What do I mean by Connecting?

My 8^th and final Change Capability dimension, Connecting, relates to the identification of individuals with something greater than themselves – the team, the organisation, the change..

Unlike the 7^th dimension, Caring, where the needs of the individual come first, employees identify with the wider needs of the organisation, and are prepared to act as one in support of change for the greater good. This strongly relates to loyalty, collaboration, customer-centricity and teamwork, and relationships matter.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Are proactive in developing collaborative relationships with stakeholders
• Model support for the vision and strategy as representing the common good
• Foster connections between different groups or individuals to help break down silos

People that are impacted by the change:

• Put their concerns to one side and support change for the greater good
• Work across boundaries in support of change
• Look out for their colleagues and provide social support during difficult times

How is the capability supported?

As with all of the capability dimensions, this is not an exhaustive list but Connecting is supported by:

• Role Modelling: Lead by example in visibly breaking down silos/barriers and providing support to other teams or departments
• Collaboration: Processes and tools support online and offline knowledge sharing and working across team or departmental boundaries
• Communication: ‘Other’ orientation is often underplayed in favour of ‘WIIFM’ – emphasise that where decisions benefit colleagues, the organisation, customers and wider society

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Without balance, strengths can become weaknesses. Over-focusing on Connecting can occur in two ways:

• Cosying: Relationships are all important, but not grounded in the overarching business or professional context and therefore too cosy to get results
• Deferring: Individuals over-identify with the needs of others/the organisation and put their own needs last to an unsustainable or unhealthy degree

What do I mean by Caring?

Executives want to ‘win hearts and minds. Quite probably the most important part of this is simply to care. My 7^th Change Capability, Caring, ensures that the emotional and physical wellbeing of employees is looked after during change, as individual needs are taken into account.

Caring is a mindset, and a set of behaviours. It must be an authentic, empathic appreciation of what the change will mean to employees. It isn’t about shying away from tough decisions but being able to stand up and demonstrate that you genuinely understand that your decision will be tough on some people, and it is about being fair.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Take time to understand how individuals (and specific groups) are impacted by change
• Demonstrate empathy in their interactions with those impacted
• Consider individuals not just as recipients of a message but as people

People that are impacted by the change:

• Believe that the organisation and its leaders care about them
• Feel that they are/will be fairly treated when the change is implemented
• Believe that every effort is made to look after their well-being

How is the capability supported?

As with all of the capability dimensions, this is not an exhaustive list but Involvement is supported by:

• Values: Leadership must be authentic, and genuinely value the well-being of employees
• HR Process: Effective HR Processes, rigorously applied by managers, should ensure that appropriate policies exist and are consistently applied in areas such as I&D and flexible working
• Communication: Leaders must be prepared to meet employees face to face to listen to their needs, and to be seen to act upon feedback from this and other sources (e.g. survey)

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Without balance, strengths can become weaknesses. Over-focusing on Caring can occur in two ways:

• Mollycoddling: Tough decisions are not made, and difficult conversations or conflict with employees are avoided at the cost of performance
• Indulging: Individual feelings trump any sense of identification with the needs of colleagues, teams, customers and the organisation as a whole and the only thing that matters is “me”

What do I mean by Involving?

My previous Change Capability dimension, Executing, was about change leaders taking control when necessary. My sixth Change Capability dimension, involving, means knowing when to give control to others and allow them to take responsibility.

Involving is about giving employees the opportunity to influence the decisions that affect them, empowering them formally (though decision making processes) and informally, through ‘coaching’ line managers. It is also about providing the opportunity for people to develop and grow through change.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Are able to exercise professional discretion and autonomy to make decisions
• Are disciplined and determined to deliver
• Are confident and resilient in overcoming difficulties; including escalating where required

People that are impacted by the change:

• Feel that their views have been listened and expertise recognised
• Have the opportunity to influence the decisions that affect them
• Feel proud when the change / organisation is a success

How is the capability supported?

As with all of the capability dimensions, this is not an exhaustive list but Involvement is supported by:

• Talent Management: Leaders understand their bench strength, value expertise, and are willing to create developmental opportunities through change
• Engagement: Gathering and distil the views of a diverse group of employees and stakeholders to ensure that people feel that they have been heard, as well as actively involving smaller groups in decision making processes
• Coaching: An essential skill, but also a mindset, for line managers to encourage and empower direct reports to exercise discretion and take personal responsibility

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Without balance, strengths can become weaknesses. Over-focusing on Involving can occur in two ways:

• Dithering: Progress is delayed or decisions are watered down through compromise because a consensus is required before any decisions can be made
• Drowning: Too much power and control is delegated, perhaps without adequate support, and people can feel overwhelmed by the decisions or responsibilities that they are given

What do I mean by Executing?

