Organisational change is not easy
Making effective organisational transformation is not easy. A rational, well-thought plan might get the approval of senior executives, but it often starts failing at the first hurdle.
If you are planning on building your career in the change management profession, you might already be considering change management courses. These will equip you with the knowledge and skills to plan and manage change initiatives. This article addresses some of the key factors that can help make your change project a success.
Business research
Research indicates that failure rates of transformation initiatives are high. Failure rates have been reported as high as 70-80% where the initiatives achieve substantially less than the expected value (King, S and Peterson, L (2007) How effective leaders achieve success in critical change initiatives).
Key success factors
Not all such initiatives fail, however. Those which succeed often embrace 4 activities (IBM, 2008, Making Change Work). These are:
- prepare by gaining deep, realistic insight into the complexity of the change and plan accordingly
- use a robust change methodology aligned with a project management methodology
- build and apply skills in sponsors, change managers and empowered staff
- invest appropriately in change management.
It was also found that the success rates when projects used a dedicated change manager increased by 19% compared to those that did not (IBM, 2008).
Driving successful change
Driving successful change requires an intimate knowledge of the risks associated with change, and an understanding of how to counteract said features.
Some challenges that change managers must overcome in their role include the following.
Change management is not predictable
While changes may seem rational and productive on paper, people can be unpredictable. Changes that produce positive results in one group may be ineffective with another. Approaches that resonate with some might not with others. In this, there are several factors including age, infrastructure and a host of other factors that must be taken into consideration.
Change management requires constant communication
Change is personal – sometimes people whose jobs have been transformed need an extended period to train and adjust before receiving the benefits of positive change. Before that happens however, they may become frustrated or dissatisfied with their work. Change managers need to interact one-on-one with the individuals who will need to accept change.
Change management needs to address the work culture
Work culture might be determined by nationality, industry or more. Knowing how work culture effects change and planning is essential. Here are some examples of work culture and some questions to be addressed in each case.
Communication style
Do employees communicate directly or indirectly? Are staff free to air their grievances freely?
Deadlines
Are deadlines strict and punctual? Do meetings start and end when arranged or is the work environment less formal and concerned with time?
Autonomy
Are low-level staff free to make certain decisions without conferring with higher-ups? Or does everything need to be pre-approved with a direct superior? How important is organisational hierarchy?
Is change management an afterthought?
Is change management integrated with other business efforts or is it seen more as a ‘clean-up?’ Change management efforts need to be tightly coupled with business initiatives which can be very difficult in certain industries.
Conclusion
Achieving effective organisational transformation is not easy. Research suggests that understanding the complexity of the change, using a robust change methodology, developing the skills of the people involved, and investing in change management are all critical success factors that can make the difference.
Investing in skills development of change actors through change management training and change management certification is a vital part of the mix to achieving successful outcomes from change projects.
