emotion

Change Capability Dimension #7: Caring

April 14, 2012 by robertsrobson Leave a Comment

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”

Filed Under: Change Capability Tagged With: authentic, caring, change capability, emotion, empathic, empathy, fair, hearts, impact, minds, wellbeing

Reversal Theory: The Structure of Motivation

January 30, 2012 by robertsrobson 2 Comments

Building on my suggestion of Reversal Theory as an integrative theory for change practitioners, I’ve introduce the central tenets of the theory and will now set out the structure of motivation that influences our experience of the world and, therefore, our response to change.

Our emotional experience and behaviour is influenced by our motivational state and related variables (later). Think of these as lenses by which we see the world.

8 States, 4 Pairs or ‘Domains’

There are eight motivational states (show in the table below), organised into 4 oppositional pairs. One of these, and only one, state in each pair is always active. So we are always in 4 states from the 8, but these combinations are constantly changing. In that sense, our lives are like a dashboard of on/off switches.

Each of the states links to a core value or need, which is our link to culture, and indeed each brings something different in terms of performance or ‘contribution’ to the organisation (Apter International, 2003?) as well as responses to change. Aware that this is one of the things that sets this framework apart from most psychological theories at play in change today, I will follow up with a post specifically on the contributions and responses to change.

Finally, the oppositional pairs link to a common motivational theme or ‘domain’.

So what are these states? They are summarised in the table below (adapted from Apter International, 2007), and I will expand on each in further posts.

State	Domain	Concerned with (core value/need)	Characteristics
Playful	Means & Ends	Enjoyment, fun	Sees actions as valuable for their own sake; In the moment, spontaneous, risk taking, sensation-seeking
Serious	Means & Ends	Progress, achievement	Actions valuable if leading to a desired goal / outcome; Future focused, sensible, cautious, risk averse
Conforming	Rules	Fitting in, belonging	Sees rules as supportive; compliant, conventional, accepting, traditional
Rebellious	Rules	Freedom, independence	Sees rules as restrictive; challenging, defiant, unconventional, stands out from crowd, mischievous
Mastery	Transactions	Power & control	Seeks to gain power or control; Toughness, competitiveness, seeks status, competence
Sympathy	Transactions	Affection, relationships	Seeks to develop personal relationships; Affectionate, friendly, caring or being cared for, senstive
Self-Oriented	Relationships	For yourself, individualism	Experience is in terms of impact on self; selfish, takes personal responsibility
Other-Oriented	Relationships	For others, collectivism	Experience is in terms of impact on others; team working, unselfish, giving, modest

As you might imagine, these states can have significant implications for individual organisational change and performance. All states have their benefits and their potential drawbacks. The challenge for a change manager is to help people to a) match their state to the situation, b) be more ‘skillful’ in their current state (e.g. setting effective goals in the serious state) or c) adapt methods of communication and engagement to peoples’ states (the alternative to this in dealing with large audiences is being able to talk to all eight states – something that I will come back to).

Reference

Apter Motivational Style Profile: Consultant Guide, 2007, Apter International

Filed Under: Business Psychology, Reversal Theory in Business Tagged With: behaviour, change, emotion, experience, motivation, needs, Reversal Theory, states, structure, values

Reversal Theory as an Integrative Change Management Theory

December 26, 2011 by robertsrobson 4 Comments

Over the last 10 years I’ve used Reversal Theory (e.g Apter, 2001) in my practice as a sport psychologist, organizational development consultant and change manager. One of the things that I’d like to do with this blog is to develop a body of content that describes Reversal Theory as an integrative theory for change practitioners that will provide a common language and framework for dealing with individual

Apter's Motivational Styles change, team interventions, change leadership, organizational and cultural change.

Reversal Theory is a general psychological theory that makes a connection betweenvalues, motivational states and emotions. It has been developed over more than 30 years and has been researched and applied in a wide range of domains including management and leadership, psychotherapy and counseling, sports and exercise, health and religion.

The Value of Reversal Theory in Change Management

The practical value of Reversal Theory in change management is based on the following observations:

Individuals are operating in a more complex and dynamic organizational setting than ever before, and change is only increasing in pace
Management is increasingly focused on managing conflicting ideas or dilemmas (grey areas, rather than black and white)
Leadership is increasingly recognized as requiring the creation of the right conditions (or climate) for performance
Different organizations, with different strategic ambitions and market conditions require very different capabilities, which in turn demand very different mindsets and behaviours from employees
Individuals, including leaders, can perform exceptionally in one organization (or set of conditions) yet appear quite ordinary in others

What’s Different About Reversal Theory?