The fifth Change Capability dimension, Executing is that most valued of corporate virtues, “getting stuff done”, or delivery and disciplined implementation driven by accountability in those leading the change.

Executing is about achieving the goal, rather than planning and organising (capability #1, Focusing), breaking down barriers and overcoming obstacles through determination, personal responsibility and clear sponsorship and escalation routes (governance). This is leadership as captain of the ship, taking control, being trusted to take the right decisions and clearing a path through difficult waters (or stakeholders).

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Take personal responsibility for success in areas that are in their sphere of control
• Can influence the direction of the change programme
• Are given opportunities to learn and grow through the programme

People that are impacted by the change:

• Put their trust in the leadership to take the right decisions
• Believe that the programme is set up to succeed
• Are confident about playing their part in making the change a success

How is the capability supported?

As with all of the capability dimensions, this is not an exhaustive list but Execution is supported by:

• Stepping Stones: Breaking down plans into achievable milestones and finding ‘quick wins’ builds confidence
• Governance: Clear and effective governance, with processes that are followed with discipline and honesty, so that risks and issues are known and dealt with confidently
• Communication: Communicate unwavering commitment and confidence to overcome the (inevitable) difficulties that there will be in implementing change

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Without balance, strengths can become weaknesses. Over-focusing on Execution can occur in two ways:

• Bulldozing: The relentless pursuit of success comes at a cost to relationships and consideration of people’s feelings, resulting in a loss of employee engagement and support
• Controlling: Power and control is in the hands of a few key leaders with a lack of delegation or involvement of employees in decision, and people feel powerless or irrelevant to the change

What do I mean by Experimenting?

The fourth of my eight Change Capability dimensions, Experimenting is when the exploration and development of new ideas is positively encouraged and it is safe to take risks to find creative or radical solutions to problems.

Image: Ideachampions.com

Unlike Challenging, which is very much about critical thinking and questioning the status quo, this is about creating space and opportunity for ideas to flourish. It’s important that, to some degree, the critical and questioning mindset is suspended and people are able to stick their head above the parapet without fear of being shot at, in order to be creative.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Have a degree of breathing space to explore new ideas and approaches
• Are comfortable taking others into ‘uncharted waters’ to find creative solutions
• Are willing to stick their neck out and take risks to champion ideas

People that are impacted by the change:

• Are comfortable articulating unusual or unconventional ideas
• Are excited by the prospect of trying out new ideas, going into new areas
• Are willing to take sensible business risks to allow new ideas to develop

How is the capability supported?

As with all of the capability dimensions, this is not an exhaustive list but Experimenting is supported by:

• Psychological safety: Creativity is too often stifled by fear of criticism, intolerance of mistakes and rigid views of working e.g. productivity = being at your desk and value = input (vs output).
• Facilitation: Creating a temporary environment for individual and collective ‘creative problem solving’ requires appropriate skills, but leaders must value time spent in the process
• Investment: If ideas and creativity are genuinely valued, leaders must be prepared to commit resource to it, from attendance at appropriate workshops to investing in ‘hothousing’ ideas

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Without balance, strengths can become weaknesses. Over-focusing on Experimenting can occur in two ways:

• Freestyling: ‘Anything goes’ to the point where ideas are explored that are too far outside the parameters of usefulness to the business / unable to ‘fit in’ with the business as a whole
• Fooling (around): Breaking rules or conventions becomes a game in itself and the connection with the overall purpose is lost, descending into silliness

Following on from the first Change Capability dimension, Accepting, this post introduces the third, Challenging.

What do I mean by Challenging?

I’m defining challenging, as when the organisation and its leadership are constantly questioning the status quo in the quest to achieve the organisations objectives.

This is about people collectively being prepared to break from the past in order to improve performance, being catalysts for change. The maxim, “if it ain’t broke” does not apply here! In fact, there may even be an intolerance of existing ways of working and those that hold the organisation back from change.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Are not afraid to push boundaries or challenge conventions to break new ground
• Are encouraged to ask difficult questions of the organisation
• Take a critical approach when assessing options

People that are impacted by the change:

How is the capability supported?

Again this is by no means an exhaustive list – more of a starting point. However, Challenging is supported by:

What happens if you overplay this strength?

Following on from the first Change Capability dimension, Focusing, this post introduces the second, Accepting.

What do I mean by Accepting?

