Why Organizational Change Efforts Fail

Hello, Friend.

Does change have you down? Change is heavy on my mind lately. Everyone, everywhere I go, is wrestling with how to manage yet another change. The toughest part for most folks is the complaints. In the video I describe the Big Four complaints that I hear about most often:

1. Communication: "We expect transparency!"
2. Decision Making: "We want to know who is making decisions, how and based on what criteria." 
3. Equity: "The decisions you are making, without consulting me, have a negative impact on me."
4. Trust: "I don't believe that you have my/our best interest in mind."  

Are these issues familiar to you? If so, you're not alone. They're common areas of concern. The tricky part is that they aren't about change.

They're about process.

Actually, these issues reflect a lack of process sophistication that, if it were present, would totally transform not just your organization's ability to manage change but would lead to: increased engagement, higher levels of motivation, shared accountability, and recruitment and retention of high performance employees.  

Q: How do you develop process sophistication and reap the associated benefits?
A: Invest in your managers. 

Most organizations are not fully leveraging the power of your managers to create evenness across the organization and to help drive strategy. Unevenness means that there is lack of overall strength or significant variance in the quality of managers. In a lot of organizations, people get to be managers as a way to reward them for good work as an independent contributor. 

A second shortcoming of many organizations is failure to fully leverage the strength of middle managers in advancing the strategy of the organization. A lot of times senior leaders, and even middle managers themselves, believe that strategy is the work of executives. I wholly disagree. Of course, we want people in executive roles to shape vision, but the execution--the kind that really permeates an organization in a way that allows for cultural transformation--will require a shared leadership philosophy and approach. This means that everyone is on the same page with the language we use, our vision, how we communicate through change, priorities, values, hiring, promotion and retention, rewards and recognition, customer service and the like. 

This is where I come in. I have tools to help you build a shared philosophy and approach in a way that will transform the potential of your managers and your organization. 

It’s called the Inclusive Manager’s Toolkit and it’s an 8-week online program that focuses on the part of your organization that most directly drives success--managers. I would love for you, your team and your colleagues to join me for the Inclusive Manager’s Toolkit. Check out the Program Overview and Schedule to get a sense of the design and flow. It’s a three-part design:

1) individual preferences and skills,
2) tools for managing others and
3) strategies for making organization-wide impact.

Each week new content will be released which will include videos, downloadable resources, specific tools and skills that can be immediately put into practice. You will also get up close and personal coaching from me and my team of experts.

Together we will offer live webinars, weekly coaching calls and customized learning experiences to ensure that you are able to take full advantage of the program materials and apply what you’re learning to your current role. 

For more information about the Inclusive Manager’s Toolkit visit my website, DeEttaJones.com or email us at [email protected]. We look forward to working with you!