Times of transition in an organization may be very unsettling for organizational leaders and employees alike. Believe me, I know that experientially right now.
We are in the process of expanding and moving our psychological clinical office. (The other side of my life.) We're adding new therapists, changing the clinic's name to The Hope Center, and hiring a new Assistant (My trusted Barbara's husband took a job out of town).
I know this "transition stuff!" But I'm definitely feeling the crunch.
Knowing about something doesn't exempt you from experiencing it. (Darn it!)
However, good information about what's happening psychologically and how to minimize the stress during change can make each of us more adept at dealing with transitions ourselves and leading others through the process.
Our transition management clients are also involved in a myriad of changes...
· downsizing and cutbacks
· doing more with less
· cultural transformations
· management changes
· mergers
· changing expectations and attitudes of various worker
· generations and the list could go on and on.
It is critical that leaders exhibit confident leadership as well as to serve as a healthy role models for adaptation to change. What, then, can managers do to make the adaptation process less difficult for team mates throughout the organization?
1. Announce changes as far in advance as possible.
When employees feel caught off guard by surprises, they may become angry and defensive, fearing being "out of control." This negative impact is diminished when you provide prompt information and answer all questions about how the proposed changes will personally affect the individual employee.
Full explanation of change decreases the fear of the unknown, rovides a sense of control, allows for a period of conceptual adjustment, and builds personal confidence that the changes can be successful and beneficial.
2. Give employees input into the changes and how they will be implemented.
Allow as much input as possible into the changes that will be made. While some aspects of organizational change may be fixed and non-negotiable, workers may provide valuable ideas concerning methods of implementation or contingency plans within their units. By allowing them to be a part of decision-making in the change process, they experience more "power" and less emotional upheaval.
3. Provide the necessary training, coaching, and feedback for workers involved in change.
When a persons responsibilities are altered, he or she can experience a threatening loss of expertise and confidence. During such transitions, employees may make more mistakes and work more slowly.
Help to restore this expertise as quickly as possible in order to prevent a significant loss of productivity or even the loss of valuable employees. Training, positive feedback, reassurance, and patient coaching can promote smoother and more efficient transitions.
4. Uphold quality, while realistically expecting mistakes.
The reality is that change does impact performance to some degree. Thus, while adhering to a general policy of expectation of quality in performance, allow and plan for this slowing process. Such a slow-down happens, whether or not youve adjusted for it. Thus, during times of change, realistic expectations regarding schedules and levels of production may aid everyone in effort to manage stress and keep the best possible momentum and morale.
5. Set the tone for honestly dealing with psychological transitions.
Managers are charged with facilitating the transition process. Transition is the psychological adjustment to change, and it's usually the most difficult part. Unmanaged and unacknowledged, the "best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
If you find yourself in this "helping" role, you may be struggling with the same feelings of disbelief, anger, guilt, or depression as are the "helpees." (Is that a word?)
Encourage up-front discussion of these feelings. Assure employees that these feelings are normal. However, realize that staying too long in these negative feelings can cause managers and employees alike to get "stuck" in a resistance to reality.
Bring about acceptance by yourself and others by taking an honest look at "current reality." Look for ways to take action, using available
resources and requirements. When such actions begin, distressing feelings usually begin to fade.
Bear in mind the words of James Baldwin in "Nobody Knows My Name": "Any real change implies the breakup of the world as one has always known it, the loss of all that gave one identity."
Remember that every change, large or small, causes losses. By definition, change breaks old patterns. Understand and acknowledge to those you lead the difficulty of letting go of "what was."
Allow the group opportunities to affirm the value of the past practices as building blocks for the changes that are necessary today. (Not to do so is to diminish their past investments.)
You will become a more effective transition manager when you can be both optimistic about the future and real about the emotional reactions of the present.
Shakespeare wisely said, "He that lacks the time to mourn, lacks the time to mend."
