How To Manage Change At Work

 

Perpetual change is the one constant in the business landscape. Revolutionary scientific discoveries, breakthrough technologies, updated regulations, new leadership, shifting job roles, and relocation are just a few examples of major change in the professional world. The fact is, change is inevitable and necessary. Yet many employees aren’t prepared to embrace change.

Why is change so difficult? One reason has to do with our brains. The human brain is wired to scout for all that’s bad. How else would we identify a threat or discomfort? Yet Neuropsychologist Rick Hanson says the brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones. That means we have a lot of negative associations to choose from when trying to assess a new situation, or “change”. Plus, we all suffer from what is called negativity bias, when the brain reacts more intensely to bad news, compared to good news.
Knowing that people can react poorly to change, leaders need to be very adept at change management.

But what exactly is change management? It has three parts:

1.    any approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations

2.    using methods intended to re-direct the use of resources, business process, budget allocations, or other modes of operation

3.    that significantly reshape a company or organization

Freddi Donner, executive coach and founder of Business Stamina, developed a valuable tool for managing any type of change in an organization. It is based on the word CHOICE, making its principals easy to remember.

C hoice

H elp Others

A ccept

N ew Normal

G row

E mbrace Feedback

Let’s go through each letter in more detail.

C | Make the CHOICE to Participate in a Positive Way

Since our brain is Velcro to negative experiences, we will gravitate toward negative perspectives if left to our own devices. This is true for the team, and true for leadership, since they set the tone for the transition.

But how do you actually make the choice to be positive rather than negative? Is it a mind trick? Not necessarily. Here are six quick tips to help you participate in change in a positive way:

Tips For Participating Positively in Change

1.    Look for or call a role model and observe how they react to change. They may be able to provide the blueprint for you to follow as you navigate new terrain.

2.    Visualize yourself facing the change successfully without stress. Research shows that visualizing a particular situation can create the same effects behaviorally and psychologically as actually experiencing the situation.

3.    Use music. The first-large scale review of 400 research papers in the neurochemistry of music found that music can improve the function of the body’s immune system and reduce levels of stress.

4.    Laughter is the best medicine. Really! Laughing releases endorphins, the natural feel-good chemicals in our brains. It can even temporarily relieve pain.

5.    Let it out. If you’re anxious about change, or even feeling angry about the transition, tell a co-worker or manager that you trust. Sometimes things are much worse in our own minds (negativity bias); speaking your fears out loud gives us a more accurate perspective on the situation.

H | HELP Others. It Gets You Into a Positive Frame of Mind

Despite your own trepidations, help others with different outlooks than your own. Identify an issue that is real, current and changing in your department, with your client, or in work groups you belong to. Ask yourself how you will help others with this change. Here are some tips to get you started:

Tips Helping Others Face Change To Get You Into a Positive Frame of Mind

1.    Lead change rather than fight it. As champion of the change, encourage others to become authors of the change as well. For example, if a change in software is happening, proactively start discussion groups with coworkers about what to expect and how to best face the process.

2.    Bring others into the conversation and allow them to contribute to the design of the change. This motivates everyone to say yes and move forward.

3.    Point out the upside to change around co-workers. This will help both you and your co-workers get into a more positive frame of mind.

A |  ACCEPT That This Change Is In Everyone’s Best Interest, Even If You Don’t Agree

Sometimes the wave of change is headed your way full force whether you’re ready or not. You can either let the wave crash against you, knock you down and pull you under, or you can face the same direction the wave is headed and catch a ride to shore. Make the decision to ride the wave (accept the change) and plan to make it to shore gracefully (plan on success).

When there is a change of environment, people experience a lack of control, which can be very unsettling. To make things easier, don’t resist; open your mind to acceptance. Here are some tips for accepting change, even when you feel uneasy.

