore, the second test of planned change is to verify that the change clarifies the role of each effected function within an organization, and specifically defines the steps necessary to successfully adhere to the new policy or procedure. A Marketing Manager, for example, needs to be aware of how an effort to enhance the “family values” image of the company may impact positioning of the product. Does the plan clearly identify the various facets of the organization that will be impacted by the change? Have department heads from the impacted areas been consulted or invited to be a part of the change process? Have new roles and areas of responsibility been established and communicated to those effected? Again, any “no” answers are indicators of potential problem areas.
Once the employee and departmental roles have been clearly defined, the third test of an effective implementation of change is to evaluate its aesthetic appeal. A plan should be concise, with clearly defined goals and rationale. People despise change for the sake of change. Change shakes people out of comfort zones and away from tradition, so it should be relevant. A manager’s job is to communicate the mission of an organization, provide the training and equipment to make it possible, and set policy and procedure to ensure it is done within the framework of the company’s value system. Implementing change for the sake of change makes a manager intrusive and guarantees that the planned change will be resisted. Test the plan with these questions: Does the plan have a clearly defined goal, or reason, worthy of an employee’s effort to make it work? Has the rationale behind the change been clearly stated to those impacted by the change? And, can the impacted personnel see where the change is going, and how they, as individuals, will benefit or be hurt by the new plan?
A well developed and thought out plan of change is worthless without the consent of the powers that be, and without at least tacit approval of those impacted by the change. The fourth test of an effective implementation of change is to ensure the decision makers within the organization are onboard. Any policy or procedure change that effects how an organization operates needs approval at some level. Organizations differ on this, however, a change that requires a change in behavior of employees or operations between departments requires approval above the departmental level. Amazingly, managers have been known to implement change in their departments, neglecting to realize or care that this change impacts other operations.
For example, a Shipping Manager decides he wants shipping documentation completed in triplicate. Two weeks later, when he audits the shipping documents he finds the change in policy has not been put into place. An analysis of the problem reveals that Publications did not have authorization to create a new “triplicate” shipping document, and the Warehouse Manager refused to cooperate until told to do otherwise by her manager. Before rushing into implementing change, consider these questions: Does this change need the authorization from Departmental, Regional, CEO, or Board of Director levels? Has this change been properly authorized?
The final test of an effective implementation of change is to measure whether or not change has actually taken place. Better known as “follow-up” this final stage in the change process is frequently neglected, making all the previous effort fruitless. Human nature is like a river, left to its own whims and desires, it tends to drift where it wills, heedless of time and distance to its ultimate goal. Change that focuses effort and redirects behavior will incur resistance, because it asks people to make an extra effort, or step outside their comfort zone. Additionally, new policies and procedures will invariably incur obstacles along the way that must be surmounted.
For example, the dress code policy mentioned earlier may include a line that the Legal Department finds potentially offensive to females. This does not mean the dress code is worthless, it merely reflects the need to adjust the code to the realities and demands of the environment. Managers should also evaluate the impact of a change. Has the plan achieved the goals originally set for it? Is the plan workable as is, or does it need to be adapted? What obstacles or barriers to success have been presented relevant to the change, and have these problems been addressed or resolved? Without follow-up, a new policy or procedure is dead in the water.
Implementation of change is a challenge to a manager’s ability to communicate. The effective change in policy or procedures that achieves its goals of reducing costs or improving revenues, is the result of communicating the change and its rationale to impacted employees and departments, gaining approval from relevant leaders, and following up to ensure compliance, or to fine tune the change to meet actual demands or obstacles.
The purpose of this article is to discuss the five elements believed critical to the successful implementation of change within an organization. The five points were designed to test an idea before it is put into place. These points do not guarantee that the idea will reduce operational costs, improve productivity, or enhance the organization’s profit line. That is up to the validity of the planned change itself. Rather, an idea that meets the following five points will receive wider and quicker acceptance within the organization, and will therefore improve operations, or just as quickly, destroy them.
