When it comes to change, who the voice of the change should be can be one key element which is misunderstood or misaligned. It is a myth that the most powerful voice in an organisation is a CEO - especially when it comes to change. In fact there are numerous studies run in the world of change which show middle management are the layer of leadership who matter most if you want your transformation to be successful.

Now that isn't to undermine the ultimate power that a CEO has, but any leader at that level will know to engage their direct reports and then also to jump a layer or two to ensure their vision holds true when they are intending to transform an organisation.

Why?

All employees take direction from the leader we report into. They hold the power and you rely on them for guidance, leadership and inspiration. We follow what our direct leader tells us, we watch what they do and follow their direction. That is why middle management holds more power in this equation than a CEO of...

Some days are brighter than others when you are responsible for leading a change or managing a change. Every day is not a bed of roses, easy to get plans approved, sponsors on board, time with leaders. Some projects are easier than others. There are those where you might score a fantastic sponsor who works with you, listens and you collaborate on how to transform a department or organisation. Then there are those which are hard, and resistance is high. 

Some of the better ones that change managers LIKE to work on, (as resistance will often be low to non-existent):

• New incentive programs where staff are offered more.
• Creative culture design programs where you work with organisations to design the culture they want and you play a role in bringing it to life.
• New products or processes that really see a tangible benefit to customers and allow for upskilling teams as well.

And then there are the changes that are not so exciting where resistance is high, however they are changes...

It's a commonly used term, 'complexity'. In most organisations, it's how the stakeholders will describe the change or their organisation. Now I am not going to dismiss that off hand but let's go through what will make a change complex, and keeping in mind that we should define complexity as high risk. The more complex the higher risk there is that the change just won't stick!

Here are some scenarios where the change may be complex and more importantly what to do to reduce the complexity:

1. There are multiple streams of work taking place which haven't been aligned or streamlined into a cohesive story. The aspect that creates complexity here is a lack of understanding about the program itself. This generates confusion which for many is a safe place to land when they feel overwhelmed. If you want to reduce the complexity, unpack the streams to understand the relationship and dependencies so then it can be 'rebuilt' into a cohesive program. 

2. Geographic distance: The...

Artificial Intelligence (AI) - everyone is talking about it. I recently recorded an Episode in Next Level Success covering this very topic, providing ways in which you can leverage AI. But let's bridge the gap between talking about it conceptually and how it can be used in a practical sense.  And the first major insight is that the more you use it, the more you will work on asking quality questions. The better the questions you ask, the better the output. The second main consideration is that the combination of your input and the AI generated output will always mean you will end up with better information.

Also I will allay your fears which may have been created by watching War Games, Terminator or the Matrix (does that age me?), the machines will not replace us! We are simply challenged to advance ourselves in line with the technology available to us. Let's face it, if my parents can text, Facetime and use What's app, then anyone can at least have a play with ChatGPT. 

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It would be good to hear if there is any organisation that isn't currently undergoing some sort of change or transformation in the world. We are now in 2023 and I think it is fair to say that between 2020/21 and a little into 2022 there is a real sentiment that change has been forced on many organisations, with the need to respond to the pandemic demands especially in the digital space. Others have needed to revisit their core offerings and the pressures on the newly branded People and Culture teams continue as organisations need to address their changed people needs and talent attraction and retention strategies.

But what does the 'new normal' look like in organisations when everything seems uncertain?

So what does the landscape of continual change and transformation look like?

Like arriving in a different country and seeing it for the first time, many employees just aren't use to the concepts, language or processes that need to be created or improved upon for change...

I enjoy the debate about whether Change fatigue is really a thing or whether it is simply a myth. Change is a constant in business, however if it is not led well or managed well, frustration sets in. Remember what it feels like when something is just 'dumped' on you or your team without notice? Where your leader's instructions were pretty much that you had to suck it up and get on with it even though it makes no sense to anyone? So my hypothesis is that people aren't fatigued by change, but they will be fatigued by poorly led and poorly managed change.

Just imagine in an organisation where that happens over and over. Last minute briefings, poor information shared where someone presents to your team about information that isn't relevant to them and then they can't answer the questions that are sensible to ask? 

Like groundhog day - no matter who you give feedback to, the people who are delivering change aren't listening and just keep releasing poorly developed fixes that...

'It's just a change of reporting line' he said. 'Here we go again,' I thought. So I took my time walking through the changes, the impacts and what would need to be done. Luckily by the end I also got the response I had hoped for 'I get it now'. Every now and then, the outcome is different. I get the first comment and no matter what I cover, the impacts won't be acknowledged. There is sometimes a preference to play down the change. And without doubt as the change process takes place, there is a reaction to the emotional push back and its intensity that is experienced. My comment in these instances is - well this change isn't about you, and people don't react how you would react, they react based on how they feel. The only hope I can have in those cases, is that when it happens again the same leader will pay more mind to their people.

When Leaders have a case of the 'Dory's'

Remember Dory from Finding Nemo? She had a very bad memory and this can also be case of many leaders when they...

Change leadership is critical to create a sense of ownership and has a direct impact on outcomes as a result of a change being introduced. Change leadership frameworks are hard to find and that is because many organisations see good leadership IS being able to lead change well. And capability building is normally the first action taken to respond to this challenge. Whilst training in this area does build an awareness and improves capability but there are other elements that assist in facilitating effective change leadership.

The MVCM Change Leadership Framework covers all elements to be considered when venturing into Change with leaders.

So let's explore them in more depth in no particular order and without one being more important than the other to facilitate effective change leadership.

When leading change, context has to be considered. The context within the organisation in which the change is being rolled out. Context of the organisation within the industry itself in...

Do you lead change in your team or in your role as a leader? In this Episode we cover the three critical questions that you should be asking related to the change.

Highlights...

2.00 While we are approaching the festive break, the cut off for introducing change should be early November to allow for embedding change to take place up to Christmas. For many organisations though this is not the case.

3.40 The first question is about impacts. Who is impacted, and here is a hint, it is never just one group! 4.30 The change must be simple in the way it is communicated.

5.34 We over the 'when they....then they' method

6.12 What is the size of the impact.

7.00 Is this transformational?

7.30 The most important question as a change leader that indicates ownership.

8.24 The trend used to be to outsource change leadership to change managers, however this is also changing.

9.19 When asked, the third question reflects the behaviour you want from your change leaders.

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Leaders are getting a bad wrap and in most organisations who aren't performing leadership is blamed. But what about in Programs? When projects are started, it is often a leader or a group of leaders who have decided that the project is needed and lead the funding push. When funds are awarded, a leader then plays a Project or Program Sponsorship role. 

Many times leaders are not equipped to take on that role as it is unclear as to their role and it's responsibility. So how much impact can a poor leader have?

So what should you expect from your leaders when it comes to sponsoring a program and looking to achieve outcomes for the organisation? What is reasonable?  Have a listen to the latest episode and you decide.

 On Apple Podcasts here or Spotify here.

Well here are some hints and tips and links to articles we cover which are related:

The critical role that leaders play in changing organisations

Is change leadership simply good leadership?

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