Change Management News

Reasons why so many changes fail#14 Relying on the Three Most Common Ways of Communicating Change

Most leaders rely way too heavily on the big three ways of communicating change:

• PowerPoint
• e-mails
• memos

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Reasons why so many changes fail #13 Making Them Learn Your Language

Old MIS (Management Information Systems) departments often had the reputation of speaking some foreign language when they worked with senior management and other departments. They made the critical mistake of speaking their language and not translating so that their audience could understand them. It is your job to be “multilingual” so that various stakeholders can understand what you are saying. I have seen IT, HR, financial, and sales and marketing departments kill their own effort to make a case simply because they expected their audiences to learn their jargon. Big mistake.

(This is adapted from my fook, Beyond the Wall of Resistance: Why 70% of Changes Still Fail – and What To Do About It. You can the book by clicking on the link you see on this page.) www.rickmaurer.com

Reasons why so many changes fail #12 Taking Time Will Waste Time

Our research found that when people made a strong case for change, the rest of the project often went much more smoothly. In other words, they didn’t face as much resistance, and things didn’t get off track as often. Even though you believe that you are facing a crisis, you need to ask: Do others believe it is a crisis as well? If not, you’ve got a long slog in front of you. And the odds are not in your favor.  (This is adapted from my completely revised  and updated book, Beyond the Wall of Resistance: Why 70% of Changes Still Fail – and What To Do About It. You can order the book by clicking on this link.)

My friend (and former teacher) Carolyn Lukensmeyer believes in democracy. She has dedicated her life to it. Fifteen years ago she founded AmericaSpeaks, a group dedicated to getting people from across the political and cultural spectrums together to talk about things that matter. She recently ran an event where 3500 participants in some 60 communities met (more…)

Reasons why so many changes fail #10 Moving to How Before Why

Moving to how before people know why a change is needed.

People need to know why something is important before they can get interested or even be willing to hear why you want them to do it. Too often we fail to address “why” something is important before we launch into explaining “how” it should get done. I am not interested in the explanation of how until you’ve convinced me why this is important.

I have been subject to many lengthy PowerPoint presentations (more…)

Reasons why so many changes fail #8 Leaders fail to appreciate the power of fear Fear of change is deeply personal. The thought of a big change can evoke pictures of relocations or downsizing. People worry that they may be fired. They worry about their families and their careers. Personal fear trumps the organization’s need to change. (more…)

Reasons why so many changes fail #6 Assume Understanding Equals Support

Leaders assume that understanding equals support and commitment

It is common to introduce change by making a PowerPoint presentation to a large group. Leaders may schedule time for Q&A, but the questions they get from their audiences tend to be very polite. After all, who wants to tell the boss they don’t think this is a good idea? People learn to limit their comments to questions about time lines and budgets. They know those are safe questions. Any reservations or fears go underground and only get spoken about in hallways and carpools. (more…)

Reasons why so many changes fail #13 Making Them Learn Your Language — instead of learning theirs.

Old MIS (Management Information Systems) departments often had the reputation of speaking some foreign language when they worked with senior management and other departments. They made the critical mistake of speaking their language and not translating so that their audience could understand them. It is your job to be “multilingual” so that various stakeholders can understand what you are saying. I have seen IT, HR, financial, and sales and marketing departments kill their own effort to make a case simply because they expected their audiences to learn their jargon. Big mistake.

(This is adapted from my forthcoming book, Beyond the Wall of Resistance: Why 70% of Changes Still Fail – and What To Do About It. You can preorder the book by clicking on the link you see on this page.)

Reason why so many changes fail #1

I think Abba Eban (statesman 1915-2002) got it right when he said: “Nations and men may behave wisely once they’ve exhausted all other alternatives.”

Somehow we believe we are immune from the rules of what works. We often assume that because we not only believe we are right – in fact, we know we are right – so that the rules that other mortals must follow don’t really pertain to us. We’ve got God, country, our own brilliance, mojo, or whatever working for us. As you’ll see in subsequent posts this is a big mistake.

We just created a fan page on Facebook to support the publication of the new revised paperback version on Beyond the Wall of Resistance. The new sub-title – Why 70% of Changes Still Fail -and What To Do About It is the focus of this “new” book.  I will putting lots of tips and other resources on this page.

If you do Facebook, please consider joining me. Type “beyond the wall” and you’ll find it.  Or click here. Of, if you prefer Twitter, you can join me.

Great article in this morning’s The Wall Street Journal titled Recalculating the Costs of Big Layoffs. Lots of good hard-number examples. It still amazes me after so many years of solid research on the impact of downsizing (see Wayne Cascio’s work for starter) that it still seems to be the default reaction when costs have to be cut.

I encourage you to read this fine article by Scott Thurm and pass it along.

NUMMI, a joint venture of GM and Toyota closed today after 26 years of showing us the power of collaboration and what’s possible on the assembly line. I’m sorry to see this grand experiment end.

And excellent article How to Change a Culture: Lessons from NUMMI appeared in the Winter 2010 edition of Sloan Management review.

Thanks to John Womack’s e-mail for alerting me to this news. You might be interested in other related pieces on his website www.lean.org

This relates to my recent post on layoffs.

My web sleuth found my Alternatives to Downsizing article from 1996 just tucked away on my website.

If you want to learn how to work with resistance, watch a video clip of President Obama speaking to and with Republican House leaders today. It’s hard to imagine anyone in recent US history of either party who 1. would engage in a give and take with a room filled with only his or her opponents, and 2. could engage in a give and take with clarity, strength and sometimes humor. I can think of no better practical lesson on working with those who are on the other side of issues. You may not want to watch the entire hour, but here is a link to part of  the presentation itself. And here is a link that covers part of the question and answer session. There is something about a face-to-face meeting between people who disagree with one another conducted with mutual civility that is a joy to witness.

If President Obama were to ask me for advice on his State of the Union message tonight, I’d tell him to keep it simple. Limit yourself to one critical issue that you want the US Congress and the American public to support over the next year. Give two points if you really must. And if you get to three or more points, you’ll lose your audience.

The problem is that Presidents, for as long as I can remember, have delivered veritable shopping lists of things of things they want to accomplish over the coming year. There is usually something in the list for everyone. “And for little Billy, a new bicycle.”  State of the Union night is the one night of the year that insomniacs can get a good night’s sleep. Just turn on the TV and let the President (any president) lull you into dreamland.

As a leader of change, listen to the speech tonight and see if it grabs you and makes you want to do something (other than reaching for the remote.) Corporate leaders, like Presidents, cover too many things when they are trying to influence their audiences. The ancient Roman orator, Cato the Censor, said, “Stick to the point and the words will take care of themselves.” And, you’ll note that Cato said point – not points.