A colleague of mine works for a time management company. The company
sells diaries and organisers so we can manage our time more effectively
and improve our productivity and performance. Great stuff!
So, can you imagine how my colleague felt when her boss said he just
didn't have time to meet with her to go through her performance review
and career development plan! Does it surprise you that the company has a
staff retention problem?
Common reasons for failure
That example set me thinking about why so
many change efforts stall or lose momentum. One of the most common
reasons is congruence or consistency (or lack of it).
For example, let's say you decide that to remain competitive and
relevant, your organisation has to change its corporate culture. To
date, the culture has been inward looking and process driven but now
this must change to become an outward, customer focussed one.
The company embarks on the change process. It restructures; it retrains
staff and starts on a culture change program for the front line. But the
senior management is still focussed on costs and the numbers. So despite
the proclaimed reason for the change, it starts a cost cutting exercise.
Senior management even visits the front line to drive the cost-cutting
message home.
What's the result?
Staff are confused by the mixed messages; they remain
inward looking, there is no focus on the customer and in fact, costs go
up.
Another example: returning from a scuba diving trip recently, I was
talking to a man who works in customer service in the motor industry. He
was a bit agitated and we hadn't even seen a shark! He told me that the
reason for his jumpiness was a quality audit on Monday. He was just
praying that everything would be okay.
When I asked why he was worried, he said they only did things according
to the quality manuals when they knew an audit was coming up. They did
not follow the manuals every day, because his boss thought 'the quality
thing' was too much hassle so, "We just do things the way we've always
done them." The result? A highly stressed employee, unimproved customer
service, a completely ineffective quality change program and wasted
resources.
Leaders should set the pace
During times of change and pressure, people
always look to their leaders to set the pace and show the way.
Psychologically we are designed to respond positively or at least
neutrally, to consistency.
Comedians play on this and make us laugh by delivering a line we can't
predict. You can't see it coming.
The advertising industry uses this approach, too. Do you remember the
beautiful young woman in the back of the New York cab who, having
freshened her lipstick, finishes off by shaving 'her' stubble with an
electric razor! If you have seen it, you'll remember the brand of the
razor.
Inconsistency is acceptable out of work in some situations but what most
people want in the workplace is to know what's coming next and to be
able to rely on their leaders. People believe what they see, not what is
said. They want leaders they can trust.
I have never met an employee yet who says, "I love the way I don't know
how the boss is going to react. It's great that it is never the same."
Just consider your reaction and the reaction of the American people to
the recent Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky debacle. Most people did not
care too much about the fact that the President had an affair. What
started to shift opinions were his inconsistent statements. That
inconsistency, not the affair, almost cost him the Presidency and most
certainly impacted on the level of trust in him by the American people.
Beware the silent saboteur
If leaders "don't practice what they preach"
or "walk their talk", their people don't trust them. When that happens,
people become cynical, unresponsive to change and at worst become
'silent saboteurs'.
We know there is a problem and the change isn't going according to plan
but we just can't seem to put our finger on it.
A major challenge for leaders of change is they must have the
resilience, tenacity and clarity of vision to shake off the old and
focus on the new. In complex and difficult change situations, it's easy
to fall back into the old ways of doing things when the going gets
tough.
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