I’m defining accepting as when the organisation is open to internal and external realities, scans opportunities and is able to respond to the changing environment

This is about people collectively being aware of what is happening in the here and how, and accepting that despite best laid plans, there is a need to adapt. It differs from Challenging, which is the next dimension, in that it is not fundamentally about questioning the status quo or breaking out of old ways of working but about working within the changing environment – for example changes to legislation or to customer demands.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Are immersed in the process of delivering change, able to focus on the present
• Are able to work creatively within the parameters set by the change programme
• Are challenged and stretched to a healthy level, making work enjoyable

People that are impacted by the change:

• Are not overburdened concerns about the future – able to put them to one side
• Willing to commit to the change journey and all that it brings
• Willing to work with sensible levels of risk

How is the capability supported?

Again this is by no means an exhaustive list – more of a starting point. However, Accepting is supported by:

• Visioning: Build confidence in the programme so people can let go of concerns; Attractiveness of ‘possibilities’, emphasise small steps – journey; Plans as imperfect instruments, just a guide to help us set off as best we can
• Performance Management: Remove ‘fear factor’ & overburdening with objectives, give space/time to supporting change and allow spontaneity
• Engagement: Set the challenge – create sense of a ‘game’ / journey; Celebrate success along the way

What happens if you overplay this strength?

In my last post I outlined, at a high level, a psychologically based framework for developing organisational change capability. The capability dimensions or ‘pillars’ are functions of leadership skills, values and behaviour at different levels, backed up by other aspects such as tools and processes.

What do I mean by Focusing?

I’m defining Focusing as creating a clear and coherent strategy, from which a change vision for the business is communicated, expectations set and plans developed.

This is about looking into the future and defining direction and goals, but it is also about getting people and plans aligned (creating structure). It sets out where the organization is going and what is required of people to help it get there.

How is this Change Capability manifested?

People that are involved in the implementation of change:

• Understand what is expected of them and what success looks like
• Have individual and team objectives that are clearly connected to the overall vision
• Have clearly defined roles and responsibilities

People that are impacted by the change:

• Understand the consequences and meaning (impact) of the change
• Generally accept the change as the ‘right thing to do’
• Accept the need to make the change a success

How is the capability supported?

This is by no means an exhaustive list – more of a starting point. However, Focusing is supported by:

• Planning – Strategic and tactical business planning; Change Strategy (Vision) and Programme / project plans
• Role Clarity – RACI, objective setting (cascade/line of sight), Performance Management
• Communication – clear communication of the vision – attractive destination – and roadmap, tailored to stakeholder groups

What happens if you overplay this strength?

I’ve recently shared a theoretical approach that I have used over the years in sport and business, which I’ve proposed as an integrative framework for change practitioners.

I’ve also been reading and thinking about Change Capability / Capacity, which is characterised by the collective ability of the organization to respond to anticipated or existing conditions and create lasting change.

What is Change Capability?

Change Capability is much wider than change management. It incorporates change leadership, but is more of a cultural phenomenon, supported by people, processes and technologies (e.g. Judge, 2011).

Based on the eight states of Reversal Theory, I’m putting together a framework for developing change capability. The key principles are:

• Each and every capability dimension is important – the more strengths the better
• Versatility is also important – being able to utilise the right strengths at the right time to meet the demands of the change (this is not a process)
• Overplaying certain strengths at the expense of others can turn them into weaknesses – so balance is important (I will expand on this another time).

Proposed Dimensions of Change Capability

We’re seeing incredible societal change on a global basis. Much of this starts as ‘bottom up’ change and gathers pace. Political regimes can fall almost overnight.  This makes it seem like business organisations are incredibly ponderous and slow.

Should change be more chaotic? I’m not sure.

When a regime falls, the political and economical mechanisms may exist to minimise fallout. In some cases, a whole new infrastructure is required, and only once those are in place has the change been completed and all of the potential ‘benefits’ been realised. Look at Libya, for example. When will all aspects of life for most Libyans be better than it was? That’s not to suggest that Gadaffi’s regime was good for most. It simply means that in order to achieve regime change the Libyan people will have had to have made other sacrifices, largely economical, in the short to medium term.

In a large, complex organisation, the interdependencies between departments, countries and business units are, like a country’s economy, so numerous and so embedded in systems and processes that if change is allowed to happen without control then the short-term results could be catastrophic. If information fails to flow, customers are impacted, transactions will fail, or perhaps worse, subtle errors could be introduced that take time to fully emerge and do damage over a period of time.

I believe that change should be initiated, as societal change often is, at the grass roots, by employees. But what’s required is some sort of mechanism that allows ideas to be developed and explored, then implemented in a controlled way if necessary. Companies have to keep delivering to shareholders at the same time as creating new ways of working. Hospitals need to keep treating patients, local authorities need to keep the streets clean.

Organisations need some sort of structure, at some point, to make change work. As does society…