Return to flip book view

Change Leader G uide Before change can happen the leader must change first The Change Decision

Hello Change Leader As a leader you are in a unique position to bring joy to work You help your people be themselves bring their best selves to work and do amazing things for you and your company How do you do this By bringing your best self It s not easy to always be at your best but remember people count on you You re important What you do what you think and how you take care of yourself matters to a lot of people We believe in you Go be awesome Change Leader Guide 1

Everyone s point of view is valid even if I disagree or don t understand it 2 Change Leader Guide

Table of Contents Big Ideas 6 Joy at Work Advancing a Company s Culture 7 Joy Roles and Accountability 10 A Guide for Applying Joy at Work 11 Definition of Joy at Work 12 Change Joy Model 13 Foundational Concepts Connecting Theory to Practical Application 15 Definitions of Change Leadership and Management 16 The Phases of Change Your Point of View 17 The Phases of Change Their Point of View 18 Change Leader s Empathy Cycle 19 You Setting Yourself up for Success 21 Your Change Case Study 22 The Leader Manager 24 The Change Practitioner 25 A Shared Responsibility to Lead Change 26 The People 27 The Work Your Work as a Leader 29 Week 1 The Change Story 29 Week 2 Find Your Change Influencers 33 Week 3 Identify the Best Change Metrics 39 Week 4 Act on the Feedback 47 Week 5 Lead Even a Change You Dislike 53 Change Leader Guide 3

Change Experience We experience change all the time We also know when change goes well and when it goes wrong And some change experiences are particularly memorable Think back to a time that you were part of a change that went really well What was that like How did it feel What happened to make it feel that way Now think about a time you were part of a change that went really badly What was that like How did it feel What happened to make it feel that way 4 Change Leader Guide

Your Philosophies Identifying and developing your personal philosophies about leading change will help you with how you lead in the future What resonates with you about the change philosophies discussed What personal philosophies do you have that are are important to lead others to change Change Leader Guide 5

6 Change Leader Guide

Joy at Work Advancing a company s culture Change Leader Guide 7

The simplest word that describes a positive emotional connection is joy What joy at work means to me The freedom to be creative Real support and appreciation from my manager Respect teamwork integrity A positive work environment 8 Change Leader Guide Finding connection to the mission of the company Harmony peace working together Feeling excited to come to work every day The ability to plan my own day Feeling fulfilled in my work What people have told us over the last two decades

Current data tells us that the emotional connection people have with their work colleagues and company matters 58 58 say for job satisfaction company culture is more important than salary Source Glassdoor 58 58 say they typically befriend a co worker within a few days or weeks Source Olivet College 27 54 69 27 say the opportunity to do more meaningful work is why they accepted a new position 54 cite stress at work as having a negative effect on their home life at least once a week Source PayScale Source Wrike 69 will reject a job offer if they find out a company s workers are generally unhappy Source Hibob Change Leader Guide 9

Joy Roles and Accountability Leaders Managers Everyone Have the vision authority budget and accountability to create and cultivate a joyful workplace Have the authority and accountability to reinforce and encourage a joyful workplace Has the invitation and accountability to participate and contribute to a joyful workplace 10 Change Leader Guide

The multiple layers of joyful work Change Leader Guide 11

Joy at Work is employee willingness to Commit participate be accountable Trust Belong and act with cohesion Adapt and grow Demonstrate respect Act with integrity Joy at Work exists when The company leaders and managers continually cultivate the environment and extend the invitation Employees constantly accept the invitation 12 Change Leader Guide

Done well going through change together can increase joy in the workplace The Business Goal Change How does it impact people Joy at Work How do people respond Trust Accountability Adaptability Growth Respect Belonging Participation Commitment Cohesion Integrity Change Leader Guide 13

What does Joy at Work mean to you 14 Change Leader Guide

Foundational Concepts Connecting Theory to Practical Application Change Leader Guide 15

Change Leadership is the act of inspiring people toward a vision Change Management is the practice of applying a structured approach to transition an organization from a current state to a future state to achieve expected benefits The Standard for Change Management 2014 Association of Change Management Professionals ACMP 16 Change Leader Guide

The Phases of Change your Point of View A structured change management approach typically follows these phases 5 4 3 2 1 Get Started What is the change Wrap up What will help sustain adoption Investigate Who is involved What does the change mean to them Create How will barriers be overcome Implement How are people responding What was learned for the next change What are the signs of adoption What will make it easier for people to adopt the change Change Leader Guide 17

