Our experience of working with around 700+ clients shows that no situation is identical. It can therefore be risky to blindly adopt and apply frameworks or methodologies that were successful in the past or for other organisations.
The following are seven ingredients that are essential for successful change management. Use the following as a checklist, guide and road map in the transition process or as an audit framework to evaluate a 'completed' change and/or an on-going change. Remember that although the ingredients follow a sequence, there is overlap between the ingredients and different degrees of emphasis required in different situations. The seven essential ingredients for successful change management create the conditions for people to discover in themselves how they need to change.
Ingredient 1
Ingredient 1: Laying of a foundation for new ways (Handling endings and beginnings)
- Creating an ending of old ways and selectively building on the past (not burying it)
- Laying the groundwork for emotional buy-in, ownership of the change process
- Encouraging correct behaviours and discouraging incorrect behaviours
- Starting anew
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Ingredient 2
Ingredient 2: Establishing a Sense of Urgency
- Examining market position & competitive realities, ie a reality check
- Understanding & discussing present & future crises, challenges, threats & opportunities
- Business as usual is not a viable option
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Ingredient 3
Ingredient 3: Forming a Transitional Team
- Organising a powerful guiding team to lead the change process
- Including "opinion-makers", who support the change process, as members of this team
- Leading others by working as a team
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Ingredient 4
Ingredient 4: Creating Alignment
- Developing & communicating a shared focus, purpose to direct the change process
- Developing & initiating strategies for achieving a shared focus, purpose
- Role-modelling new behaviours that reflect the shared focus/purpose from the top down
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Ingredient 5
Ingredient 5: Maximising Connectedness, ie engagement, empowerment, participation
- Building on the web of connections, ie relationships
- Removing obstacles, blockers, processes, systems, etc in conflict with the change
- Promoting risk-taking, non-traditional ideas, innovation, creativity, activities & action, etc
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Ingredient 6
Ingredient 6: Creating Short-Term Wins
- Planning, creating & achieving visible performance improvements in the short term
- Visibly recognising & rewarding employees who formulate and implement wins
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Ingredient 7
Ingredient 7: Consolidating Performance Improvements
- Anchoring a culture of change by consolidating improvements and new behaviours
- Succession planning that involves rewarding & promoting staff who support the change
- Mentoring future managers & executives
- Sustaining momentum via projects, themes, activities, processes, attitudes, behaviours, etc
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