Basics of Change Management
Basics of change management - Rededge method
Introduction
Our change methodology is well proven and is a merging of Kotter's "Heart of change" and Prosci's ADKAR models to create a comprehensive change management process from identification of the problem to implementation. We at Rededge lead change in different ways in many of our assignments so do not hesitate to contact us if you want a sounding board on your particular change.
The importance of self-leadership
Self-leadership is the very foundation of successful change management. If you have good leadership over your own energy and what in change management energises you, you are off to a good start. In addition to being physically fit, eating and sleeping well, it is the vision of yourself and how you want to be perceived that leads to others wanting to be led by you in the change. Being perceived as responsive, inclusive and with a great drive and commitment to realising the vision, you have laid a good foundation for your own success. An important tool to keep yourself centred is daily self-reflection; what did I do well and less well yesterday? What do I need to think about in the meetings I have today?
The vision and its anchoring
The vision of what tomorrow will look like when today's problems are eliminated by your change is crucial to convince colleagues of the importance of the change. Be concrete and practice storytelling about how problematic everyday life is today. And paint the bright picture of how it will work tomorrow. Practise these descriptions so that others can take them to heart and tell them in their own words. Make sure to summarise the vision in a short description or with pictures that can be shared. Then make sure to verify with your closest confidants that they see the same thing and back you up. Before you try it on a sample of people who are not as favourable from the start. Learn from their objections and further refine the vision to address their objections before moving on. This step can be a bumpy ride where you may have to look in the mirror and question your vision. But if you are convinced, you will find your way.
This page gives you clear and concrete guidance on how to formulate good visions: Vision statement examples template
Create the initiative
Once the vision is anchored among colleagues, you need to ensure that your managers buy into the change, by now there is already a buzz about what you are doing so you are not starting from a blank piece of paper. It's crucial at this stage that you have a following that you can refer to in order to get the go-ahead to move forward. Maybe you need to get approval for a budget for a feasibility study or similar to further map out what is needed to implement the change. You cannot skip these steps as decision-makers can easily shoot down the initiative if you do not get the go-ahead.
Read also "The basics of structuring a project" here: Create project structure
The implementation
After your initiative is described in the form of a project, either as a result of a feasibility study, or you had enough information from the start to formulate it, it is time to kick off. Maybe you already have your ambassadors engaged or you need to get them on board. Once you have a project manager in place (maybe you?), you need to create a change management plan. Then you follow the ADKAR steps Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement. Remember that the change journey is individual. In large organisations, it may be necessary to group stakeholders in groups that have the same job so you can target e.g. communication in a targeted way. Start formulating "What is in it for me" messages for each group. Then make sure you have a good overview of which messages have reached which group, how many times and whether you have received feedback that means you need to work extra hard with any stakeholder group. This can be a bumpy road. When you discover resistance, don't back away but take the bull by the horns, put in extra efforts targeting that group. Below are some examples of change projects we have helped our clients with:
Create a culture of innovation: Building a sustainable innovation culture in a rapidly changing industry
Create a basis for continuous improvement: Retail company that wanted to procure a new deviation management system from the results of a feasibility study
Streamlining of working methods: How to successfully eliminate and automate time consuming activities in the monthly closing of books
Making the change stick
And remember that strategic messages should always come from the top of the organisation and information about changes in working practices should always come from the line manager who knows your work. These are key principles of change that have been proven to be universal in the world. Drive the change as a project and be responsive along the way. Make sure to concretise the change through job descriptions, process descriptions and other documents that define how things will work going forward. And last but not least, establish methods to follow up on compliance with new ways of working.
Want to know more about change management?
Contact Stefan Schnitzer to discuss change management.
Stefan Schnitzer, Senior Partner
070-3075730
stefan.schnitzer@rededge.se
Surbrunnsgatan 64A, 113 27, Stockholm, Sweden
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