Managing Change
posted in Management & Leadership |
It Starts With You
Change is an ongoing occurrence in business. During the past decade, the “Champ-to-Chump” product cycle has compressed from years to months. Successfully guiding your business enterprise to long-term profitability, requires strong change management skills…specific expertise including leadership development (to get people to believe in you); marketing and sales abilities (to promote your case for change); and communication skills (to help build support for the decision to change). It will also help if you know a little about the stages people go through psychologically when they are dealing with change so that you are able to tell if you have managed a successful transition or if there are additional problems that you need to address.
Leaders lead
The first thing you will want to focus on is your leadership ability. Companies continue to make the mistake of focusing too much on business processes and not enough on good, strong examples of leadership.
Set an example
As the top person in your business, others look to you for direction not only in terms of business needs, but also related to behavior, ethics, and standards. If you want others in your business to change, you must set an example for them to follow.
Eliminate perks
Perks suggest division and hierarchical thought processes. By eliminating or reducing your own perks, you show your desire to level the playing field.
Walk around and talk to people
The old school of business management promoted the idea that the top person was off limits, enclosed in his or her own glass tower. Leaders of today interact more with their employees; they manage by walking around and getting to know their employees and learning about the problems they face on a day-to-day basis.
Be genuine
As a leader of change, it is important to be as real and honest as possible in your interactions with others. Let others get to know you. Being a leader doesn’t mean hiding your emotions. By interacting with employees on a one-on-one basis, you will build rapport and trust.
Have passion
To be a strong leader, you must have passion around your vision. Without it, you will soon find yourself facing burnout. Leadership is tiring and saps energy at a very high rate, so make sure you are passionate about what you do.
Building your ability as a leader is the first step in the change management process. Any ‘change campaign’ should target the different special interests within your business and outline the reasons why change is necessary for each. For instance, you board of directors, or your business advisors will want to know what the long-term effects of the change will be. Similarly, your employees will want to know how they will be personally effected by the changes you are proposing.
Once a change has been instituted, it is very important to communicate on a regular basis with all who are affected. Let your employees know what is happening. If your communication skills are weak or you don’t have a formal way of communicating with your employees, set one up before you hit this stage of the change process. Many companies find that internal Blogs are an effective tool for keeping everyone informed, and can reduce the chances of low productivity and low morale that often accompany unaccepted change.
In the next Millionaire Mind Support Network™ Blog — The Six Steps to Mastering Change — will look at the six phases people go through whenever they are experiencing any type of change, be it personal or professional.
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