The Phases of Change Their Point of View Adopt I ve successfully integrated the change into my work How do you know everyone has fully adopted What are they doing What are leaders doing to reinforce and sustain adoption Test Learn I m actively integrating the change into my work What actions demonstrate people are integrating the change What are leaders doing with their teams to support the change Understand I understand how the change impacts me How do you know people understand how the change impacts them How do you know leaders understand how it impacts their team Engage I m engaged and aware of the change How do you know people are engaged and aware of the change 18 Change Leader Guide

Change Leader s Empathy Cycle 2 Communicate 02 1 Understand the Impact From the point of view of your people what information do they need to know now How will this help them with the change How would they react ideally What would most help to achieve this reaction What can you share with your people now that will help them make progress toward the change What would help them for you to acknowledge that you don t know yet but will commit to sharing in the future 01 03 3 Seek Reactions What reactions were as you expected Which were you surprised by What additional information could you seek to understand what s behind the reactions Change Leader Guide 19

The Phases of Change Test Learn Understand The people impacted Adopt Engage Leaders 2 Understand the Impact Communicate 1 3 Seek Reactions Change Leaders Implement How are people responding What are the signs of adoption Wrap up What will help sustain adoption What was learned for the next change 4 5 Create How will barriers be overcome What will make it easier for people to adopt the change Investigate Who is involved What does the change mean to them 2 Get Started What is the change 1 20 Change Leader Guide 3

You Setting yourself up for success Change Leader Guide 21

Your Change Case Study Record the specifics of your change case study and your notes as we progress through the material What is the situation What is the change goal What risks do you see What could be done to overcome those risks 22 Change Leader Guide

Your Change Case Study Additional notes Change Leader Guide 23

The Leader Manager Communicator The Leader Manager is responsible for leading their people through change Listener What experience do you have with leading change How empathic are you How respected are you by your team What is your relationship like with your boss peers and other leaders that are involved What is your level of openness to hearing observations from others Coach Connector 24 Change Leader Guide What is your influence among the stakeholders

The Change Practitioner Leader The Change Practitioner is responsible for identifying and driving the best strategies for an organization to change This means the most efficient and culturally appropriate strategies to achieve the change goal A Practitioner leads and partners with others in these areas Evaluating Impacts Stakeholder Management and Communication Planning Education and Messaging Strategies Measurement and Reporting Coach Expert Advisor Change Leader Guide 25

A shared responsibility to lead change Change Lead Change Lead Leader Leader Members of the Team Partners Partners The Practitioner The Voice The Ambassadors The Advisors Communicates the change to the organization the purpose the goals and why the change is happening Act as ambassadors for the change among their sphere of influence Communication Training and HR partners participate in the change initiative either directly or by providing guidance to the Leader Change Lead and Team Leads the strategy for implementing and managing the impact of change Tactically Creates and implements the change strategy Coaches leadership and the team to lead change as part of their roles Works with the partner teams to develop and execute the communication training and organizational design work Monitors feedback channels raises adoption risks and recommends performs mitigating actions 26 Change Leader Guide Tactically Promotes awareness through large group meetings forums team meetings and other stakeholder gatherings Advances support for the change by sharing information with peers and other leaders Shares feedback received with the Change Lead and other members of Leadership Regularly reviews feedback taking action in response as needed Tactically Collaborates with people outside the team to gather input and socialize the initiative Communicates information about the initiative to people outside the team as part of informal and formal interactions Shares feedback received from people outside the team with the Change Lead and Leadership Tactically Works with the Change Lead to develop and execute the communication training and organizational design work Provides guidance to the Change Lead and Leadership about the organization s communication training and HR processes and best practices Acts as experts for the audiences they serve and represent

The People Thinking with Generosity Staying curious versus assuming resistance Why are they struggling What s behind that How you think about people will have an influence on them Your words and actions will be guided by how you think about them and often they will respond in kind Change Leader Guide 27

A shared responsibility to lead change Change Lead Leader What is happening with people and what is the best next step to make progress What do people need to know now and how can I remove obstacles that are in their way People Members of the Team Partners What can I do to reinforce the messages that people need to hear What do I see from my perspective that will most help people make progress 28 Change Leader Guide

