How To Be a Better Change Agent

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How to be a betterChange AgentAUGIE RAY

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If you don't like change, you're going to like irrelevance even less.

General Eric Shinseki

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of organizational change initiatives fail70%

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Studies Validate Change is Hard 75% of business and IT executives admit that their projects are either

always or usually “doomed right from the start.” (Geneca, 2011) Employers felt 55% of change management initiatives met initial

objectives, but only 25% felt gains were sustained over time. (Towers Watson, 2013)

Only 54% of executives say change initiatives at their companies are adopted and sustained. (Booz & Company 2013)

17 percent of large IT projects go so badly that they can threaten the very existence of the company. (McKinsey 2012)

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Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.

Arnold Bennett

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Three Realities of Change Agency

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Advocating for change is risky

People hate change

There is no such thing as a change agent

Shar

pen

your

skills M

itigate risks

Inspire people

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People hate change


Shar

pen

your

skills M

itigate risks

Inspire people

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Hone your change agent skills Resilience Patience Self-awareness

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Networking Communication Facilitation

Love of learning Contrarian thinking Analysis

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Critical Thinking Skills and Habits

Change Must Be Anchored in News and Trends

People do not adopt change for change’s sake—there must be a pressing opportunity or challenge, so change agents: Schedule time every day to read and learn. Adopt tools to gather info (alerts, newsletters,

Flipboard, follow thought leaders, etc.) and save information (OneNote, Evernote, etc.)

Curate news in their social channels, becoming a source of information for others.

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Love of Learning

Contrarian Thinking

Analysis

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Change Contradicts Conventional Wisdom

By the time everyone sees the opportunity or threat, it is too late. To see what others do not, change agents: Practice discomfort with complacency, seeking

new, better ways. Consider untraditional information outside their

industries or even outside the business world. Accept nothing. Challenge everything. Don’t zig

when everyone zags; just question why.

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Love of Learning

Contrarian Thinking

Analysis

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Change Only Occurs When Others Are Convinced

Business leaders do not until they are convinced it is necessary and confident in the outcome. Change agents must: Remove passion and biases. Use your network to challenge your pitch. Embrace the risks. Identify and prepare for objections. Build a logical case.

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Love of Learning

Contrarian Thinking

Analysis

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People hate change


Shar

pen

your

skills M

itigate risks

Inspire people

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Being a Change Agent is Risky

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Ron Johnson 15 years

12 years

18 m

o

Introduced design partnerships such as Michael Graves

Oversaw launch of Apple Stores

Dismissed after “the worst quarter in retail history”—a 25%+ drop in same-store sales in one quarter

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Being a Change Agent is Risky

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Ron Johnson

“When I got to Penney’s, I had no choice because I was told people wanted change, but the truth is nobody wanted change.”

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What Went Wrong at JCP?

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Ron Johnson

Traded sales promotions for “fair & square” prices.

Swapped brands JCP shoppers wanted for high-end brands beyond the budget of the traditional customer.

Initiated plan with no tests, focus groups or pilots. Attempted to run JCP like a startup. Punished skeptics. “I don’t like negativity.

Skepticism takes the oxygen out of innovation.” Replaced leaders who understood JCP business.

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The Building Blocks of Change

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

Customer Traded sales promotions with “fair & square” prices. Swapped brands JCP shoppers wanted for higher-end

brands; offered items beyond the budget of the traditional Penney’s customer.

Initiated plan with no tests, focus groups or pilots. Attempted to run JCP like a startup. Punished skeptics. “I don’t like negativity. Skepticism

takes the oxygen out of innovation.” Replaced leaders who understood JCP business.

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Build Capital Diligently, Spend It Wisely

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

CustomerBeing a change agent requires you amass personal capital. Political winds change often. To mitigate risks:

Seek sponsors and mentors and listen to them

Build a network and engage with them

Seek approval and support

Own up to mistakes

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Keep the Customer King

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

CustomerDo not forget to put the customer at the center of your thinking. To mitigate risks:

Base ideas on documented customer needs, behaviors and perceptions.

Don’t alienate current customers while striving to attract new ones

Develop ideas for those customers that are strategic targets for your organization.

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Process Is Your Friend, Not the Enemy

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

CustomerProcess frustrates change agents, which is why it is twice as important they respect the process. To mitigate risks:

Seek partners with project management skills to help create project plans

Create a logical, staged plan

Test, test, test

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Work Within the Existing Culture

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

CustomerCulture changes slowly, and change agents get more done when they work with rather than against existing culture. To mitigate risks:

Align your ideas to current strategic initiatives

Understand and respect organization structure

Consider corporate mission and values

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Make People Allies

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Capi

tal Process

People

Culture

Customer

People don't resist change. They resist being changed.

Peter Senge

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People hate change


Shar

pen

your

skills M

itigate risks

Inspire people

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Inspire People to Embrace Change

Make Change Worth Everyone’s While

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Change Goals & Rewards

Raise the Pain (a Little)

Create a Positive Vision

Involve People

It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!

Upton Sinclair

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Make Change Worth Everyone’s While

Change goals and rewards to reward the right behavior. To inspire people:

Identify the goals and metrics that measure the behaviors you wish to change

Change reward systems to compensate people for the right behaviors; for example, employees will not become more oriented to customer satisfaction if they are only rewarded for productivity, efficiency or sales

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Involve People

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Help People To See Why They Must Change

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Involve People

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.

Anaïs Nin

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Help People To See Why They Must Change

Change is painful, but the eventual pain of failing to change is even greater. To inspire people:

Realize that change can threaten jobs—plan for the concern, be candid and help people change

Encourage people to understand the risks of not changing and the benefits of changing

Make it about them…

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Involve People

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Encourage People To See Their Futures Positively

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Involve People

I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.

Mother Teresa

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Encourage People To See Their Futures Positively

Make change personal and exciting. To inspire people:

Paint a picture of how change will bring benefits to employees

Create a plan to support employees

Commit the time and resources necessary

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Involve People

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People Embrace Change When They Have a Voice

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Involve People

You teach me, I forget. You show me, I remember. You involve me, I understand.

E. O. Wilson

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People Embrace Change When They Have a Voice

Support and impetus for change comes top-down. Adoption of change comes bottom-up. To inspire people:

Listen and react to hopes, ideas and concerns

Tell people what; let them have a say in how

Provide the time necessary for change—plan for storming, norming and performing

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Involve People

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Be a Better Change Agent

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Know and mitigate the capital, customer, process, culture and people risks

He or she who helps people embrace change rules the world

Adopt habits that improve your communication, emotional and thinking skills

Shar

pen

your

skills M

itigate risksInspire people

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Thank youWhen you're finished changing, you're finished.

Benjamin Franklin

Feedback and dialog welcome at @augieray.

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