Organization change revisited. How to get plugged in

Organization Change Revisited: How to get plugged in
Shirley A. Williams

~~~~~
It is puzzling how many times the importance of change management is discussed in the business
environment and yet so few actually incorporate change management plans in their business initiatives.
How is it that our business leaders will often address their management team with the importance of
becoming more adept at managing change but do so little to nurture this organization capability? In fact, I
venture to say that change management has become THE BUZZ word of 2008 and given the state of
affairs, it will continue to be so for years to come. A morning read of a newspaper article highlighted the
high pace of change and the need to manage it - or suffer the consequences of being stuck in the past. Is
there anything unusual about this article? The answer is
most likely “No”. The only quandary is that this was written FIGURE 1. 1929 NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS
(The Telegraph Journal & The New York Times Magazine)
in 1929 when you could get a newspaper for three cents
and the speed on the highway was not related to
information (Figure 1). In 1929, the change was related to
“mechanical automation”. The only difference today is the
nature of the change. Change is a constant. So why is it
that after so many decades we continue to recognize the
high speed of change, however our change management
approach continues to be a mystery? To many leaders,
change management is an amorphous concept and as a
result they have a tendency to shy away from it.

Organization Change Management Defined
Change management means different things to different people and so in order to manage it, we need to
define it. I would like to start with “What it is not”. It is not an event; it is not Human Resources; it is not a
consultant; it is not project change control; it is not one person’s job; and it is not an organization structure.
I would now like to offer this definition: Organization change management is a cross-functional, integrated
process with tools and techniques to enable people to move from their current state, and transition to the
preferred future state of an organization’s vision. When successfully exercised repetitively, an organization
will have also built a strategic capability to manage and expedite business change, so that they can readily
take advantage of competitive opportunities. Such an organization has invested in an integrated change
competency, or resiliency, that embraces change as a business norm. Change management is related to
the people-side of an initiative and it means managing the “soft-side” of the change. Change management
is hard work and often poorly addressed. When not addressed, it is also unfortunately a lost opportunity
that would otherwise build change elasticity in an organization which could be a business advantage for
the very reasons described above.

Business Strategies Pitfalls and Change Management.

Business strategies fail to deliver for a number of reasons. The list below, describes some of the common
pitfalls. Some reasons related to the strategic plan itself and include:
 failing to define the future vision
 developing a superficial vision
 conducting only a long-range financial plan

Shirley Williams page 1 November 24, 2008
Principal Consultant. William Pearl & Associates.
shirley@williampearl.com
© Copyright 2008 William Pearl & Associates

Shirley A. Williams

 failing to make tough decisions
 failing to clarify and simplify objectives
 forgetting that people support what they help create
 neglecting the competition and business environment
 using confusing terminology and language
 failing to integrate planning at all levels of the organization
 conducting “business as usual” after the “ strategic planning event”.

Pitfalls are also related to the actual implementation, namely:
 frequently changing priorities
 inconsistent decisions and directions
 an ineffective implementation process
 poor project management
 difficultly in building and keeping momentum
 low commitment
 failure to provide the needed resources
 conflicts
 politics
 weak re-enforcement or consequences

With a closer inspection of these pitfalls, you will note FIGURE 2. THE CHANGE GAP
IBM GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES: SURVEY OF CEOs 1.

that many are related to people and culture. In an on- The gap between the expectation of change and an organization’s history of
managing change is growing

going study1 with top CEOs regarding their EXPECT SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE 65%

perspective on managing large scale change, CEOs 2006 8%
CHANGED SUCCESSFULLY IN THE PAST
CHANGE
GAP

shared their expectations (see Figure 2). This
57%

research showed that there is a significant gap with
83%
the rate of business change and the ability to actually EXPECT SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE

manage the change. Furthermore, this “change gap” 22%
CHANGE
GAP
2008 CHANGED SUCCESSFULLY IN THE PAST

has widened three times over the last two years. This
61%

provides additional support to why there is a need for
business leaders to manage change effectively if they are to remain competitive. However, so few
initiatives include a comprehensive organization change strategy and management plan.

