Change and its management

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With so much happening in the country at the moment and enormous changes happening daily and affecting the highest levels of government, I thought this might be a good time to look into change management. The government isn’t the only organisation that is in a state of flux. Companies large and small are having to make radical changes to stay afloat in a harsh economic climate.

Possibly the main principles of change are:

  1. We all react differently to change. You cannot make assumptions about how an individual will react.
  2. Everyone has basic needs which must be met, and at a time of change it is important to ensure this is not forgotten
  3. Change can also be felt as a loss, and sometimes there is very real loss involved: people need to be supported through the “loss curve”
  4. Expectations have to be managed realistically.
  5. Rumours fly around at a time of change, and fears can be magnified: these need to be dealt with

Top tips for managing change include:

  • Keeping the communication channels open: giving as much clear and honest information as possible – remembering not to set unrealistic expectations.
  • If there is a large group involved and you haven’t already a strategy for communication, now is the time to create and stick to one.
  • Give people choices for themselves wherever possible: again, be realistic and open.
  • Allow them space to express their hopes, expectations and fears.
  • Provide mechanisms for people to support one another or in extreme cases to get support from professional counsellors or coaches – an internal online community can be an effective mechanism for these two purposes.

In the University sector, JISC provide a Change Management InfoKit, developed out of a HEFCE Good Management Practice Project led by the University of Luton entitled ‘Effecting Change in Higher Education’. The Luton team found that:

  • There are no easy solutions.
  • Adapt processes to suit the change intended.
  • Change requires teamwork and leadership (and the two are related).
  • Work with the culture (even when you want to change it).
  • Communicate, communicate, communicate.

I think their findings are just as relevant to the corporate sector as to education!

The CIPD also have a selection of excellent resources on change management including articles, news, factsheets, tools and podcasts.

Originally published on reachfurther.com

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