The first test of an idea is to determine if the planned change will define or change acceptable employee behavior in any way. The role of impacted people, namely employees, is the root of success or failure of change. For example, a new dress code policy changes what is and is not acceptable attire in the workplace. Is the dress code policy spelled out in clear and non-biased terms? From an employee’s perspective, does the new policy clearly delineate acceptable behavior? And, does the policy meet the expectations of impacted employees based on the existing corporate culture, or does it represent a significant departure from the norm? Answering “no” to any of these questions is an immediate indicator of potential resistance, or possible failure of effective implementation of the new dress code policy.
Similar to an employee’s need to understand the implications of change, the various department and section leaders, such as Transportation or Marketing, must also understand how a change in policy or procedures impacts how they operate. Therefore, the second test of planned change is to verify that the change clarifies the role of each effected function within an organization, and specifically defines the steps necessary to successfully adhere to the new policy or procedure. A Marketing Manager, for example, needs to be aware of how an effort to enhance the “family values” image of the company may impact positioning of the product. Does the plan clearly identify the various facets of the organization that will be impacted by the change? Have department heads from the impacted areas been consulted or invited to be a part of the change process? Have new roles and areas of responsibility been established and communicated to those effected? Again, any “no” answers are indicators of potential problem areas.
Once the employee and departmental roles have been clearly defined, the third test of an effective implementation of change is to evaluate its aesthetic appeal. A plan should be concise, with clearly defined goals and rationale. People despise change for the sake of change. Change shakes people out of comfort zones and away from tradition, so it should be relevant. A manager’s job is to communicate the mission of an organization, provide the training and equipment to make it possible, and set policy and procedure to ensure it is done within the framework of the company’s value system. Implementing change for the sake of change makes a manager intrusive and guarantees that the planned change will be resisted. Test the plan with these questions: Does the plan have a clearly defined goal, or reason, worthy of an employee’s effort to make it work? Has the rationale behind the change been clearly stated to those impacted by the change? And, can the impacted personnel see where the change is going, and how they, as individuals, will benefit or be hurt by the new plan?
A well developed and thought out plan of change is worthless without the consent of the powers that be, and without at least tacit approval of those impacted by the change. The fourth test of an effective implementation of change is to ensure the decision makers within the organization are onboard. Any policy or procedure change that effects how an organization operates needs approval at some level. Organizations differ on this, however, a change that requires a change in behavior of employees or operations between departments requires approval above the departmental level. Amazingly, managers have been known to implement change in their departments, neglecting to realize or care that this change impacts other operations.
For example, a Shipping Manager decides he wants shipping documentation completed in triplicate. Two weeks later, when he audits the shipping documents he finds the change in policy has not been put into place. An analysis of the problem reveals that Publications did not have authorization to create a new “triplicate” shipping document, and the Warehouse Manager refused to cooperate until told to do otherwise by her manager. Before rushing into implementing change, consider these questions: Does this change need the authorization from Departmental, Regional, CEO, or Board of Director levels? Has this change been properly authorized?
The final test of an effective implementation of change is to measure whether or not change has actually taken place. Better known as “follow-up” this final stage in the change process is frequently neglected, making all the previous effort fruitless. Human nature is like a river, left to its own whims and desires, it tends to drift where it wills, heedless of time and distance to its ultimate goal. Change that focuses effort and redirects behavior will incur resistance, because it asks people to make an extra effort, or step outside their comfort zone. Additionally, new policies and procedures will invariably incur obstacles along the way that must be surmounted.
For example, the dress code policy mentioned earlier may include a line that the Legal Department finds potentially offensive to females. This does not mean the dress code is worthless, it merely reflects the need to adjust the code to the realities and demands of the environment. Managers should also evaluate the impact of a change. Has the plan achieved the goals originally set for it? Is the plan workable as is, or does it need to be adapted? What obstacles or barriers to success have been presented relevant to the change, and have these problems been addressed or resolved? Without follow-up, a new policy or procedure is dead in the water.
Implementation of change is a challenge to a manager’s ability to communicate. The effective change in policy or procedures that achieves its goals of reducing costs or improving revenues, is the result of communicating the change and its rationale to impacted employees and departments, gaining approval from relevant leaders, and following up to ensure compliance, or to fine tune the change to meet actual demands or obstacles.
# posted by gopi @ 2:06 AM 
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