Navigating Organizational Change
The Change Paradigm
Conventional wisdom suggests that organizational change happens periodically while most of the time we experience long periods of stability. A staircase is an excellent metaphor for this kind of thinking. While a staircase may model our response to change, it does not accurately represent the external change stimuli; we are surrounded by more ramp-like ongoing changes. Because of our "staircase" expectation, we may fail to respond to change until substantial tension is created between the external environment and the status quo. As a result, we often experience the self-fulfilling prophecy of a period of calm followed by gut-wrenching change leading to the next period of calm. The more stable we expect to be, the longer we wait to respond and the more difficult the adaptation becomes.
We try to build systems that resist change; we find solace in the structural stability of our organizations. In time, however, the systems we design must inevitably be disrupted in an effort to survive in changing environments that no longer support our stable structure.
The expectation of maintaining the status quo causes us to view change as abnormal when in reality the expectation of prolonged stability is the abnormality. Our organizations are increasingly traumatized as the pace of change accelerates. Our paradigm of organizations needs to be one of dynamic adaptation; our organizations need to be designed for continuous change.
Navigating Change
Navigating change implies a continuous effort to respond to the environment as we endeavor to travel in a desired direction. We must know where we are headed before we depart. Navigation also requires a set of strategies to negotiate the changing conditions we encounter along the way.
Organizational change requires adaptation of the entire system. The organizational system can be described as a collection of strategies, processes, and people immersed in an organizational culture. People and processes are influenced by culture and ideally driven by strategy. This requires the alignment of the change strategy with organizational culture. Survival requires a plan, knowledge, and the discipline to expend our energy and resources appropriately in response to environmental challenges.
The interaction of strategy, culture, people, and processes determines how well an organization will perform under various environmental challenges. Paying attention to the interaction of these four variables can dramatically affect how an organization will respond to ongoing change.
Strategy
Having a strategy requires that we know where we are going and have a rough idea of how to get there. Further, the desired direction and the strategy of choice should not be a secret. Everyone who has a hand on an oar should know where the boat is headed. Too many organizations have dissected their strategy into such small pieces that people confuse achievement of their objectives with moving in the correct direction. Pertinent goals, even over short periods of time, can become irrelevant or even conflict with moving in the desired organizational direction. Again the "staircase of change" assumption lulls us into believing that little will change after the objectives are assigned. Making sure that everyone knows the big picture puts savvy at the street level so actions can be modified to meet the latest changes. Accomplishing timely course corrections requires entrusting some of the decision making to those who will be implementing the strategy.
Good decisions require good information and a clear idea of what the organization is trying to achieve. Most changes are first experienced at interface points between the organization and the external environment. A clearly communicated strategy guards against misinterpretation of data. Putting more decision-making responsibility in the hands of people who understand the strategy will speed adaptation and reduce errors.
People
Besides being well schooled in corporate strategy, people need both an appropriate attitude and aptitude for the job. Change typically introduces new ideas and skills to be learned. People need the aptitude to develop new competencies as the organization adapts to the changing business environment. Peter Senge recognized this growing need when he coined the term "learning organization". Adaptation demands an aptitude for learning new things.
Attitude is much more difficult to quantify. Attitude manifests itself in behavior. Appropriate behavior can be stimulated by finding people's key motivators and building on their strengths. Place people in the organization where they can capitalize on their innate talents.
Process
Processes provide the "how to" methods for following the corporate strategy. Processes clarify the who, what, where, when, and how of everyday life. Processes have to make sense and support those who are trying to implement the broader long-range strategy. If you have a process that no one follows, there's a good chance it's an ineffective one. Demanding compliance with ineffective processes squelches commitment.
Culture
Organizational culture is the fourth and most significant component that must be aligned with any change. Culture defines the global boundaries within which an organization functions. Strategies, processes, and behaviors are bounded by the organizational culture. Culture defines what is rewarded and what is punished. It encompasses formal as well as informal systems.
The effect of culture on strategy, people, and processes is not always obvious. It is important to spend time analyzing whether the existing organizational culture supports the change you are undertaking. Will the behaviors needed in the new environment be rewarded or suppressed by the organizational culture? The transparency of organizational culture makes it difficult and frustrating to quantify. You may want to run the change past your top performers and get their gut-level reactions. A strong reaction indicates that the change will require people to travel outside current cultural boundaries. It will take work to redefine the boundaries and remove the organizational habits that keep people inside the invisible fence.
The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum Of The Parts
Addressing strategy, processes, people, and culture individually, while necessary and useful, is not nearly as important as understanding their interaction. All four areas must function effectively within a single system while constantly adapting to the external environment. While structure may be less stable than we would like, principles and values are not. The translation of our principles and values into appropriate action in a changing environment should be of utmost concern. A primary consideration is how to adapt to organizational changes with a stable set of values and principles. Just as cells are organized around the information contained in DNA, change-capable organizations are ultimately built around common values, beliefs, and principles.
© 2006 Positive Impact Associates, Inc.
