Maintaining engagement through change

At today’s Melcrum Change Communication Conference, we ran an interactive session asking all attendees to consider the challenges and solutions we face in keeping employees engaged through the change process.

We talked about the change curve, and the stages employees typically move through during organisational change. They are: shock, reaction, acceptance, action and commitment.

Small groups convened to discuss the challenges and solutions (ideas) for communicating through these stages in order to support employees and move them through the curve as quickly as possible.

The verbatim outputs from each group is available below. In summary, some of the key themes to come out of the discussion were:

Shock to reaction

Challenge: the complexity of messages, what information is available to be shared and when, and how to keep things as simple and clear as possible while employees are still absorbing the news

Solutions: having a plan, engaging early, being authentic and being honest and frank

Reaction to acceptance

Challenges: getting people to listen, getting consensus, leadership doing what you need them to do, acknowledging emotions

Solutions: providing avenues for listening and feedback, communicating quick wins, holding venting sessions (saying goodbye to the past), constant reinforcement of the why and WIIFM

Acceptance to action

Challenges: developing and maintaining a common understanding of the future state, bringing everyone along for the journey, demystifying and adding more detail/facts

Solutions: providing and articulating a clear roadmap, ensuring people have a role in the change, focus on the symbols, structures, systems and routines

Action to commitment

Challenges: keeping up momentum, moving from talk to action, continuing to see the possibilities, ensuring a long-term vision throughout the organisation, managing the danger of unrealistic expectations if things don’t happen as quickly as expected

Solutions: celebrate success, share stories, make it fun and energetic, focus on the long-term vision

We had a very enjoyable time facilitating the session and hope everyone has a great final day of conference!

Cheers,
Adrian and Melissa

 

Shock to Reaction

• telling phase: why, how, overview of future
• denial, blocking, anger
  

Challenges

• timing everything
• how much do we share?
• managing managers authentically
• pre-involving internal comms
• takes time for news to sink in
• don’t focus on squeaky wheels
• manage message complexity
• productivity decline may impact business
• facts/transparency/timing
• acknowledging human emotion
• lack of trust in senior management
• mixed messages – media vs internal
• keeping ahead of media
• collective resistance
  

Solutions

• Timing:
• o    get a plan
• o    THINK
• o    get key stakeholders together
• o    pre-position as many core messages as possible
• o    it may change
• Authenticity:
• o    believe what you’re selling
• o    facts and data build a strong ‘why’ story
• o    role-play for managers who have to deliver messages
• IC Role:  
• o    get in early!
• o    position ourselves as partners
• Messaging:
• o    WIIFM
• o    bite-sized narrative
• o    honest and personal
• o    stand up to scrutiny
• o    ask for commitment
• stay focused, acknowledge reaction
• communicate the good with the bad for credibility
• use plain English
• clear plans and timelines
• think outside square – channels
• establish credible source of info/voice (peers/leadership/CEO)
• define and engage key influential stakeholders (unions)
• clear facts and WIIFM and context and expectations (or, what does it mean to me?)
• people assigned to listen, two-way communications (collect feedback – intranet – focus groups)
• provide support/counselling – acknowledging people’s feelings
• media responses ready – employees first
• internal and external comms aligned
• some people may need to go – with respect

 

Reaction to Acceptance

Challenges

• getting people to listen
• getting people (managers) to be open to listening/feedback
• rebuilding trust
• honest/frank
• senior management not listening (steamroller approach)
• managing the rumour mill
• convincing management to allow open and honest communication
• getting regular information out in a timely manner – sustaining momentum
• getting everyone on the same page – one size does not fit all
• getting staff to participate
• disinterest
• lack of understanding of staff needs
• dealing with unexpected reactions from staff – factors unforeseen
• leadership
• time/ budget/resource constraints

