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Jackie Larson

Guide to Managing Change

Making the most of chaos means taking charge and sharing the vision

By Jackie Larson

Change happens. Today's business environment throws managers and their teams into a constant state of flux. The question is no longer "Should we change?" but "How will we deal with change?" How you mobilize and inspire your staff to deal with change can define your leadership style and make your career. Manage change as you:
  1. Assess the change needed
  2. Strategize for positive change
  3. Inspire the people around you

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done


Take stock

A long, hard, appraising look will tell you where to go from here. Assess your team's readiness to move through the steps of organizational change.
I recommend: Learn the five phases of change: knowledge, vision, belief, initiative, training or development. Learn the five fundamentals for dealing with change: husbanded resources, abundant relationships, abundant information, distributed power, common story.

Strategize

Your response to change can be deliberate, proactive and effective when you plan, negotiate, implement and assess change.
I recommend: Follow these five five steps to improve your change planning process. Don't fight it, run with it by enlisting these strategies for managing change.

Talk about change

Face-to-face communication beats memos when dealing with change. Get your message out the tried-and-true way: talk.
I recommend: Follow these four steps to effectively communicate about change.

Implement change well

Poorly implemented change can be worse than no change at all, so make sure the change is executed properly.
I recommend: Try these six steps for change leaders. Run down this checklist of change processes. Find out how to take charge, not just "get through it."

Catalyze change

Being the conduit for change means taking an active role in facilitating improvement.
I recommend: Test your CQ here: What it takes to catalyze change.

Get everyone going in the same direction

Get your organization to move from being informed to being empowered and enthusiastic.
I recommend: Learn to overcome employee resistance and objections to change. Use resistance to improve the change process.

Get them inspired

Rational appeal will only take you so far when bringing team members on board. Achieving the kind of unity that inspires change means reaching people at the gut level.
I recommend: Use techniques to facilitate change by dealing with team members at an emotional level. Follow this template to establish a sense of urgency.

Read about it

You're not alone in the process of managing change, as evidenced by the abundance of resources in print on the topic.
I recommend: Order materials online to help you manage change: Who Moved My Cheese?; The Coward's Guide to Conflict: Empowering Solutions for Those Who Would Rather Run Than Fight; Building the Bridge as You Walk on It: A Guide For Leading Change; and Revival of the Fittest: Why Good Companies Go Bad and How Great Managers Remake Them. Also, learn from these practical quotes from famous historical figures for inspiration on dealing with change.

Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

  • Looking at the whole system will help you see where change needs tweaking.
  • Communicate to people at the local level to get their buy-in; WIIFM (What's in It for Me) is still a powerful tool.
  • To harness the power of change, enlist it as an ally, not an enemy.
  • To bring people on board, utilize their unique strengths and abilities.
  • Keep your eye on the next trends to meet change midway and capitalize on it.

The official source of Managing Change is the Change Management page at Business.com

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Recommended Solution Providers

Human Concepts: Workforce Modeling and Organizational Charting
Discover software designed to help in business decision making by modeling business scenarios and how to plans for organizational change.

SHRM: Human Resources Membership Organization
An essential and comprehensive resource available to the Human Resources Individual in obtaining good management communications and results.

Huron Consulting Group: For Organizational Change
Here's help for companies that face challenges with significant business conflict and organizational change.

Best Sites to Learn More

Change-Management.com: Learning Center
This site is provided by Prosci, an independent research and publishing company and supplier of benchmarking reports, toolkits, and handbooks for consultants, managers and employees in the area of change management.

Work911: Change Management Articles
This site contains articles on a range of topics of interest to small business owners, managers, and customer service reps, including change management.

About: Organizational Development & Change Management
About's Human Resources editor has created this overview of the issues involved with developing an organization, including how to manage change, how to work with formal and informal groups, to manage work culture and climate, and how to use organization design and applied behavioral sciences to maximize effectiveness.

Best Blogs and Forums

Workforce: Training and Organizational Development
Enter the Buzz News section to post a question or pick from one of their specific work related topic forums.

Systematic HR: Managing Change
What Human Resource Professionals need to know about managing change and the need for training.



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