I am wrapping up a one year assignment as change agent where I have been implementing a standard software development process in my company (Open Unified Process).
I keep coming back to change work like this (or maybe it keeps coming to me), and it is fascinating to see how change efforts sometimes succeed, and how sometimes they don’t. One thing is certain – it is never as easy as just saying “do this, do that”. At least not if the change is to be lasting. Some challenges remain the same each time you do work like this, but there is always something new to learn.
Some key takeaways, in the framework of John Kotter’s 8-Steps Process:
- Establishing a Sense of Urgency: This is the burning platform stage, but when working with process improvement, this is rarely a matter of life or death (at least the danger is not clear and present short term), so it is difficult to introduce method B as radically better than the existing method A.
- Creating the Guiding Coalition: Getting long-term commitment is the challenge. Everybody will agree that improvement is a good thing, but when it isn’t a matter of life or death, then it can be hard to maintain attention in in a busy environment.
- Developing a Vision and Strategy: This includes both the 30 second elevator pitch, the implementation cost and the long term training programs.
- Communicate the Change Vision: This can be difficult in practice when competing for bandwidth with a lot of other initiatives. Some communication channels may be worn down by overuse, so a wide spectrum campaign may be required. The past should also be considered. This initiative may be be yet another attempt at improving XYZ, what is different this time? In this case, persistent communication did much, together with personal interactions to create awareness.
- Empowering Employees, is also about handling resistance and the natural organizational inertia. If it is not a matter of life or death, it a tendency to wait and see what others do and if the change is going to stick. Working with a few pilots for pick low hanging fruits and engaging with projects that have certain challenges can be the way to go. In the former case people who are positive towards the change become ambassadors; and the latter case represent the kind of life/death scenario which hold back the organization as a whole.
- Generating Short-term Wins, i.e., pick the low hanging fruits. This can be through pilots and challenged projects.
- Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change: Gather feedback, show people you listen and care about heir involvement. Making them champions are a great way of making things progress
- Anchoring in Culture:8. Keep going. Often overlooked, it takes time. Should be compared to characteristic time of the organisation – if things evolve on a year-by-year basis, then at least a year is required to see all aspects of change play out.
A few more points:
- Personal relationship matters. Build on existing network in the organisation to improve communication, to get direct feedback, to identify focus points. These are opportunities to provide value.
- Keeping Communicating the visions is a must at all levels. Over time organisation may change and in a new stakeholder landscape, on cannot expect sponsorships to be the same. Especially in a large, complex organisation where several initiatives are in progress.
- Metrics: for not life/death projects: make sure to have them, sinceafter survival comes KPIs. Some metrics directly related to the change must be available; don’t start without a baseline.
So was it a success? Yes it was. The organisation is in a better condition than when I started, with more skills and knowledge. The final result does not reflect my vision and ambition to the full extent, but then again, if it had, then it would not have been ambitious enough either. So I will rejoice in having made a difference and not let the hard lessons learned spoil the mood.
What is next: Dogfood! Having worked with defining standards and implementing changes for some years, I am going back to the front lines where I will try it out in practice. See for real which of the good ideas work and which of them don’t. Gather inspiration for change work yet to come.