Implementing Organisational Change Management

There are many different models and approaches to organisational change but I am not going to go through them all here, I am only going to go through the one I feel is the best which is John P. Kotter's Eight Step Model. If you are looking for a resource that goes through the many models of Change check out 'Making Sense Of Change Management' by Esther Cameron & Mike Green.

John P Kotter is a Harvard Professor who started writing about why change efforts fail in the Harvard Business Review back in 1994. His work struck a chord with readers and due to its popularity he now has 3 entire books written on implementing change efforts.

The real challenge in any change effort is getting people to change their Behaviour. The larger the organisation the more difficult it is going to be, never underestimate how powerful existing habits, norms, attitudes and ultimately behaviours are, they can be exceptionally powerful and it takes a lot of concentrated effort to change them.

On a personal note: I worked as a consultant on a project with Health Visitors in the NHS. We got them to enter activities into the IT system and produced reports with Key Performance Indicators. We then asked the managers and cluster leads to set performance targets, these were significantly higher than present performance. We then created planning tools for the Health Visitors so individuals and team leaders could see what work was planned at the beginning of the week and how far off the desired performance targets individuals were and adjust their plan.

Week after week when we reviewed the KPI's for the previous week and the overall standard didn't move AT ALL. We brought in individuals that were achieving targets to tell all the team leaders how they achieved it - and still nothing. We encouraged ideas as to how to increase performance - and still nothing. We looked at ways of reducing the time spent doing admin - no change. We went through leadership modules with team leaders - and still nothing. I wish this story had a happy ending but unfortunately after several months the project ended and the overall KPI's for the service were EXACTLY where they were at the start, still way off the targets set. The problem was the Cluster leads were unable to change their teams BEHAVIOUR. They talked the talk, agreed targets, implemented planning and reporting tools but the fact was people on the ground were going through the motions of using the tools but not changing their BEHAVIOUR. The Cluster leads lacked firstly the desire to drive the change and secondly the skills to lead it and manage it. After I read Kotter's model I realised a number of mistakes that had been made and why the change effort failed so dismally.

Kotter's Eight Step Model

8. Anchoring the New Approaches in the Culture

1. Establish A Sense Of Urgency, Reduce Complacency

Never underestimate how big the forces are that reinforce complacency and help maintain the status quo.

People must understand the possible consequences, in personal terms, if the problems are not solved. This should break down the barrier of complacency.

Try and get people to see a truth in a way that touches them emotionally. Showing people sheets of data does not give them an emotional reaction that will reduce complacency and overcome the emotional resistance they have to change. You ideally want people to see the truth, feel differently about the situation and then act with a sense of urgency about changing the status quo.

A rule of thumb for a successful change initiative is at least 75% of the line managers need to be convinced that sticking with the status quo is more dangerous than striking out in a new direction.

2. Create A Guiding Coalition

'None of us is as smart as all of us!' - Ken Blanchard

Generally change needs to be lead from the top, but one person is never enough, no matter how charismatic the leader may be, to drive change through all the layers of a big organisation. Guiding coalitions need:

1) Leadership: The group should contain proven leaders to drive the process.

2) Position Power: Line managers need to be on board, if not all of them certainly the majority of them.

3) Credibility: The group should have people with good reputations, this need not just be people with authority but also well respected staff members who are forward looking and can see the need for change.

4) Expertise: Make sure people with the various points of view necessary to make informed, intelligent decisions are included.

Try and make sure the nae sayers and 'can't do' mentalities are not on the team. Some people just naturally look at things in a negative way and see every reason why something cannot be done as opposed to finding ways it can be done. Even people in high managerial positions can be like this and because of their positions of authority they can really block progress. When putting the team together try to find ways of avoiding such personalities.

On a personal note: I was working as a consultant on a productivity project, however I felt it would be useful to start measuring and reporting on some additional quality metrics although this was strictly speaking outside the project brief. The service had two service leads and they reported to a senior manager. The senior manager and one of the service leads saw the benefits but the remaining service lead had a 'can't do' mentality. She just sat there saying 'can't do, can't do, can't do' and sunk the initiative in the space of 15 minutes. Instead of looking at the end goal, deciding it was worthwhile and having a 'can do' mentality that ensures you keep moving forward and solving problems as you go, a 'can't do' mentality just sees problems and can't think of ways to solve them and gives up before they even begin. 'Can't do' personalities are a brake on progress.

”Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.”
- Henry Ford

3. Develop A Vision And A Strategy

A good vision should:

1. Describe a desirable future - One that people would be happy have right now if they could.

2. Be Compelling - Be so much better than the current state that people will gladly undertake the present extra effort and sacrifice to attain it.

3. Be Realistic - People must feel that its' goals are attainable.

4. Be Focused - Be clear enough to provide guidance when people are faced with choices and having to make decisions.

5. Be Flexible - In light of changing conditions it must be able to adapt.

6. Be Communicable - Is easy to communicate to all levels. Should be able to fully explain it in 5 minutes.

Be careful with visions that involve slashing costs and potential lay offs, presenting that to staff is not going to create a lot of enthusiasm."We will halve our costs by firing half of you and getting the other half to work twice as hard" is not going to get much buy in.

4. Communicating The Change Vision

The way to start is to recognise that the best way to get people to change is to communicate with them at an emotional level rather than a rational level. Don't show people loads of reports of data about before and after scenarios, rather increase their urgency around change by showing them a 'truth' as visually as possible to touch them emotionally. Then communicate the change vision again in an emotionally engaging way.

People want to have the big boss come and speak to them when big changes are announced but line managers are also vital to getting the vision understood by the staff, therefore time must be spent with line managers so they have sufficient understanding to get buy in from their team members.

Key Elements in Communicating the Change Vision.

Simplicity If it cannot be explained in 5 minutes then it is too complicated. Keep it free of jargon and as clear and concise as possible.

Example, metaphor and analogy Find ways of showing people a 'truth' that touches them emotionally. Paint a picture of the future or have ready examples of how things will be.

Multiple Forums Use every channel possible: Big meetings and small, memos, news letters, e-mail, intranet, formal and informal interactions - you cannot over communicate a change initiative.

Repetition Ideas need to be heard many times before they sink in. This is why line managers must be on board and understand the vision; they need to bring it to life everyday and in every way so they can get their teams to buy into it.

Leadership by example People pay far more attention if they see their seniors changing their behaviour, this is the most powerful form of communication. Similarly if management is saying one thing but behaving in a way not in alignment with this then people will not pay attention to the words.

Explain inconsistencies If there are reasons why management appears to not be walking its talk then it must be upfront and explain these inconsistencies or they lose all credibility.

Give and take Communication is a two way process. Listening to people is essential if you want them to listen to you, it can also point out problems and clarify issues that may need addressing.

5. Empowering Broad Based Action

The most common barriers that need to be addressed are:

Structures: A new vision may require new structures and unless they are altered no significant behavioural change will stick. If you want lower-level employees to have more responsibility you have to adjust the structure of middle level managers, if you want to speed everything up you may need to adjust a structure of independent silos. Similarly with improving focus on the customer you may need one person that can deal with all their queries and this may also require a change in structure.

Training: New skills are obvious when looking at training but often what gets left out is adequate back up and also the social skills and attitudes that are needed when people are empowered. Attitude training can be just as important as skills training and critical to empowering employees.

Aligning Systems To The Vision: If you want behavioural change to stick you need also to change the way you appraise, use incentives and promote people so they are rewarded for behaving in a way that is in alignment with the new vision. You may need to set out new Key Performance Indicators and look at other processes that are at odds with the new vision.

Dealing With Troublesome Managers: Even if a whole team believes in the change vision, a manager who does not believe in it can kill any attempt for individuals to change their behaviour. If managers cannot let go and empower employees then it doesn't matter what else is taking place in the organisation, those working beneath this particular manager will not be able to support the change effort. Like with all resisters time must be spent with the manager, explaining what is needed and why. If they still resist then they must be let go, no one person can be more important than what is in the best interests of the organisation.

Empowering employees unleashes an enormous source of power and can transform an organisation but they need the correct structure, training, systems and managers in order to achieve all they can achieve.

6. Generating Short-Term Wins

Short term wins show everyone that the course is the correct one and can do a marvellous job at turning doubters into believers. I have been in situations where some of the managers that were the biggest resisters see the light and become the biggest advocates.

Good short term wins should have three characteristics:

1) It is visible: So that large numbers of people can see that it is for real and not just hype.