Tips For Accepting Change

1.    Remind your team that change is made with lots of thought, even if they weren’t involved in the process.

2.    Stay internally calm and positive. There is nothing your anxiety and negativity can do to prevent the change from happening, so you might as well avoid the stress.

3.    Let go of any bad feelings you have about the situation and you will be more open to a smooth transition. Encourage others to do the same.

N |  NEW NORMAL Needs Communication

Facing a new normal requires a lot of communication. Go beyond words when communicating—use graphs, diagrams, and before and after pictures.

The most important part of communicating is truly listening. Listen to what is being said and what is not being said, in order to uncover the fears others are experiencing but cannot express. You can do this by watching body language and asking open ended questions. Here are more tips about communicating the new normal.

Tips for using communication to adjust the team to the new normal

1.    Start a conversation with two or three people at your organization about changes that are occurring.

2.    Use open ended questions (who, what, when, where, how) to uncover resistance or acceptance.

3.    Share your positive point of view.

4.    Observe the different perspectives (both positive and negative).

G | GROWTH Is Important When Managing Change

Change provides an opportunity for your team to grow. Yet with growth comes friction, awkwardness, discomfort, and uncertainty to those around you. Remember that you are part of the story and can influence those around you by modeling what change looks like in a positive light. Here are some tips for promoting growth during change.

Tips For Promoting Growth During Times of Change

1.    Work on improving your emotional intelligence (EQ).

2.    Maintain a strong and calm leadership presence with breathing and grounding techniques.

3.    Find commonalities in the group and leverage them to develop trust in your team.

E | EMBRACE Feedback So That You Know How To Stay In The Game

When it comes to managing change, not everything will go right the first time. That’s why feedback is so important. Truly listen to feedback so you can course correct along the way. It is the cheapest and easiest way to learn and grow!

But what if you don’t agree with another person’s point of view? Don’t dismiss it. Instead, find ways to “try it on”. For example, ask yourself, “What if this were true and I am just not seeing it?” This helps develop flexibility in your perspective and helps you become a wiser leader. Here are four tips for receiving feedback.

Tips For Receiving Feedback

1.    Manage your emotions; listen objectively to make sure you fully understand.

2.    Calmly evaluate and comment if the feedback is valid and can help you improve.

3.    Listen 80% of the time and speak 20% of the time.

4.    Don’t tune out and start “your own conversation”; you may miss some important points.

Do you feel ready to ride that wave of change? It may not be smooth sailing, but you’ll end up in a better place. Remember to choose to be positive, help others face the change, accept the changes that are happening, understand the new normal, see change as a growth opportunity for all and embrace the gift of feedback.

Have you faced major change in your organization? What was the most challenging part? We can all learn from each other.

 

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

 

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Why Conflict at Work is a Good Thing

 

When Gabriel visited headquarters from his Milwaukee office, everything seemed great. Members of the team welcomed him warmly, invited him to lunch, and had his workstation set up. Gabriel would be there for a week to transition the team to a new software platform to track their hours, request vacation days, check benefits, find employee discounts, and access health coach advice.

By the time Gabriel finished onboarding the whole team, the “great” office seemed anything but.

He noticed the unusual team dynamics right away, after choosing Jackie, the executive assistant, to go first.

She was nervous from the start, asking if he was sure she should be the first one. Her anxiety made it hard for her to concentrate and the meeting took much longer than expected. Soon he learned why, when he had the operations manager, Evan, on deck. Evan made two comments about the fact that the executive assistant was first, instead of him. Gabriel was confused—did he do something wrong?

When it was Shayda’s turn the next day, she barely spoke. Instead she sat silently with her arms crossed with an air of annoyance. What Gabriel didn’t know was that Shayda had wanted to be trained on the first day so she could leave early for volunteer orientation at the women’s shelter. No one informed him of this, so he went ahead with his training in a room so tense that the air could be cut with a knife.