Reversal Theory helps us to understand these kinds of complexities in ways that many of the psychological theories used in change management do not, because:

As a state based theory, it helps us to conceive of people as more changeable and less consistent than trait theories
As a general theory it can explain a wide range of phenomena, creating a common language rather than having a patchwork quilt of unrelated theories to work with
However, rather than being in competition with other frameworks, particularly in individual change, it can be used as a diagnostic ‘layer’ with cognitive, behavioural or humanistic interventions
It explains why certain situations appear to warrant opposing or conflicting, even paradoxical, explanations
It provides a map of motivations and emotional experience, which helps us to find ways to engage with people in more precise and compelling ways
It links the internal world of the individual to team dynamics, leadership (climate), and to organizational culture

Reversal Theory in Business and Change Management

Although Reversal Theory has been widely empirically researched, most of its use in the business world has been by practitioners behind the screen of client confidentiality. Apter Development / Apter International, for whom I used to work, has been one of the main users of the theory in Organisational Development, using it as the basis of their work in leadership and management development and employee research. Indeed although, Steve Carter outlined a new model of change agency / change leadership based on Reversal Theory (that I will refer to later) I will be attempting to weave together a wider range of aspects of change management using Reversal Theory, and indeed propose a number of ways in which existing frameworks can be further enhanced by the theory such as (to be further developed):

Creating individual change
Facilitating team change
Developing Change leadership
Understanding organisational culture
Integrating RT with models of organisational change
Assessing change readiness

In doing so, I’d appreciate any feedback either through comments, email or twitter (@robertsrobson).

Now, if you’ve come this far, I’m sure that you’ll be eager to learn what Reversal Theory actually is, so I’d better get writing!

References

M.J. Apter (Ed.) (2001). Motivational Styles in Everyday Life: A Guide to Reversal Theory. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association Press (*This is the ‘bible’ of RT research up to 2001*)

S. Carter (2003). Change is not what it used to be. Understanding the role of the change agent. Apter International Ltd (now Apter Development)

Introduction to Reversal Theory

Filed Under: Change Management, Reversal Theory in Business Tagged With: change, climate, complexity, culture, emotion, engagement, leadership, motivation, psychology, Reversal Theory

Bridges’ Transitions in Change

December 9, 2011 by robertsrobson 1 Comment

Bridges (1991) emphasises the psychological transitions that employees need to make for change to be successful, rather than the change that is planned as part of the programme.

Transitions are more complex and less mechanistic than planned change, and require us to understand the emotional aspects of adapting to new ways of working. They are about ‘letting go’ of the past in order to be able to move on.

Three Phases of Transition

Initially counterintuitively, Bridges starts with ‘Endings’ and ends with ‘new Beginnings’. These phases sandwich the ‘Neutral Zone’. However, this should make sense as you read on.

Endings

Before moving on, there has to be a break with the past – an ‘Ending’. It is important for change managers and leaders to inform and appreciate who is losing what and to allow a degree of mourning – openly acknowledging these losses. There is also a symbolic aspect of endings, in that endings can be marked with some kind of event or ritual where the break from the past is recognised.

Neutral Zone

The Neutral Zone is a period of flux, where there can be conflict, anxiety and a decrease in motivation. Change managers and leaders should appreciate and communicate that this is a normal part of change and that it is OK, but at the same time create temporary structures and processes to ensure business as usual performance is maintained at the same time and change being delivered. It is important in the Neutral Zone to seek continual and honest feedback from the organisation.

New Beginning

Although the New Beginning is the aim of the change programme, it cannot be controlled. It can, however, be facilitated and encouraged by creating the right conditions. According to Bridges, for a new beginning to take place people need:

A clear purpose for changing
A picture of the new organisation after the change
A clear, step-by-step plan of how to get there
To understand their part to play in getting there.

These conditions foster the emotional commitment to change, but it may take some employees (especially further down the hierarchy) longer to get there. Leaders must be patient and appreciate this reality rather than being impatient at a perceived lag.

Filed Under: Change Management Tagged With: bridges, change, commitment, emotion, endings, neutral zone, new beginning, phases, transitions

Winning Hearts and Minds

September 21, 2011 by robertsrobson 3 Comments

In any change there are many reasons why people might feel good or bad about what’s going on, and as change managers if we can find the right ‘buttons’ we can press them. That’s really what we mean by winning hearts and minds.

“What’s in it for me?” (or WIIFM?) is a valid question but without a solid framework for understanding employees’ motivational and emotional world, the answers will tend to be limited to the obvious, more rational ones. Minds, more than hearts.

Image Credit: JohnLeskodotbiz

Consider the following hypothetical WIIFMs:

The sense of achievement from seeing the change through
The excitement and sense of adventure of doing something new
A sense of belonging from being part of a new organisation
A chance to break from the bureaucracy and make more decisions
The opportunity to learn and develop my career
Feeling like the organisation caters more for me and my needs
The change to build a more competitive business
The opportunity to do something for the greater good

Whether you recognise these as valid reasons for a particular change or not, the important point is that they are motivationally different as they reflect the eight motivational states or ‘lenses’ through which we can see change that are provided by Reversal Theory (Apter). These states (and corresponding values are):

Serious (Achievement)
Playful (Enjoyment)
Conforming (Fitting In)
Rebellious (Freedom)
Self-Oriented Mastery (Personal Power)
Self-Oriented Sympathy (Cared for)
Other-Oriented Mastery (Support for Others)
Other-Oriented Sympathy (Care for others)

If, in future, you are trying to understand the WIIFM of people in your organisation, see if you can put on the lenses above and see eight different reasons why they might embrace change!

Filed Under: Change Management Tagged With: change, emotion, hearts and minds, motivation, psychology, Reversal Theory, WIIFM