Stop Saying Change is Hard. Instead, Work on Making it Happen!

We can safely say change will be at the forefront in 2024 as organisations continue to respond to talent shortages in certain sectors and the increasing need to master and incorporate AI in business processes and operations.
 
According to Gartner research, last year, the average employee experienced ten planned enterprise changes, up from two in 2016. These included culture change to adopt new ways of working and the replacement of legacy tech systems.
 
However the appetite for change is waning.
 
A Gartner survey showed that employees’ willingness to support enterprise change dipped to just 43% last year, down from 74% in 2016.
 
So what’s next?
 
Stop saying that change is hard. The more you say it, the more people believe it. One of our clients recently said that several years ago, most of her team had mentally given up even before the process started, because their then-supervisor, in preparing them for change, kept harping on how hard he expected it to be.
 
Yes, you should not gloss over potential challenges, but there’s a limit to this.
 
Whatever organisational change management model you choose to use, some fundamentals, if done well, will allow you to make change empowering instead of tough.
 
Here are our top tips:
 

• Engage as early and as regularly as you can

Understand individuals’ personal motivations, drivers and challenges, so that you can provide solutions to make the change easier.
 

• Consistently paint an empowering vision of the future

There are good reasons for the change and it’s meant to make things better, not worse. Show and remind people how it will make things better for them personally, not just for the organisation.
 

• Listen and understand

Instead of focusing on how you’ll sell the change story to employees, intentionally engage in two-way communication. Listen to employee reactions during regular, honest conversations about the change. Address their questions and acknowledge their opinions, even if they’re not exactly what you want to hear. This will increase understanding and make them feel they’re part of the process. Remember, critics can be excellent sources of insightful feedback and this can drive innovative solutions.
 

• Coach managers to be “change coaches”, not “change champions”

Many organisations ask managers to champion change. Instead, we advocate coaching managers to be effective “change coaches”. In our view, a change coach builds his or her team’s ability to navigate and manage the change without constant hand-holding. The first step is to identify individuals’ strengths and motivations, then connect them colleagues or resources that can help.
 

• Hire subject matter experts to create “change coaches” in a seamless, professional way

While decision makers may feel this is a more expensive option, most of the time, it turns out cheaper as change is implemented speedily with impactful results. Smoothing out rough edges to complete a project could make all the difference especially for those resistant to change and those who need a helping hand.
 
Try it out now. Say to yourself “change is as easy as I make it out to be”. At the end of the day, it is about taking a step at a time with a systematic approach that yields the best outcomes.
 
This post was co-written by Communications Strategist, Consultant and Coach, Bharati Jagdish.