On Friday, Gabriel joined the team weekly meeting, to be available in case there were any questions about the platform. The meeting took two hours, and only a few people talked, not acknowledging anyone else’s comments. In fact, Evan was constantly asserting his authority, saying things like, “I’m the one who makes the decisions here,” and “Don’t waste my time with ideas I already told you won’t work.”

There was no energy in the room, the topics covered were shallow and boring, and amazingly—after two hours—absolutely nothing was accomplished. No problems were solved and no decisions made. Gabriel walked out wondering what was the point of that meeting and what is wrong with this team?

What is Wrong With This Team?

Gabriel felt mired in conflict. Yet the conflict was completely unspoken. During his time there, he never heard a single confrontation out in the open. Yet it was obvious conflict was buried under the surface. If they aren’t willing to bring their perspectives or ideas to the table (unless they already know everyone agrees), how will this conflict ever be resolved? It was undermining all of their progress, and killing morale. He was excited to get back to his office, where sometimes the discussions were difficult, yet their relationships were a lot easier and certainly more productive.

Conflict is a tricky thing. When you boil it down, conflict is just when one person’s wishes and desires are different from another person’s.  It’s the emotions that conflict evokes that can make situations seem explosive and make people uncomfortable, since conflict is often associated with “being in trouble”. The idea of conflict can bring up feelings of defensiveness, anxiety, anger, guilt, fear and more. For that reason, it is often avoided at all costs.

The reality is, productive ideological conflict is a good thing, and avoiding it in attempt to preserve a false impression of harmony can backfire. Just look at Gabriel’s experience…

So let’s talk about the importance of conflict, what teams that welcome and avoid conflict look like, and how we can start embracing conflict in our own teams starting today.

Great Teams Welcome Conflict

CPP Global’s Human Capital Report on workplace conflict shows the positive outcomes reported by those who experienced workplace conflict.

·         41% of respondents report better understanding of others

·         33% experienced improved working relationships

·         29% found a better solution to a problem or challenge

·         21% saw higher performance in the team

·         18% felt increased motivation

 

Teams That Welcome Conflict, and Teams Who Do Not: What Do They Look Like?

 

That study is clear—conflict is good for teams. But what does it look like? Here is a snapshot of what teams who don’t welcome conflict look like, compared to teams that do.

Teams That Don’t Welcome Conflict

·         Create a culture where back-channel politics and personal attacks thrive

·         Have boring meetings

·         Ignore topics that are important for success, but are controversial

·         Waste time and energy with posturing

Teams That Welcome Conflict

·         Take and use the ideas of all team members

·         Have energetic, interesting meetings

·         Quickly solve real problems

·         Minimize politics

·         Do not fear putting critical topics on the table for discussion

What Happened When the NBA Avoided Conflict

Looking at sports teams is a great place to learn about teamwork. Yet in this scenario, the NBA isn’t showing us how to be an awesome team—it’s showing us just what avoiding conflict can do.

It was not a secret among the inner circles of the basketball world that Donald Sterling, L.A. Clippers owner at the time, had potential to create PR catastrophes. One example would be his prior multi-million dollar lawsuit with the Department of Justice for driving minorities out of his apartment buildings. Yet even the NBA commissioner pushed Sterling’s problematic issues under the carpet. Why? In order to avoid conflict.

This blew up in their face in April of 2014, when a recording of Sterling making racist statements about players was made public causing NBA unrest, threatened boycott, and a PR disaster.

Sound familiar?

Does avoiding conflict sound familiar to you? Maybe you notice your team is not making progress, or you feel that politics trump all initiatives at work. Or maybe it’s you who is avoiding conflict, harboring resentment for your team, and not reaching your potential. Here are some tips for welcoming conflict at work.

