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10 Success Factors for Change Management In Projects

Posted on January 21, 2012

According to change guru Peter Senge (1999), most change initiatives fail simply because they fail to produce hoped-for results. Given that project management is all about changing the status quo, effective change management is critical to project success.

Whether this is the latest 'flavour of the month' programs that senior management rolls out, implementation of an IT system or an internally-driven team initiative, it is important that the change and expectations are effectively managed.

Current thinking indicates that good managers are the key to successful change management. In general, managers who see the need for change are usually correct in their assessment. Senge (1999) says: "companies that fail to sustain significant change end up facing crises. By then their options are greatly reduced."

It can be quite difficult for managers to view their work on change in a holistic fashion. Personal attitudes and political agendas can lead to bias towards HR issues or IT issues specifically preventing the big picture focus.

Based on this I have constructed 10 success factors to help project managers manage change in small projects or large organisations:

Factor 1 - Plan first

Take time to understand the central need for change. Know what you are trying to do and why. Think about the links of the change to real-life problems and create a vision of what it will look like when those problems are resolved.

Factor 2 - Involve the Team

Create opportunities - especially in the early stages - to discuss change with the team. This will not only create enthusiasm for change but also be a source of ideas for improved processes and ways of communicating to others. Negotiation will be easier if the team is on board from the start.

Factor 3 - Support the Team

Introduce the change clearly to the team. Explain the current performance level and why the change is needed, what it will involve and the objectives. Reassure staff throughout the change process - particularly around issues of changing roles.

Factor 4 - Lead by Example

Showing your own commitment to the change will act as a signpost for others in the team to also commit. Make your commitment evident in the decisions you make.

Factor 5 - Put Yourself in the Team's Shoes

Try to anticipate what will be the key issues that concern team members. Plan how you can best deal with them should they arise. Concerns will most often be about changed ways of working, new reporting structures, changes to job roles and services and unfamiliar systems or tools.

Factor 6 - Manage Resistance with Compassion

Resistance to change may be frustrating but it is a natural human reaction. Team members might resist change if they think that job security, the way the work, or work patterns will change. Managers need to source, analyse acknowledge, respond to and deal with staff concerns throughout the change process.

Factor 7 - Communication is Essential

Tailor your communication to the audience and their needs. Make it frequent and use different methods tailored to different preferences and accessibility. Methods might include one-on-one briefings, workshops, formal training programmes, advertising, briefing papers, blogs, RSS-feeds, e-mail and intranet postings.

Factor 8 - Review and Evaluate

Review and evaluation throughout the change process is vital. Continually check objectives and achievement against them. Celebrate ongoing success with the team and identify where you can improve.

Factor 9 - Know What You're Up Against

Change fails most often due to lack of understanding of the need for change, setting unrealistic goals, poor planning, and insufficient communication. Failure to properly manage change leads to problems with trust in change in the future.

Factor 10 - Don't Forget PM Tools

Great project managers use good tools to achieve outcomes. Tools such as SWOT, Gantt charts, Risk Assessment, Communications Planning and a realistic schedule will be useful in planning and delivering the smooth transition to success.

The Upshot

Change is all around us, and is happening every day. To some, this is exciting; they find it thrilling to be part of the action and to keep up with trends. But, to others, it can be threatening or even frightening.

As greater focus is placed on achieving business success and as projects are becoming more complex, project managers need to adopt the principles of change management in order to deliver the desired outcomes. If done right, change can be a force for ongoing innovation, growth and success. Implementing the right factors to manage change successfully gives teams and organisations new skills that set them up to be change ready in the future.

How Improving Employee Behavior Impacts Performance

Posted on January 19, 2012

Being a successful manager requires more than leadership. Managers are also responsible for the performance of the employees who report to them. Poor employee behavior and performance must be addressed quickly and skillfully to ensure that departmental and organizational goals are achieved. Although confronting employee behavior and performance problems is one of the most difficult aspects of a manager's job, avoiding this critical aspect of management has a direct impact on the productivity, profitability, and overall success of the organization.

An effective manager must be able to tell the difference between employee job performance and work habits. Although they are obviously closely related, an employee's performance refers to his output or results while his behavior refers to the way he does his job to achieve those results. Since poor work habits impact performance just as much as good ones, managers need to set aside time to ensure employees realize the correlation between behavior and performance. For example, a customer service representative who is rude to customers can lead to complaints which can then lead to lost revenues when customers take their business elsewhere.

Addressing unacceptable employee behavior and work habits early, before they become a serious problem and require disciplinary action, is also important. Managers should clearly describe to employees the exact nature of their poor work habits and how they impact both personal and organizational performance. But rather than focus on their attitude or personality, discussions with employees about unsatisfactory work habits should specifically concentrate on their behavior. This approach values them as individuals but stresses the ways in which changing work habits and behaviors will result in better outcomes. This is also a good time to discuss performance incentives, such as a pay raise or a bonus for improving the work habits that result in higher sales (or other performance objectives defined by the company).

Involving employees in an interactive process of enhancing unsatisfactory behavior is important for maintaining self-esteem and promoting a positive attitude. Developing and implementing an action plan with employee input increases accountability, and ongoing reviews with written progress reports ensures the steady improvement of employee behavior.

Managers can get the support they need to properly and effectively address employee behavior issues by hiring an executive leadership coach. A coach can help managers develop the communication skills to confront employee behavioral problems without negatively impacting morale, which ultimately boosts the performance and success of the employee, the manager, the department, and the entire organization.

Management Skills – How to Use Delegation to Your Advantage

Posted on October 15, 2011

Delegation is an important skill that every manager should learn. Effective delegation is more than just assigning tasks to your staff. You must first evaluate and prioritize the work yourself. Once you have established the priorities, then you must determine which tasks can be properly assigned to someone else. You will need to ask yourself questions like: Do they have the training to handle the task? Are they able to work semi-independently? What resources will they need? What level of authority are you willing to give them? Once you have thought about the answers, then and only then can you delegate work to your people. Good delegation will begin with a meeting to assign the task and define the outcomes. The people who work for you will want to know what is expected of them, and what a successful outcome will look like. Once you have assigned the task, then you will want to schedule a follow-up meeting to either check on progress, or close out the task as a completed action. If you can master the art of effective delegation, then you will be a more effective manager. Here are a few ways that you can use delegation to your advantage:

Expand the amount of work that can be done & build capacity: Everyone has a limit to the amount of work that they can accomplish. After all, there are only so many working hours in a day; however, using effective delegation, managers can expand the total amount of work that can be done by assigning tasks to others on their team. Struggling managers often feel compelled to do much of the work themselves by invoking the old adage, "if you want the job done right, then do it yourself." Effective managers know that others are also capable of doing good work too, and they build capacity to get more work done by effectively delegating some of their work to others. Read more...

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