Be Ready to Adapt or Get Ready for Trouble
by Andrew Perry

There is an aspect of the tightened labor market that we don't hear addressed very often in the glut of conferences and forums and magazines out there—how to handle the change that will inevitably occur in your organization, as people come and go. Certainly we're all cognizant of the need to keep the best people, but even if we achieve a 100% retention rate, at some point organizations will grow and take on new employees. With these new people, whether additions or replacements, will come the need to adapt to an environment which simply isn't static.

Major changes such as reengineering, enterprise resource planning systems (ERP), restructuring, quality improvement, and mergers require tremendous support from management and staff in order to succeed. So where can we turn for answers? How can we keep the boat on an even keel? There are consultants galore out there right now, perhaps sending you a spate of e-mails about how best to go about managing these changes. However, staying on top of change doesn't have to be as complicated as bringing in specialists and diagnosticians and a bunch of folks in lab coats.

Rick Maurer, author of the Building Capacity for Change Sourcebook, says that a few simple steps toward anticipating and then handling change in your organization can make all the difference. "In fact," he told WSA, "the difference between successful changes and those that don't work often has nothing to do with the quality of the idea. It is the human side of the planning and implementation strategies that usually marks the difference between success and failure."

Maurer offers a few quick steps as a starting point for building the ability to manage the fluid environment of the workforce:

1. Build strong working relationships. Those responsible for change management must identify all parties who have a stake in the outcome. Companies must include a way to get all the stakeholders involved in the planning and implementation. If it is unrealistic to get all individual parties involved, a significant cross-section (including a diagonal slice of the organization) should be encouraged to take part in planning.
   

2. Maintain clear focus. There must be a long-range focus (i.e., a goal or vision) as well as an ability to focus on the level of support or opposition the organization faces during the implementation of change. While focusing on the close and distant elements and results of said change at the same time is difficult, plans should include ways to keep your sights squarely on both the goal and the current situation.
   

3. Embrace resistance. You read right: Maurer advocates seeking out those elements of your organization that are resistant to the new shape the company is taking. Strategies should include ways to actively invite opposition. Most often, organizations attempt to overpower or ignore resistance. This power play can be a devastating mistake. So, the change management plan should include ways to keep the doors of communication open throughout the planning and implementation of any changes. Find ways to include multiple means of getting beneath the surface to hear what people really think.
   

4. Respect those who have a stake. Any change management plan needs to let people know that their concerns can be heard and that their input is valued. Be open and willing not only to listen, but also to alter your plans if need be.
   

5. Stay relaxed. An organization must choose a strategy that allows its leaders to feel relatively grounded, even while they engage in dialogue with others. If the leaders feel off-balance, they could lash out and ruin any chance for collaboration. Find ways to settle differences amicably and openly.

Whether you're trying to get derailed changes back on track, or implement new and better ways to continue doing business, you need to be ready for anything and everything to insure a successful change. If you stand still in today's market, you're dead—so it's not if you're changing, but when. Start with these steps and move outward to affect positive change in your organization.