Posted by Kathleen on July 2, 2009 – 3:16 pm
Whenever the leaders of an organization decide to implement change, internal consultants need to collaborate closely with them to carefully consider, and plan for two different processes–the outcomes they are trying produce with the change, and the individual psychological transitions that will be necessary for successful implementation.
Successful implementation of any change requires a clear vision, careful planning, cogent communications, visible sponsorship, and effective engagement to attend to the individual psychological re-orientation that is so critical to success.
Internal consultants who are experinced facilitators understand the value of engagement at every stage in a change process. But one of the most critical stages for individual transitions is at the beginning of a change effort. Leaders need to be prepared to talk about the change in terms that people can relate to–identification of what will change and be lost. If individuals are to adapt their behavior and change their skill set, the transition must begin with an ending, a recognition of the old way, behavior and skills.
Not engaging others to discuss the reality of the changing situation creates sub-communications underneath the change effort where people voice their concerns, resistance and suggestions for improvement in confidential discussions. Managers can improve their chances for success by using tools like the GLAD/SAD/MAD tool
glad-sad-mad This tools offers consultants, managers and leaders a step-by-step guide to planning and facilitating an engaging discussion with team members to clarify and align understanding about:
- What individuals are Glad about with the upcoming change
- What aspects of the change make an individual SAD
- What aspects of the change make the individual MAD
There are lots of tools for talking when the stakes are high, this one helps structure a conversation to allow individuals to share their perspectives and understand the importance of the ending of the old way before we ask them to transition to the new and unknown.
Posted by Kathleen on June 8, 2009 – 11:38 am
Employee Engagement gets a lot of attention from leaders today. The Gallup organization began assessing the levels of employee engagement in organizations several years ago with it’s Q 12 Engagement Survey, and that created higher visibility for efforts that we have championed for years–get people involved in planning and decision-making around changes that affect their work.
Today Gallup has collected plenty of data to clarify that there is a direct corelation between high levels of employee engagement and positive business results. According to the latest Gallup Q12 Engagement data, businesses with low engagement have 51% more inventory shrinkage, 31% - 51% more employee turnover and 62% more accidents than businesses with high employee engagement scores.
Building Engagement in this Economic Crisis by Jennifer Robison
Leaders everywhere are taking notice that employee engagement isn’t just a fad–it is a fact of life for successful, sustainable change and positive business results. So what stands between you and a fully engaged organization?
Howick Associates advocates for engagement, involvement and collaboration with key stakeholders in all of our efforts with clients. We developed the Pyramid of Engagement with our partners at SC Johnson more than ten years ago to help leaders understand the levels of engagement, and give them tools to convene individuals and teams in critical conversations that drive change and improvement efforts.
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Our partners and clients use this model differently–They are all in unique situations. It is a helpful input in communication planning. It is useful for identifying different activites aimed at influencing others, and it can be invaluable engaging employees in problem-solving.
We are co-hosting an event on June 24, 2009 at Briggs and Stratton headquarters in Milwaukee where our partners at Briggs will tell their powerful story about the importance of engaging and involving employees in efforts to solve problems and achieve bottom-line results. Join us and learn more.
3-2-1 Engage–A Roadmap for Unleashing the Power Within
Posted by Kathleen on May 15, 2009 – 2:36 pm
We belive in the power of questions. Dialogue is the basis of every healthy client relationship, and every successful business partnership. And good questions are at the heart of effective dialogue. So what are some of the questions we are asking now?
As consultants we have to be mindful of the changing environment, and be prepared to share our expertise to help others through the uncertainty that is associated with every economic recession. Here is a list of six high-gain questions for consultants to consider as they review their work plans and other project plans with their customers.
- Do I have the right approach to help this business thrive in current circumstances?
- What assumptions are no longer valid for our decision-making efforts?
- How have our roles and responsibilities changed?
- How has the current volatility affected our data?
- Are we communicating a coherent future direction?
- How are we evaluating and adapting change strategies?
Anxiety and uncertainty drive decision-making in difficult situations like these. Decisions about how to achieve goals of reduced total costs, increased productivity/quality, and enhanced efficiency have to be tempered with thoughtful consideration of how to develop necessary flexibility, foster innovation and creativity, and continue to improve communications. Planning for the long-term requires a careful analysis of the implications of current conditions on plans and activities. Use these questions to begin that dialogue, and then let us know if you develop any additional valuable High Gain Questions for current conditions.
Posted by Kathleen on May 12, 2009 – 2:04 pm
The fundamental importance of effective communication cannot be overstated. We have all experienced moments of confusion, and even anxiety, as a result of poor communication. Inside a complex organization communication becomes even more powerful–It is the primary means to motivate and engage a diverse workforce to collaborate, innovate and succeed.
When we work as consultants, we have to be effective and efficient at developing and using communication plans to clarify and align efforts, recognize and reward achievement, build a sense of urgency, and empower others to maximize engagement. Since communication is the basis of all human understanding, consulting and collaboration require thoughtful attention to the audience, content, objectives, and mode of critical messages. We use a simple matrix, The Communications Planning Tool to organize our communication efforts and minimize confusion and ambiguity.
communication-planning-tool
There are many different versions of this tool. We use this simple format to clarify the critical audiences for information along with specific details about the objective of our messaging, the content of the message, what media is appropriate, and who will deliver the message. This kind of proactive planning takes time up front in any project, but in the end you save time by maximizing influence and minimizing confusion. Let us know how you use this tool or similar tools on your project work.
Posted by Kathleen on April 27, 2009 – 3:37 pm
Experts everywhere agree that in order to create successful, sustainable change, those leading the effort must engage key stakeholders in the planning and execution of activities that will bring about change. And leaders must be change champions, engaging, communicating and collaborating throughout the entire lifecycle of a change implementation to share plans, challenges, and successes along the way.
At Howick Associates we harness the power of leaders influence in the initiation phase of our work with the Influence Map tool. We use the influence mapping activity as an engagement opportunity and work with others to identify all those impacted by a specific change and brainstorm strategies to influence the groups, communicate more effectively and address resistance to minimize obstacles.
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By identifying our stakholder’s commitment to change and clarifying who can influence them proactively, we are more successful in planning for barriers and minimizing obstacles to successful change. Use this tool engage others and to help leaders engage others to strategize and leverage influence to help your change succeed.