Three Tips for Welcoming Conflict at Work

1. Remember Everyone’s Opinions Matter

·         Everyone on the team should be able to express their opinions without the fear of retribution

2. Move Away From Finger Pointing

·         Work toward perceiving, understanding and respecting where others are coming from

3. Appreciate that Workplace Conflict is Inevitable

·         Disagreements at work are a given; avoiding them won’t make them go away

·         Don’t hit the roof when you realize the team isn’t working well together; accept it

·         Remove yourself from the situation and analyze how this conflict might benefit the team

 

So let’s go back to Gabriel’s experience where back channel politics plagued the office. The executive assistant was a distracted, nervous wreck knowing that she was seen as “below” the operations manager, yet had been taken to the onboarding session first. And she was right; Evan was fuming because he wasn’t able to assert his superiority by being chosen first. This anxiety-inducing dynamic will continue to exist unless one of them is willing to address the conflict, or one of them leaves the organization.

Shayda also chose not to cause a conflict by asserting that she needed to leave for volunteer orientation at the women’s shelter. Instead, she was tense, miserable and resentful. If she didn’t fear conflict, she would have made her request known, and probably had the opportunity to go to orientation.

The meeting Gabriel joined was also an example of a team that avoids conflict. Nothing got accomplished because no one was comfortable speaking up to share their ideas. And Evan was so busy asserting his authority that he wouldn’t take advantage of the skills and creativity of his teammates. This constant assertion of dominance, coupled with the stagnating results of those avoiding any type of conflict, led to a pointless meeting that nearly put Gabriel to sleep.

Imagine how lively the meeting would be if people were willing to cause potential conflicts in order to solve problems, share ideas, and get things done? Their progress was and will continue to be stunted unless they stop avoiding a perfectly normal byproduct of teamwork—conflict.

How do you feel about conflict at work? Do you face it head on or avoid it? If you avoid it, what makes you the most uncomfortable about conflict?

 

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

 

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Why Accountability is a Must For Teamwork and How To Create It

 

“Courtney really gets on my nerves,” Mario said to his coworker Amira. The two were sitting in the commissary, trays of food in front of them, ready to eat lunch.

“She has to be ‘miss perfect’ and flaunt finishing her projects,” Mario continued. “Yet getting her work done before everyone else doesn’t satisfy her—she continually asks other people if they’ve finished their projects yet. It’s like she wants to toss us under the bus every chance she gets.”

“She’s obviously maneuvering for a promotion. Hopefully, she’ll get it soon and we can work in peace,” Amira replied. The two began to eat their lunch, Mario wearing an expression of agitation, and Amira simply looking disinterested.

“Ravi on the other hand does absolutely nothing,” said Mario with a sigh.

“I can’t believe Tanya hasn’t said anything to him, even after he missed the RFP deadline. What kind of manager is she? I wish she’d crack down on him,” responded Amira now wearing Mario’s look of agitation on her face.

“Have you finished updating the client files?” Mario asked Amira.

“Not yet,” she replied. “Have you finished the research you were working on?”

“Not yet,” Mario said, bored at the thought of the research. “It will get done eventually.”

“Yeah, we finish when we finish,” Amira said as she stood up with her tray, headed to the trash bin, and prepared herself to get back to work.

Back in the office, Tanya, the team manager, is frustrated. Only one person on her team, Courtney, actually meets deadlines. And now the department head is coming down on her, accusing her of not managing her team properly. How can she get her team to get their work done?

Let’s start by identifying the major problem that is affecting the productivity of this team: lack of accountability.

This Team Has a Problem: Lack of Accountability

The business dictionary defines accountability as “the obligation of an individual or organization to account for its activities, accept responsibility for them, and disclose the results in a transparent manner.” It’s simple: to be accountable to a team, a person needs to be clear about what they plan to do, execute on that thing, and let the team know when it’s done.

But when it comes to teams, accountability must go both ways. For a team to function well, an individual is not only obligated to be accountable, they need to hold their coworkers accountable too. That means consistently asking for updates on clearly defined goals, and openly sharing their own updates. Yet holding others accountable is difficult because it can cause interpersonal discomfort. Patrick Lencioni writes, “Once we achieve clarity and buy-in, it is then that we have to hold each other accountable for what we sign up to do, for high standards of performance and behavior. And as simple as that sounds, most executives hate to do it, especially when it comes to a peer’s behavior.”