2) It is unambiguous: So there is no doubt in any ones minds about the improvement.

3) Linked to the change effort: Make sure that people can see the improvement is linked to the change effort and not something else.

Quite often a change effort is looking to improve areas of the business that did not have adequate measurements in place. Make sure that information systems record the important information that will show the improvements.

7. Consolidating Gains

On a personal note: This can be a big problem when working as a consultant. When the project comes to an end the staff all think 'thank god that's over with' and unless management keeps up the pressure staff just fall back to the old way of doing things. A new Chief Operating Officer took over an organisation we had previously done a project with and I went to talk to him about a more advanced reporting system. He had been in the job 4 months and complained he had no management information whatsoever. I started doing a few enquiries only to discover that the reporting system that had been implemented a couple of years ago was still in place, staff were all filling in the correct sheets, admin was putting together the reports but no one was even looking at them. The reports just sat in a computer and not a single person had looked at them in months, to the extent the new COO was not even aware they existed! When the project had ended people carried on with the admin needed to operate the new system but otherwise everyone's behaviour went back to doing things the old way, ie not reviewing reports and KPI's, and not forecasting or planning, even though it was all in place and vastly increased efficiency.

Never underestimate how easy it is for hard won changes to revert back to the old ways. After you celebrate early wins, or after consultants have left a project, it is vital not to let complacency set in. Managers must maintain a sense of urgency about keeping the change effort moving forward.

Something else to be aware of is staff turnover. It just takes a few key managers to move on and if they are not replaced with people who support the change effort all the changes can quickly be lost.

The people that are promoted within an organisation is also a way of consolidating gains. If you encourage and promote change agents, people who have seen the need for change and believe in the change vision then you increase your chances of holding onto gains made so far.

8. Anchoring The New Approaches In The Culture

One change theory suggests that it is people's beliefs that create their values that produces certain behaviours.

Beliefs -> Values -> Behaviours

If you change peoples beliefs that in turn changes their values which changes their behaviour. This theory of 'change the culture first then the behaviour change will be easier' doesn't recognise that culture is the most difficult thing to change.

A better way of going about changing the culture is to firstly alter peoples actions, then create 'wins' so people can see the benefits of the new actions and once people connect the improvements with the changes this in turn changes their beliefs, their values and their norms of behaviour and fixes the new way in the altered culture.

Anchoring Change in a Culture

Comes last, not first: Most alterations in norms and shared values come at the end of the transformational process.

Depends on results: New approaches usually only sink into a culture only after it's very clear that they work and are superior to old methods.

Requires a lot of talk: Without verbal instruction and support, people are often reluctant to admit the validity of new practices.

May involve turnover: Sometimes the only way to really change a culture is to change key people.

Makes decisions on succession crucial: If promotion processes are not changed to support the new practices then the old culture will reassert itself.

In Conclusion

As we move into an ever more competitive and at the same time ever faster changing environment it will be the organisations that respond to change the best that survive.

The starting point is therefore not letting complacency set it and permanently keeping high the sense of urgency that the organisation must keep looking at ways it can change to perform better. The best way for this to happen is to have highly advanced information systems that continually monitor where performance can be improved and communicating this throughout the organisation so everyone feels a lack of complacency.

Most of peoples resistance to change comes at the emotional level so it is necessary to affect change also at the emotional level. Change peoples feelings about something and you will change their behaviour. Emotions that facilitate change are:

Faith, trust, optimism, urgency, reality-based pride, passion, excitement, hope and enthusiasm

Emotions that undermine change are:

Anger, false pride, pessimism, arrogance, cynicism, panic, exhaustion, insecurity and anxiety.

Sometimes it can be feelings of fear and insecurity that raise urgency ie 'unless we improve the company will go bust and we will all lose our jobs' but this fear needs to be converted into a more positive emotion as quickly as possible ie optimism, urgency, enthusiasm.

See -> Feel -> Change

See - Show people in a way that is as clear as possible, touchable, feel-able, see-able - a problem in an emotionally engaging way.

Feel - Seeing the problem changes peoples feelings. Management should promote feelings of urgency, pride and optimism.

Change - Different feelings transform behaviour.

People change what they do less because they are given an analysis that shifts their thinking than because they are shown a truth that influences their feelings!

Click on the link to return from Organisational change management to



Change Management.