Best Practices and Critical Success Factors in Change Management
Prosci is an independent research company who are well known for their extensive research on
organization change. Their research spans ten years of study, includes over 1000 organizations and 59
countries. In their best practice study2,3, Prosci showed that the critical success factors for change
management are:
1. active and visible executive sponsorship
2. a structured change management approach
3. the need and vision for change was widely communicated
4. dedicated change management resources
5. employee involvement


Shirley A. Williams

In a similar but separate study1, IBM Global Business Services showed similar findings (Figure 3). Both
research efforts showed that top, executive sponsorship is the number one critical success factor to
succeed in large scale initiatives.
In addition to the critical success factors for
change, Prosci 2,3 also showed the key FIGURE 3. WHAT MAKES CHANGE SUCCESSFUL
IBM GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES CHANGE MANAGEMENT STUDY 1.
Leadership, employee engagement and open communication are prer equisites for
obstacles to change, they are: successful change
1. ineffective sponsorship from senior Soft factors

Hard factors
leaders Incentives 19%

2. employee resistance Organization structure 33%

3. poor support and alignment with middle Performance measures 36%

management Training programs 38%

4. lack of change management resources Change agents 55%

and planning Corporate culture for
65%
change

Honest and timely
70%
communication
Again, IBM’s findings (shown in Figure 4.)
Employee involvement 72%

were similar. These studies support the fact Top management
92%
sponsorship
that change management is not one person’s
role; it is a shared accountability and
FIGURE 4. MAJOR CHANGE CHALLENGES
engagement. As highlighted here, top IBM GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES CHANGE MANAGEMENT STUDY 1.
The most significant challenges when implementing change project s are people oriented.

executive sponsorship is crucial. This
Technology barriers 8% Soft factors

sponsorship is required throughout the Change of IT systems 12%
Hard factors

duration of an initiative. It is not enough to Change of process 15%

Lack of involved employees 16%
introduce or provide a short presentation at a Lack of transparency 18%

kick-off meeting and then only surface at the Lack of change know how 20%

end of the initiative. It is critical that the Lack of mangement commitment 32%

shortage of resources 33%
sponsor is visibly active and engaged for the Complexity underestimated 35%

long run of the project with their teams and Corporate culture 49%

employees. Change mindsets and attitudes 58%

Change Management Models and Value
In the mid- 90s, Dr. Michael Hammer was the driving force behind leading the charge on corporate re-
engineering4. Hammer turned the business world upside down, as he drove the concept of business
process transformation and organization change. Dr. Hammer recognized that if organizations are to
succeed in their quest of large scale transformation, it required a deliberate focus and attention to the
human dimension and complexity of the change. Over ten years later, research continues to validate this
position. This is shown in Figure 4. This data indicates that when the complexity of an initiative is not
understood, it becomes a serious hurdle to the change implementation. It is evident that change
complexity drives the need for appropriate resources; however there is an additional human dimension to
this factor. It is the potential emotional burnout associated with the implementation that could easily occur.
This can also be linked to the lack of any tangible visible benefit generated during the implementation.
Understanding the complexity and value of the sub-projects provides a method of phasing the project,
such that incremental project benefits can be generated at predetermined intervals as the project is


Shirley A. Williams

deployed throughout the duration of the endeavor. When a project is phased in this manner, it naturally
builds momentum and energizes the organization during the project implementation. Furthermore, as
successes are experienced, it drives the conversion of skeptical stakeholders. This is one tactic to reduce
resistance to a project. Delivering small “packets of value” throughout the implementation builds
confidence within the organization.