In the team above, Courtney is the only one holding herself and others accountable. And she is definitely facing interpersonal discomfort.

The Facts About Accountability in Business

Although being accountable is vital to teamwork, organizations across industries struggle with accountability. Take a look at these statistics:

·         93% of employees don’t really understand what their organization is trying to accomplish in order to align with their own work.

·         85% of leaders aren’t defining what their people should be working on — and an equal number of employees crave clarity.

·         84% of the workforce describes itself as “trying but failing” or “avoiding” accountability, even when employees know what to fix.

·         80% of people see accountability as punishing

These are not small numbers! It looks like many organizations could use a lesson in accountability. Let’s take a look at what teams that hold each other as accountable look like, versus teams that do not.

Accountable Teams and Unaccountable Teams: What do they look like?

Teams That Are Not Accountable

·         Create resentment among team members who have different standards of performance

·         Encourage mediocrity

·         Miss deadlines

·         Put disproportionate pressure on leaders to discipline

Teams That Are Accountable

·         Make sure poor performers feel pressure to improve

·         Identify problems quickly by questioning one another

·         Establish respect among team members who are held to same high standards

·         Avoid excessive bureaucracy around management and corrective actions

For a real-world example of the problems that come from unaccountable teams, let’s visit the coffeehouse giant, Starbucks.

What Starbucks Can Teach Us About Accountability

During the economic slowdown of 2008, Starbucks took a hit—600 stores closed and profit fell 28%. Leadership during that time blamed the economy and increased price of dairy for the slump. That was until Howard D. Shultz came back as CEO after leaving eight years prior. He held leadership accountable rather than blaming things that can’t be controlled, like the economy and dairy prices. He said, “Starbucks’s heavy spending to accommodate its expansion has created a bureaucracy that masked its problems.”

His solution? To create a strategy that developed brand trust. The initiative, called “My Starbucks Idea,” created a way for customers to share ideas directly with the company and with each other. After 1.3 million users on social media shared 93 million ideas, the program was a success and Starbucks pulled out of its slump. Had Shultz not held the company accountable, it’s unlikely the leadership team would have solved the problem.

So what can you do if you find yourself on a team that is not accountable and Howard Shultz isn’t around? Try these three tips:

Tips For Creating Accountability

1. Set Team Goals and Team Rewards

·         People are less likely to watch someone fail if the entire team is at stake

·         The enemy of accountability is ambiguity

2. Ask Questions, Stress Inquiry

·         Agree on goals and then conduct inquiry-oriented dialogue. Questions help people deconstruct the details and try alternatives without being defensive

3. Break goals into specific elements

·         Analyze the details that accumulate to produce either success or failure

·         This makes it easier to identify specific steps for improvement

·         It gives people pride in the elements that went well

·         Helping the team see strengths and weaknesses holds others accountable to improvement

Going back to Mario, Amira, Ravi, Tanya, and Courtney’s team, we can see clear signs of a lack of accountability. Mario and Amira resent Courtney for having a different standard of performance. They even encourage each other’s mediocrity with statements like, “we finish when we finish.” The two blame their manager, Tanya, for Ravi’s missed deadline, expecting her to discipline rather than holding their team accountable. And from what Tanya says, the team misses deadlines all the time.

What if they were more accountable? Mario, Amira, and Ravi would feel pressure from the team to improve. They’d identify what stood in their way by asking questions and resolving problems quickly. They’d even strip some of the bureaucracy away, by not relying on management’s use discipline to get things done. All of this would help establish respect among the team, which would now be holding each other to higher standards. And what do higher standards mean? Better performance.

Have you ever worked on a team that lacked accountability? What was it like? I’d love to hear about it.

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

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