How Resilient Are You?
(2) CommentsAs a change practitioner, you’ve probably seen the impact of major change on your team’s or department’s productivity. Humans have a limited capacity to absorb the disruption that change creates. When an individual faces more demand for change than he or she can absorb, the result is an increase in dysfunctional behavior.
To adapt successfully, individuals must increase their speed of change. I’m not talking about the velocity at which things around them are changing, but rather how fast they can recover from their own disrupted expectations. When people are able to function at their optimum speed of change, they can absorb significant disruption with minimal dysfunction. The key to increasing a person’s speed of change is resilience.
Resilient people are no less vulnerable than others to the stresses of change. They can’t prevent disruptions, but the results of a change are often more fruitful and less damaging for them. Resilient people bounce back quickly; they do not become victims of change. more
ChangeThinking.net
©2010 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Ways Change Agents Can Help Sponsors
As I wrote in my last post, even sponsors with lots of experience leading difficult transitions need the help of skilled change practitioners.
Sponsors are most effective when we help them:
Have a clear definition of the change. Effective sponsors must see the desired state clearly and understand the overall intent.
Recognize and express their dissatisfaction with the present state. Successful sponsors need to be keenly aware that the organization cannot afford to fail at the change; they have to be tenacious about fully realizing the initiative’s objectives and communicate effectively to the organization. more
ChangeThinking.net
©2010 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
When You Need to Confront a Sponsor
So here we are with all this knowledge (see my three previous posts) about what sponsorship is, its crucial role in realizing change objectives, and how it can be effectively applied and yet we find ourselves sometimes not utilizing what we know.
How is it possible that seasoned practitioners, well versed in the theory of sponsorship and its practical application, are reluctant to leverage this information?
Here are some examples of situations when sponsors (or agents and advocates) need to be confronted by us as change practitioners: more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Essential Truths About Sponsorship
Of the four primary roles in the change process (sponsors, agents, targets, and advocates), none is as crucial to successful realization of change as that of sponsor. Yet, as practitioners, we often don’t bond with these leaders effectively enough to carry out our responsibilities. I think this is the biggest problem we face as practitioners: Even though we know how important sponsors are to successful change, we don’t always do what we could to help them succeed.
Guiding sponsors toward new behaviors and mindsets is the heart of our profession. Maybe it’s time to invest more energy in exploring what we need to learn and what needs to shift in our own actions so we can be more influential with sponsors. more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Getting Help for a Project in Crisis (Part 5 of 5)
(1) CommentThe more an initiative’s makeup reflects being “in crisis,” the greater the likelihood of failure, the lower the quality of results and the longer it takes to reach intended outcomes. To compensate for these risks, sponsors who succeed with change typically ensure that more attention/resources (mindshare, knowledge, skill, money, people, courage, and discipline) are allotted to these endeavors.
Fortunately, there is a clear pattern for leaders who consistently achieve their change goals. more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
The Change Practitioner’s Role in Encouraging the Right Kind of Due Diligence (Part 4 of 5)
I hope this blog provides all its readers with a vehicle for sharing not only ideas but tools and techniques as well. At Conner Partners, we use an assessment tool to help us evaluate the overall challenge an organization is likely to encounter when implementing a particular initiative. It focuses on the three dimensions I have been writing about: more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Just How Difficult Is Your Change Initiative? (Part 1 of 5)
(1) CommentCredibility gaps often exist between us as change practitioners and our sponsors. Many factors contribute to these gaps, and I’ll explore several in a future post. Here, I’d like to focus on a common one: Many sponsors see us as indiscriminate when suggesting they allocate significant amounts of time and attention to implementing change initiatives. They believe we think ALL initiatives are critical and in need of our skills.
Let’s not argue about whether this indictment is justified, or whether you personally would ever create such an impression. My point is, too many sponsors hold this view about too many of us change practitioners and as a result, they see us as tactical players (have hammer, looking for nail) rather than as trusted advisors capable of determining when implementation assistance is genuinely called for. more
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©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Hold On—Change Itself Is Unstable
Part 2 of 2
The volume, momentum, and complexity of change are all accelerating as never before, and we run the risk that the challenges brought to us will outstrip our ability to keep up. (Maybe this is already happening for some.) At one point or another, we’ve probably all told our clients (those we serve, whether we are an internal or external resource) that “change is changing,” but are we as practitioners changing at a commensurate speed (evolving ourselves as well as the state of the art)? more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
Introducing Change Thinking— A community of advanced practitioners pursuing mastery in the field of change implementation
(2) CommentsPart 1 of 2
Despite all the business change knowledge uncovered during the last 50 years, many seasoned change management professionals still aren’t adequately prepared to serve those trying to navigate their way through today’s turbulence. Change Thinking is an effort to have an exchange with, and be part of, a community of practitioners committed to raising the level of their game and that of the field of change execution.
The challenges are great, and time is of the essence, so I will be direct: Anyone is welcome to read this blog but my comments will be aimed at advanced practitioners who have a broad understanding of the dynamics of change implementation and deep experience facing the challenges of executing large-scale initiatives. In addition, this blog is for those seeking mastery in this field more
ChangeThinking.net
©2009 Conner Partners, Inc.
www.connerpartners.com
