Understanding Organizational Change Management (OCM)
Organizations and their employees today are experiencing change on an unprecedented scale. As advances in technology and other market pressures continue to drive large-scale change, companies face the prospect of adapting to new ways of working or falling hopelessly behind. Given this environment, it sometimes surprises me to hear comments from customers that seem to show a lack of understanding for managing the people side of organizational change management.
Some of the complaints I have heard in early conversations with customers as they consider change management services a part of a large, complex systems implementation or overall business transformation include:
- “We don’t need change management here.”
- “It’s too soft and mushy.”
- “I don’t see the value.”
Even after purchasing services and landing consultants on the ground, I often hear questions like, “When I hire outside consultants to support my initiatives, what should I expect from them?” or “I have a few consultants onboard, and I don’t see anything tangible from what they are doing!”
This is understandable if the consultants are not engaged in value-added efforts. It is less understandable when these comments stem from a lack of knowledge about change management or the desire to focus solely on the “tangible” parts of change, like technology and the aspiration for immediate results.
The Importance and Benefits of OCM
In all this confusion about what iOCM is and what it is not, businesses stand to lose progress on key growth strategies while the success of vital strategic initiatives hangs in the balance. So, before we get started, let us quickly align on a basic OCM meaning.
In the HBR article, “Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail,” John Kotter shares that the basic goal of change management is “to make fundamental change in how business is conducted in order to help cope with a new, more challenging market environment.” Kotter also shares an important benefit: “Your org flexes with tectonic shifts in competitors, markets, and tech—leaving rivals far behind.”
Who doesn’t want to achieve that level of adaptability? According to recent data, “93% of projects with excellent change management met or exceeded project objectives, compared to 15% with poor change management.” The key phrase here is “excellent change management.” If you’re looking to drive similar results in your next initiative, it is important to create the right plan. Here are ten tips that can help improve your OCM efforts.
Top 10 Tips for Achieving Success in OCM
1. Embrace a People-First Focus & Journey Mindset
- Understand that without mobilizing your people effectively, no transformation or systems implementation will be successful. If this is not a strength of senior leadership or embedded in the organizational culture, get help in spreading this message. This will help build trust, a much-needed component of change success.
- Use the power of persuasion. “Persuasion promotes understanding, understanding breeds acceptance, acceptance leads to action.” (Garvin & Roberto, Change Through Persuasion)
- Change does NOT happen overnight. It is a journey, but one that should begin as early as possible. Change is also a process, which is comprised of many different stages that cannot be skipped. Be wary of shortcuts. They may seem enticing at first, but they will ultimately slow down the pace of your change initiative.
2. Communicate a Sense of Urgency
- Life coach and author Tony Robbins has said that “Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change.” This concept should serve as a guiding principle for your leaders.
- People need the motivation to get out of their comfort zones, so one key to success is making sure Urgency = High & Intense. Creating a sense of urgency helps drive awareness and desire. Remember, that while urgency is not difficult to create when business is bad, it can be harder to impart a sense of urgency when things are already going well.
- Plan for the fact that it is hard to get people to change, especially in organizations that have experienced a number of leaders who have failed to produce change outcomes.
3. Set Visionary Direction
- When setting visionary direction, it is important to capture the hearts and minds of your team members. The vision and direction need to be powerful and clear—part art and part science, or “analytical thinking and a little dreaming” as Kotter puts it. This vision should be a clear story that you can communicate to someone in five minutes or less. Think of it as an elevator pitch. You should be able to explain the vision and direction to a colleague during a short elevator ride.
- Once you set the direction, you must ensure that employee behaviors align with your goals at each level of the organization. Nothing undermines change more than a lack of integrity when leaders do not walk the talk.
- Creating and communicating a strong vision will help both teams and individuals drive awareness throughout the organization and aid in breaking down resistance.
4. Align Your Leaders
- According to Kotter, organizations often fail by not creating a powerful enough “guiding coalition” of leaders.
- A high sense of urgency may assist you in developing this coalition.
- The coalition of leaders must have a shared commitment to helping achieve the outcomes the change is intended to produce.
5. Build a Culture of Trust
- In his presentation First Why, Then Trust, Simon Sinek noted that “when we’re surrounded by people who believe what we believe, something remarkable happens: Trust emerges….Trust comes from a sense of common values and beliefs.”
- Studies have shown that many individuals cite breach of trust as the main reason for leaving their jobs.
- For workers, getting out of their comfort zones is highly dependent on their ability to trust others within the organization.
6. Create Effective Teamwork
- Damian McKinney, Principal Consultant with McKenney-Rogers once noted that “teams operate at the pace of the slowest runner, while high-performing teams operate at the pace of the fastest runner.”
- Many leaders, especially those used to working in silos, often have a poor record of working together on teams. If left unaddressed, this can pose a serious threat to success.
- Applying the time, effort, and focus necessary to build the memory muscle around teams across the organization is crucial to success.
7. Offer Continuous Communication
- Without effective, constant communication, gaining commitment to change will be nearly impossible, so prioritize communication in your change efforts accordingly.
- Pay close attention to the appropriateness of the communications and the degree to which they focus on “what,” “why,” “how,” and “What’s in it for me?” (WIIFM). Create an effective feedback loop and evaluate your communication methods.
- Use all current channels and experiment with new, creative channels such as text alerts.
8. Mitigate Your Risks
- Another definition of OCM change management is “a systematic process that mitigates risks and leverages change as a resource to create success” (from the HBR article, “Managing Risks: A New Framework,” by Robert S. Kaplan and Anette Mikes).
- An effective change management program will help mitigate risk and can be “sold” with this understanding.
- Feedback loops from communications and change agent networks help reduce risk.
9. Build Commitment Rather Than Compliance
- When employees are committed to the change, they are ready, willing, and able to make the change a success. They will seek continuous improvement opportunities.
- If workers have not been involved in the process and are complying simply out of obligation, the result is a lack of willingness to help solve problems and make the system better. This jeopardizes the organization’s ability to sustain the new system and processes.
- Communications plays a key role in driving commitment.
- Capability development, training, super-user network, and end-user adoption needs must be addressed.
- Process and other change impacts must be understood and communicated.
10. Implement Change in Your Corporate Culture
- Change is a journey, not a destination.
- Celebrate success by calling out quick wins throughout the journey. Recognizing both individuals and the team is important for morale and momentum.
- Reinforcement is critical for sustainment.
Key Components for Successful Change Management
Successfully implementing organizational change management requires a strategic approach focused on clear communication, leadership alignment, and a strong emphasis on employee engagement. By adhering to these top ten keys for success, organizations can navigate the complexities of change more effectively, mitigate risks, and ensure a smoother transition with better outcomes.
Are you preparing an upcoming technology implementation or other large-scale initiative? Our change management consulting experts can help you overcome resistance and lead organizational change by aligning your leaders, your initiatives, and your workforce.
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