Conversations around Change: Change the mindset in the organization to a learning-focused mindset

 

Having regular conversations around change enables for creating a learning mindset – a mindset where employees appreciate, desire and engage in change. When we change, we are learning – we are growing, adapting, getting better. We want to create this mindset so that employees are more comfortable with change, within continuously improving and moving forward.

Regular conversations around change enable for increasing adaptability to change and an increased acceptance of change when it does occur. When working with clients to discuss how to launch conversations around change our goal is to enable employees to look at change from a positive perspective, an opportunity to do something new, different and exciting. It is, obviously, much more difficult to embrace change when the organization is in panic mode; rather – if we think of change as continuous evolving and improving – it becomes easier to accomplish.

Telling stories around change appeals to the emotional side of change – which is what helps employees to connect with and embrace change. The rational side – charts, statistics, graphs, financials, etc. – is important; we need that to stay competitive and ensure profitability – but that is not what helps employees to embrace change. As humans, we connect with the emotional side of change.

When we begin the conversations around change early on, we…

• …get diverse insights into the change
• …enable for innovation
• …ensure commitment from those involved in and impacted by the change

As part of regular monthly meetings with his entire team, one of Abudi Consulting Group’s client’s manager, Alexander, always poses a question that will explore the need to change. Just prior to his last meeting, Alexander asked the team how the department might better collaborate with another group that had just expanded their head count by 50 new hires. Alexander reminded his team that as the other group grew in headcount, it would impact the informal way his team had worked with them in the past. By asking this question, Alexander was pushing his team to look at their current in-place formal and informal processes and to refine them to continue to work effectively with their peers.

Consider how you might engage your employees in conversations around change. What questions might you pose? Here are a few to get you started…

• An idea for this company/department/workgroup/team that really inspires me is…
• Just imagine if we were the best at…
• We can beat our competition in the market if we…
• Trends that may impact us if we don’t make changes know include…

These are just a few ideas to improve your next organizational change initiative. Want to learn more? Check out my book, Implementing Positive Organizational Change: A Strategic Project Management Approach, J Ross Publishing, 2017.