Solutions

• celebrate positives
• venting sessions (emo ball – everyone dresses in black!)
• announce issues – employer ask for solutions
• introduce quick wins to gain staff confidence
• constantly reinforce vision and staff benefits and values
• involve staff at all levels of organisation – clear feedback mechanisms
• blog site for staff to ask questions
• be honest and realistic
• incentives to change behaviour
• do  your research – understand your audiences
• plan ahead – comms strategy

 

Acceptance to Action

Challenges

• challenge around role definition – change management vs change communication
• is change dictated/imposed or do they own?
• need to show/demonstrate action
• period of confusion
• risk of bounce-back – revert to previous behaviour
• how do you get voices heard?
• lead them towards exploring – provide management level with information
• need to identify where people are – to tailor information
• might leave people behind by moving into positive too quickly
• managing those who are way ahead of the pack (e.g. leaders)
• developing common understanding and maintaining consistent messages
• managing the pace for everyone
• need to give tangible evidence
• getting practical – what do I need it to do?
• shift from why to how
• differing levels of support and required skills, common knowledge, applying them
• managing expectations for everyone including boundary management, sober selling – not the silver bullet
• availability of channels and appropriateness
• protecting the ‘acceptors’ and continued support
• trust – building and maintaining
• maintaining acceptance

Solutions

• communicate structure and steps – be clear provide certainty
• provide room for staff to find their own actions
• acknowledge emotions
• provide a language for change
• provide forum for questions/clarification
• ongoing pulse survey to identify who and what
• stay connected
• tailored information
• trust-promoting behaviours (say/do)
• simple road map
• make the first step easy and personal
• demonstrate what has been done already – role modelling
• ensure/encourage buy-in by action
• form committees of influence/opinion leaders
• change language – e.g. “no longer in transformation, we are now one business”
• pulse polling – qualitative and quantitative
• regular updates
• take up permission to lead
• reps from each group involved together in a team with a real outcome with clarity around their role
• solution development component in the program to involve different groups
• feedback process with actual conversation, face to face, live and active
• tapping into existing forums, intranet
• ongoing and management support backed up by actions
• “model office” set up scenario and bring people in to experience how it works
• changes to policy and procedures – core documents reflect the new state
• clear scope statement and key messages that is constantly referred to
• continue to bust myths and sell benefits
• demonstrate with actual examples that should now be happening
• issues management process
• role definition and clarity, accountabilities
• coaching in preparation for actions for sponsors
• identify opinion leaders and champions and harnessing them
• maintain active communications, momentum

  Action to Commitment

 Challenges

• maintain momentum of change
• continue to see possibilities
• move from talk to action and ownership
• alignment across organisation to maintain learnings
• understanding long-term view throughout organisation, especially managers, that the process is about ongoing engagement
• ensure action is focused on the right things in the right way
• people may want to move back to the “old”
• maintaining the compelling vision
• lose momentum/enthusiasm
• longer term benefit?
• no choice – resentment and resistance
• time and resource to act
• unrealistic expectations – not delivering
• change of staff
• toxic employeee
  

Solutions

• communicate small wins/success stories
• use successful roles models in all areas of the organisation
• maintain frequency and consistency of comms
• encourage people to tell their own stories: on screen savers,   newsletter,   wikis, blogs,   video
• face to face meetings in teams and one on ones
• celebrate wins
• recognition (personal)
• tangible evidence that the change is better than the old (e.g. gifts)
• under promise – over deliver
• make it fun/energetic – through involvement to create impact
• one on one formal sessions
• quiz to reinforce message (humour, interactive)
• symbolic activity – shed old, put on the new
• acknowledge past/old
• permission to make mistakes (loosen reins)
• be flexible, creative with comms of same messages
• choice with the new
• maintain focus of leadership team
• top down team building
• what’s in it for me!
• clarity on benefits/opportunities
• reward/recognition
• leadership roadshows: progress, milestones, outcomes, results
• feedback – surveys, focus groups
• incentives/meaningful
• celebrate success
• long term vision – visual map
• internal brand – project
• clarity of roles
• customer feedback:  endorsement, vox pops, stories
• doing good deeds
• internal competition

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