The Change Story Your Work as a Leader Change Leader Guide 29

The Change Story The Change Story is a useful technique and tool to gather all of the relevant information about a change in one place Ideally the leadership team works together to answer these questions so they have an opportunity to clarify important questions they have and will likely need to answer What What is changing What are we doing What are the facts What don t we know yet that would help to acknowledge Why Why are we doing this work What isn t working What s the opportunity Benefits What benefits do stakeholders get if we do this work and do it right How How will this happen Are there different phases How will we interact with stakeholders When When are the key milestones for this work Is there a timeframe Other benefits Creates a common understanding among the leadership team Helps the leadership team communicate consistently It s a handy reference to use when communicating The leadership team can revisit and update the story as the change progresses and new decisions are made 30 Change Leader Guide Now What What will stakeholders notice happening next

Analyzing Impacts This is probably the most significant step you can take as a leader because it helps you see the change through the eyes of others and prepares you for conversations with your team 1 3 What will people need to do differently For example Everyone must learn a new ordering system Interactions and processes will change Managers may be more empowered to make decisions What does successful implementation look like For example Managers and team members barely notice the change Everyone is prepared and aligned Everyone is wowed by the change 2 4 What is the expected reaction and why For example Some may be suspect about why they should embrace the new way Resistance in general because there s comfort with what works today Are there any pressing needs today For example How do employees become willing participants during change We don t want to surprise them Use the Change Leader s Impact Assessment tool to understand what the change means to your team Change Leader Guide 31

Notes 32 Change Leader Guide

Find Your Change Influencers Your Work as a Leader Change Leader Guide 33

Understanding the Sources of Influence Authority 01 02 A 09 P D 11 Disagreement 10 Proximity P Personality A Anticipation I R Respect D A D R 08 Adjustment 07 06 Dependency you Reaction Use the Find Your Change Influencers exercise to identify the people that have the most influence on the outcome your change 34 Change Leader Guide Interaction 03 04 Dependency 05 others

Managing Stakeholder Expectations 1 2 3 4 Decide what influencers to focus on Lead an Influencer Stakeholder Analysis conversation Identify the actions needed based on the analysis Periodically revisit the analysis to see what has changed Identify the stakeholders that are influential among the people that are impacted by the change Leaders who others often look to for reaction before they take action The people who should participate are those who will work together proactively to manage stakeholder expectations Where are the biggest influencer support risks What steps can you take easily to involve influencers appropriately Where is it worth putting some additional focus Over time things will change influencer support will change some will leave and some new influencers will join the effort By periodically conducting this analysis you ll make better informed decisions and reduce unwanted surprises Use the Influencer Engagement Partnership tool a k a Stakeholder Analysis to understand the point of view of change influencers and how to best involve them Change Leader Guide 35

Influencer Stakeholder Analysis Questions Influencer Name What s the influencer s role What s unique about their role What s their interest in the change What would they say about the change today What would you like them to say about the change What would they do ideally to support the change What would most help them support the change 34 Change Leader Guide

The Influencer s Point of View 4 3 2 1 One last point By attempting to put yourself in their shoes you begin to understand why they think and feel the way they do which of course goes a long way toward building good relationships with stakeholders Change Leader Guide 37

Notes 38 Change Leader Guide

Identify the Best Change Metrics Your Work as a Leader Change Leader Guide 39

Skeptics versus Value Too qualitative Too inexact Too subjective Too difficult 40 Change Leader Guide Quantitative alone is not as powerful as combining with qualitative 1 Exact is unnecessary directional is good enough 2 Subjective is useful when combined with other measure types 3 4 Scale the measurement effort based on the level of risk

Metrics that Lead to Insights 1 Self Reported What people self report about their progress 2 Observable Behaviors Behavior you see objectively 3 Existing Metrics A change to the existing company metrics Actionable Insights What changes in the existing metrics and self reported channels are notable What behavior are we noticing Does anything stand out as a theme What risks do we see What actions could we take to reinforce progress Use the Metrics Identifier exercise to decide what metrics are the most useful to monitor your change progress Change Leader Guide 41

What signs of progress do you see Understand Test Learn Do they understand how the change impacts them What actions are they taking to adopt the change Engage Are people aware of what s changing 42 Change Leader Guide Adopt How are people successfully performing with the change

What signs of progress do you hear Engage Questions about timing of the change and why it s happening 2 1 Questions about what they need to do differently and how others will be impacted Test Learn Questions about what training is available how they can participate and what they need to do to prepare for the change Understand 3 Adopt 4 Business as usual questions rather than questions about the change Change Leader Guide 43

Measuring Costs Something Time Time Time Time to set up your measurement approach Time to regularly collect and assemble the information Time to regularly review the information and make decisions 1 2 3 You ll need to decide with others what you ll measure You ll need to get agreement from others to provide you with the information they have You ll need to agree with others on how often you ll discuss this information and how you ll use it make decisions 44 Change Leader Guide