Prosci has an excellent model to specifically manage
the change process3. The Prosci ADKAR model ®
FIGURE 5. ADKAR MODEL 3

provides a framework for understanding change at an Awareness of the need for change
A
individual level and consequently provides a pragmatic Desire to support and participate in the change
D
approach for organization change. The ADKAR model Knowledge of how to change
K
has five elements or objectives as shown in Figure 5. Ability to implement required skills and
A behaviors
Reinforcement to sustain the change
Awareness represents a person’s understanding of the
R
nature of the change including the internal and external
drivers that created the case for change. This
Prosci
incorporates the change vision and the “what’s in if for
me”. Desire represents the willingness to support and
engage in the change. Knowledge represents the information, training and education necessary to know
how to change. Ability represents the realization of the change. Ability is turning knowledge into action.
Reinforcement represents those internal and external factors to sustain the change. The model stipulates
that you need to address all five components to manage the change process and ultimately to succeed.
The model provides a methodology to help move people from their current state and transition them to
their future state. The organization levers to enable these components are sponsorship, communication,
coaching, training and resistance management. The simplicity of the ADKAR model makes it a very
flexible tool that is readily scaleable to the scope of any change program. Prosci also provides guidelines
on required change management roles (Figure 6) which includes the primary sponsor, the change
leadership coalition, managers, supervisors, Human
Resources, Training and the project team. Building on
®
these guidelines, I would offer that the project team also FIGURE 6. ADKAR MODEL AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT PLAYERS 3

plays a role in Awareness and Desire in that they should A D K A R

work closely with their functional team and leaders. They   
Primary Sponsor

provide valuable information for the messaging and the Leadership
coalition  
bridge for collaboration. I like to think of these roles and Managers and
supervisors     
responsibilities as a Change Matrix with key stakeholders HR and Training
 
having key accountabilities. These stakeholders need to
   
Project Team
SW recommended SW recommended

be “plugged-in” and know their role in order to drive a
Prosci
successful change.

Summary
A Google search for “change management models” will provide over 9000 hits. There is an ever growing
list of change management models to choose from. I have personally used the above data and models
successfully when I have led change programs or initiatives. In summary, I would like to leave you with


Shirley A. Williams

these final points: 1) Regardless of the change management model you use, it is important that it is
planned very early in the program, ideally during the strategy discussions. If this is not feasible, it should
be integrated very early in the planning stages of the initiative. Integration is key to success. 2) You must
marry the right tool with the right scope, thus it is important to assess the change complexity early in the
initiative. 3) As the above research showed, it is critical to have an engaged and visible primary sponsor.
4) Use simple language to articulate the change vision and business drivers. 5) You should also remember
people implement what they believe they have created. So as well as having an excellent communication
plan, it is advantageous to facilitate some level of stakeholder involvement. 6) There is significant
advantage to phasing an initiative to deliver incremental value and excitement throughout the duration of
the program. 7) An integrated comprehensive change management program will significantly increase the
chances of success to deliver value of that new business and organization reality.

References
1. Making Change Work. IBM Business Consulting Services. Hans Henrik Jogensen, Lawrence Owen
and Andreas Neus. 2008 (http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1030541?cntxt=a1005266 ).
2. Best Practices in Change Management. Prosci Benchmarking Report. Time Creasey and Jeff Hiatt.
2007 (http://www.change management.com/best-practices-report.htm ).
3. ADKAR: A Model for Change in Business, Government and Our Community. Jeffrey Hiatt. 2006.
4. The Reengineering the Corporation. Michael Hammer and James Champy 1993.

About the Author
Shirley Williams has more than 20 years experience in organization business change and project management.
She has led numerous initiatives with a geographical scope that has included Canada, US, The South Americas,
Europe and Australia. Shirley’s professional career spans Biotechnology, Brand & Generic Pharmaceuticals and
IBM Business Consulting Services. She currently provides leadership in Strategy, Organization Change and
Project Management as a Principal Consultant at William Pearl and is also the Vice-Chair for Toronto,
BioPharmaPM. Shirley is a certified practitioner and professional of Change (Prosci) and Project Management
(PMP/PMI). She may be reached at shirley@williampearl.com .


Organization change revisited. How to get plugged in

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Organization change revisited. How to get plugged in