As we all know, change is a constant in our lives and our work. Change has always been a factor, but we are experiencing a greater rate of change due to technology, such as the impact of social media and the increased integration of artificial intelligence (AI). We also know that change is a huge source of stress for people and that stress can be impacted to a greater or lesser degree by how change is communicated.
Human beings generally are negatively impacted by the fear of the unknown. In a business setting, being aware that change is coming can automatically create a stressful environment. That is magnified when those in leadership positions are not open and honest about the upcoming changes. I have experienced times of large-scale organizational change when there was either no advanced warning or the changes were announced with little or no explanation of the reasons or decision-making involved. The message was simply โwe have decided that these changes are necessary, and we intend to implement them with as little impact on the organization as possible.โ This type of change management does not provide employees with a sense of security and trust in the organization they work for. Letโs discuss how leaders can best communicate change in their organizations.
There are two kinds of change which I want to address. The first is what I call โtransactionalโ change. This includes changes in an organization that are relatively minor and are perceived as part of doing business. Examples might be a slight shift in account responsibilities, altering go-to-market strategies, a shift in assignments within a team or the introduction of a new administrative application or process. While these types of smaller changes may affect individuals or smaller numbers of people, they do not impact the organization as a whole. The communication of these transactional changes can be shared with the organization via email but should be communicated to those impacted personally. In either case, the communication should include the reasoning for the change and the expected impact.
The second type of change is what I call โdisruptiveโ change. Disruptive change is one that affects most or all of an organization, with the change either impacting or potentially impacting most or all of the employees. Examples of disruptive changes might include layoffs, critical product delays or cancellations, large-scale reorganizations or major changes in the marketplace. Disruptive change requires a much more strategic communication strategy, with more frequent and tailored messaging.
Here are some tips for communicating disruptive change within your organization that can reduce the stress impact on those involved:
โข Err on the side of transparency, being as open as possible with the team about what to expect and in what time frame. Even if details are not yet available, providing some level of expectation gives team members some comfort in not being totally in the dark.
โข Executive leadership should be visible. Rather than simply sending a companywide email, someone from the exec team should hold a town hall-style meeting, either via conference call or virtual meeting app. This session should include as much information as possible at that moment, including what is expected to happen (big picture), a time frame and, perhaps most importantly, an explanation of the reasons for the change and the process that went into the decisions.
โข Front-line management must be provided with extensive talking points that they can share with their team locally. These managers should hold their own team meetings to openly discuss the upcoming changes and answer questions as best and honestly as possible.
โข Regularly scheduled updates should be communicated regarding the implementation of the proposed changes. These updates should be provided to front-line management before release to the entire staff. People get really uncomfortable when their direct manager says, โI find out the same time you do.โ
โข Executive leadership should provide a detailed explanation at the time of implementation. When everything is about to come down, employees should be told the whys, hows and whens. This should include an SOS explanation, which means there is the situation (S), here are the options we had (O) and hereโs what we decided was the ultimate solution (S). The more information employees have, the better they will adjust to the changes, even those who are directly negatively impacted.
โข Executive leadership should provide a road map for how the changes are expected to impact the organization going forward. Once everything has been rolled out and all reorganization is complete, leadership and local management should be focused on ensuring confidence among those who remain.
When faced with disruptive change, managers of the business take a โtrust usโ approach and share as little as possible with their people. Real leaders are focused on two things: 1. making the right decisions for the organization and 2. making sure everyone feels minimum stress and maximum confidence during and after the process. Organizations with that type of leadership are the ones who successfully implement disruptive change and the ones people want to work for.
By: John Lowe, an Executive Faculty, Coach and Business Presentations Expert at Ty Boyd Inc.