Change is a part of life. We all go through changes at some point in our lives, whether it’s a personal change or a work-related change. Managing change in the workplace is important to ensure minimal disruption to the company and the people working for it. I would like to address the aspect of change in business and how to manage it.
Managing change in the workplace examples:
Change can vary, and there are many different forms of it. There can be a change in systems and processes that make a company more efficient in how they operate. There can be a change in working hours, or there can be a change in management and coworkers. Many triggers can bring about change. Companies and business leaders alike need to ensure that they and their teams will adapt and cope with the changes.
I can tell you that in all my years of owning a business, change presented several times and in different ways. Sometimes change was small but still required good management to overcome it. For example, it took us a whole week to agree on a simple change of working hours! Humans in general do not take change easily. Even a change in coffee brand was met with resistance!
When scaling our business we had many changes as well. However, the most significant change, of course, was when we sold the business. In all three examples of managing change in the workplace, (the hour changes – the coffee change – and the sale of the business) I applied the same method and the same course of action.
We all know that most people don’t like change. We are creatures of habit. Change can often bring out emotions of insecurity, fear, and a sense of disruption.
So why is managing change in the workplace important? The danger in change is that it may rock a good boat. The smallest thing can be a trigger. When managing change you must predict the possible consequences and be ready for them should they arise.
It was, therefore, critical to be able to manage change slowly and gradually and in a few stages. Change cannot happen overnight.
So how do you manage change in the workplace? Let’s look at when we sold our business and how we told our staff.
Selling our business was not only an enormous change for us as directors but an even more significant change to our team. They had to go through all the emotions of a change of management, which posed several other questions to staff and bought out a lot of mixed emotions such as fear, insecurities, disruption, sadness, and anxiety. Our job was to manage this well so the transition would be as smooth as possible for staff and the new management team coming on board.
So, what were the four key steps we implemented to manage the change?
- 1. Be Positive
- 2. Involve Your Team
- 3. Transition
- 4. Embrace The Change
Be Positive
If you make it a big deal, it will be – we downplayed it wherever we could. We tried to introduce the change in a very casual way.
We tried to avoid “big” announcements or special meetings. We tried to be very casual in order to not create any unnecessary fears or worries in their mind. We used positive narratives. For example instead of saying that they dont need to worry about their job security (which would make them worry) we emphasized that the new management is dependent on them for success. We chose our words carefully and we tried to present a relaxed and calm body language. If you are calm, so are they.
Involve Your Team
It was important for us to get them involved as much as possible and be part of the decision making process. Especially our key staff. We asked for their opinion and how they would feel under such circumstances. Getting them involved allowed us to slowly introduce them to this big change that was coming their way. They had time to process in a proactive, safe and caring environment.
Their state of mind was of utmost importance.
Although I, as a Director, was leaving, other trusted key workers were not. Letting the rest of the team know that they were staying was reassuring for them that not much was changing in their world. They would continue to do what they were doing, and the only difference was that they would be getting paid by a different entity.
We also emphasised that we would stay on during a transition period and that they could come to us at any point to seek support if they so needed.
Transition
Being there during the transition period was very positive and crucial for this process to work. While they were getting familiar with the new owners, they could still come to us and seek support.
A casual meeting was arranged with the new owners whereby staff could have an informal chat with them and ask them as many questions as they wanted and get to know them. Putting a face to the ‘change’ at this point was important.
Over a few weeks, we made subtle changes that were significant to the new owners but insignificant to how our team was working. We ensured our team were aware of these small changes to adapt and accept them little by little and start getting used to the idea of new management coming in. The new owners were coming into the business on a “now and again” basis and not every day. At this point, if there were any questions or queries, we would let them know that we were preparing for the transfer of ownership and showed them that these changes were not affecting them as previously reassured. In making these small changes and fine-tuning, it was still essential to get their input so they could feel they were part of the process. We asked them for their ideas and opinions so they understood how important they were to the future of the business.
Embrace The Change
Once the transfer was finalised, our team was already so involved that they felt part of the change. Their fear was replaced with new hope for an exciting new future. Changes that were introduced to them were explained to them in a positive way and didn’t seem threatening.
We stayed on for a few weeks working under the new management together. They then saw that not much in their world had changed, which took away their fear. Whatever changes were made, they were happy with it because they were a part of creating them; this appeased their sense of disruption. By the new owners seeking their advice on systems and processes, we managed their insecurities. The only emotion left to deal with was the sadness that we would not be around. However, we assured them that we would always be within reach both to them and the new owners.
Conclusion
I found that these four steps can be implemented to whatever trigger of change you are dealing with in business. Helping employees become resilient can assist them when dealing with change in the workplace. It is achievable if done correctly.
Change creates such an outpour of emotions. It is therefore essential to be positive in order to reduce people’s fear of change. It would be best to involve the people who are actually going through the change so that they feel they are helping create the change.