Signs of Progress The Business Goal Change Joy at Work How does it impact people How support is adjusted to help people How do people respond How people react and impact the change Trust Accountability Adaptability Growth Respect Belonging Participation Commitment Cohesion Integrity Signs of Progress Change Leader Guide 45

Notes 46 Change Leader Guide

Act on the Feedback Your Work as a Leader Change Leader Guide 47

Feedback in this Context The Usual Context A Change Context What can be improved What signs are you seeing that the change is progressing or not What did you do well What did you do wrong 48 Change Leader Guide

Three Main Sources of Feedback 1 2 3 Formal Feedback Channels Informal Feedback Channels Existing Report Data Surveys focus groups interviews staff meetings advisory groups Hallway conversations anecdotes rumors Existing report metrics that may indicate employee behavior change Use the Feedback Scan tool to proactively gather data about how the change is landing with your team Change Leader Guide 49

How to Evaluate the Feedback STRUCTURE As a leadership team look at the feedback regularly EVALUATE As a leadership team look at the data and ask yourselves these questions Do they understand what the change means to them and what they need to do differently Is anything in their way What would help them out the most right now Do we have a risk How big is it What actions should we take now if any 50 Change Leader Guide

Rumor Management Is it an unnecessary distraction for people A disruption What concerns is it reflecting Is it real Imagined How can we address this in a way that brings calm and builds trust Is it really about something else like a decision that needs to be made Change Leader Guide 51

Notes 52 Change Leader Guide

Lead Even a Change You Dislike Your Work as a Leader Change Leader Guide 53

If you think change will be hard it will be 54 Change Leader Guide

Although most people won t have a say in what the change decision is they always have a choice in how well they adapt and how they experience the change Change Leader Guide 55

Two Questions for You How do you feel about the change in general Why Use the What s worrying you exercise to tune into what you re most concerned about and what actions you can take 56 Change Leader Guide

Two Questions About Your Team How do you want your team to feel about the change process What would help them feel that way Use the Visualize Optimize tool to create a vision and a plan to achieve the best outcomes for you and your team Change Leader Guide 57

People are not usually upset by what is changing Where people get upset is how the change is handled 58 Change Leader Guide

Emotion Check in Where are you Where are others Open Impatient Frustrated Skeptical Irritated Confused Shocked Angry Disengaged 02 01 03 Hopeful Encouraged Determined 04 05 Appreciative Creative Enthusiastic Change Leader Guide 59

Strategies for Leading Difficult Changes Take stock of what you re most concerned about Decide how you re going to show up for your people today Start executing strategies that take care of yourself Get help from a coach trusted advisor or mentor 60 Change Leader Guide

Tuning into Your Reactions 1 Notice your reactions and explore the root cause 2 3 4 5 Clarify what s changing and what s not Clarify what s in your control and what s not Create a vision of the future and set small goals for yourself to get there Recognize your progress and keep going Change Leader Guide 61

Leadership Presence Prepare Yourself Lead Others Where are you on the Emotion Check in Be more visible and available than usual Where is the majority of the organization How can you and other change leaders adjust your leadership style to meet them where they are Keep your promise to give regular updates even if that means saying that there s no new information yet Can you paint a picture of the future that s aligned with the change vision What do you need to do or know to be authentic and support the future What will help you to be fully present with people 62 Change Leader Guide Listen be patient hold space for people to express themselves Be clear about why a change is happening connect it to the company s purpose and values Look for opportunities to reinforce progress people are making

Notes Change Leader Guide 63

Want to go deeper For changes that are particularly hard to make personally it s useful to focus in on what s in the way Here are some questions to contemplate What pain will you experience as part of getting what you want What will you have to give up to get what you want How will others react to the changes How will you prepare for that What are the old stories you re telling yourself about you the situation others that no longer serve you What will get in your way and what will you do now to make sure that doesn t happen 62 Change Leader Guide

About The Change Decision We are a change and culture company we grow Joy at Work Roxanne Brown is a renowned change expert with more than 20 years of experience in technology policy and culture change and related disciplines She s also the former President of the Board of the Association of Change Management Professionals ACMP Ed Cook is an experienced leader of teams and large organizations He s a former Navy pilot who spent a year in Iraq nation building Ed s also a Visiting Professor at the University of Richmond and has his PhD in Systems Modeling and Analysis CONNECT WITH US LinkedIn Instagram Medium Website thechangedecision joyatworker ed cook thechangedecision com roxanne brown

www thechangedecision com