Nearly all businesses around the world have undergone organizational change in one way or another during the last year. As nations begin to heal, talks of the “new normal” beyond the pandemic are starting to look like a realistic possibility rather than a far off dream. For many businesses, it is unclear what this post-pandemic working world might look like. However, change is on the horizon and managing this next stage effectively will either make or break an organization. In order to make this transition as smooth as possible, businesses need to implement compelling and practical Change Management strategies that can guide them through this next phase in 2021.
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What is Change Management?
Change Management is the general term used to describe the approaches that businesses take when making both short and long-term organizational change, both of which are often necessary for businesses that want to survive and be successful. Change Management assesses the stages that a company goes through when it evolves and uses various methods that aim to optimize the use of resources, improve businesses processes, and reallocate budgets where necessary to help push an organization forward.
When starting to implement Change Management within an organization, it is best to look at the models that already exist. Some common Change Management models include: Lewin’s Change Management model, The McKinsey 7-S model, Kotter’s theory, and ADKAR. This list is by no means exhaustive and the benefits of using one model over another depends entirely on the business’s preferences and its needs at the time. However, it is important for business leaders to recognize that simply implementing a Change Management strategy is not a fix-all solution. In fact, it has been recorded that more than 70% of organizational change management process initiatives actually fail to meet their goal, and this is without the added challenge of a global pandemic and a dispersed workforce.
Where To Begin
All around the world, businesses have been forced to transition online in one way or another. With this shift, employees have started to realize the benefits and pitfalls that come with remote work and, as a result, the expectations of the workforce have shifted, too. Now, many businesses are in limbo, not knowing what their “new normal” will look like once pandemic restrictions ease. For Change Management to be truly successful, businesses must make a firm decision as to how they would like to proceed.
The fact is, it is no longer an option to simply just return to the office and expect staff to carry on as if nothing happened. Equally, having an entirely remote workforce may not be a practical option. It is likely that many will choose to adopt a hybrid working model (a blend of office-based, semi-remote, and remote employees).
Regardless of which option businesses choose, when kicking off any form of long-term organizational change, there are some fundamental first steps that must be undertaken, the biggest of which is to pinpoint the needs of the workforce.
Immediate hurdles may present themselves, such as the fact that some members of the team may have joined the company remotely in the past year and may not have experienced the old normal in order to know what they want from the new normal. However, unlike back in March of 2020, businesses have the luxury of time. In order for any Change Management strategy to be successful, it is crucial that business leaders take the time and use the plethora of digital communication tools available to them in order to really listen to the concerns of the workforce and ensure that all voices within the business are being heard, regardless of whether they have been at the company for ten years or ten weeks. Change Managers (those chosen to spearhead the transition within the company) should start by approaching employees about the potential for upcoming change within the business and put channels in place to allow for open and transparent conversation.
By engaging with the workforce before undertaking any transition, it will become much easier for Change Managers to find the pain points that the organization as a whole, but also individuals within the company, are struggling with and provide a strategy with actionable solutions that can help to push the business forward.
Change Management, particularly when implementing something as novel as a hybrid office, requires businesses to do the near-impossible and plan for how to overcome both the obvious and the yet-to-be-discovered challenges. Given there is so much uncertainty ahead, simply having one plan may not suffice. Organizational change of this scale will require businesses to embrace agility and flexibility as core principles, creating multiple strategies and ensuring that no stone is left unturned. By planning for every possible outcome, businesses are putting themselves in the best position to tackle the many changing versions of what the “new normal” might offer in 2021.
Take It Slow and Set The Right Expectations
As with all things in life, change - and particularly organizational change - does not occur in a vacuum. Change Management teaches us that change on a grand scale such as this does not have to and should not occur overnight (unless, of course, a global pandemic hits). Being prepared, ensuring that employees have a realistic expectation for time-frame and execution, and having the flexibility to allow the business to transition over time, is key for any change to be successful.
Through its inherent focus on structure and consideration for everyone within the organization, Change Management aims to minimize any potential issues that employees might have with a proposed change. However, it goes without saying that every decision made will have a ripple effect throughout the business. Consequently, inclusivity and transparency need to play key roles in any plans that are put in place.
For businesses facing change this year, it can be a scary prospect, but utilizing Change Management to foster transparency and openness within the workforce does not have to be so daunting. Small changes in the short term can have a big impact in the long term. Transparency, for one, can be incorporated into company policy fairly easily, as long as it starts from the very top. This might mean implementing “ask me anything” sessions, where employees are given the opportunity to ask management questions they would not normally have the opportunity to ask (this is especially important if they have concerns about the upcoming changes in the business and their role moving forward). Additionally, business leaders can promote inclusivity by supporting active listening within teams and empowering employees to get involved with decision-making where possible. Even remotely, this can be achieved through the use of interactive polls and surveys, all designed to enable leaders to make better, more widely supported decisions for the organization. Business leaders should also make a habit of sharing important company information, whether that be new clients or financial results, and ensuring that sufficient communication channels have been established through the use of new technology. All these small changes will prove invaluable in helping to push the business forward as it moves towards new and exciting ways of working, whether that be hybrid or fully-remote working.
In the past, Change Management was traditionally seen as an isolated project, actioned only when change is needed. Now, more than ever, it is important that businesses embrace change as part of their DNA, utilizing the different models available to implement all kinds of changes, not just large organizational ones. As we push forward into 2021, Change Management will become an essential tool in guiding businesses through all sorts of new and undiscovered challenges. Implementing Change Management to help businesses embrace change and create an environment that welcomes transparency and openness will, in the long run, enable organizations to become more agile when approaching change in the future and will create a strong foundation to guide them through the next stages of the pandemic and, hopefully, past its eventual end.
