Chapter 2

Understand Change—Position Yourself to Win

In This Chapter

• how to stay ahead of the information curve
• six ways to keep in front of change
• generational difference in change
• 12 early warning signs that organizational change is stirring
• seven signs poor communication is stalling your career
• how good is your organizational radar exercise
• organizational change exercise

Those most affected by change often least understand why the change is happening or who is behind the change initiative. This sad fact is one of the biggest obstacles to change. So the first thing you must understand is who created the change. That’s the main purpose of this chapter.

First, let’s assign some official character names and roles for those involved in most organizational change scripts. Here are the three main players:

• Change Initiators—those responsible for identifying and acting on the need for change (management). These organizational actors initiate change, but are not necessarily the ones charged with implementing the change.
• Change Implementers—the real movers and shakers in the change initiative (managers, department heads) charged with making something happen on the ground.
• Change Intended—those who are most affected by change (the workers, line employees).

 

See Figure 2.1 for a graphic illustration of the relationship between these three groups of people.

What is intended by the change and what actually occurs can become two distinctly different things. This chapter (and really this entire book) explores this disconnect between intention and outcome to help you navigate these treacherous waters.

Understanding the Change Players

All the change players—initiators, implementers, intended— are affected by change, but organizational structures prevent all players from experiencing the impact of change at the same time in the process. This timing difference may be seen by the intended, living at the bottom of the information food chain, as upper management’s insensitivity to their feelings and concerns. In reality, initiators are not insensitive to the intended group’s concerns. It’s just that the initiators already went through these emotions when they were directly involved in initiating the change process and have now moved on to other concerns. They don’t mean any harm or disrespect, but they are already thinking of the next change. See Figure 2.2 for a graphic representation of this organizational change dynamic.

Six Ways to Stay Ahead of the Information Curve

Understanding organizational change requires not just knowing where the change originates and from whom; it also requires having the most accurate information. You should take at least the following steps and ask the right questions during any organizational change initiative.

Learn Everything You Can About the Change

Ask questions; read what is sent out about the changes; carefully observe what is happening. Try to identify the initiators and implementers. The implementers are usually easy to spot, since they are likely telling you about the changes. The initiators may not be so obvious. They may be the bosses of the implementers, though not necessarily.

There could also be influencers, who may have a major impact on what ultimately happens in the organization. They don’t necessarily have to be part of the organization. Typical influencers may be customer groups, but can include economic conditions (foreign or domestic), or some world or national event, such as a terrorist attack or economic meltdown. Once you have a better understanding of what’s driving the change, you can better assess how it will affect you and your future.

Find Out What Is Really Behind the Change

Talk to as many people as possible to gain their perspective about the change. Find out what or who are the influencers driving the organizational changes. Listen carefully to everything said about the change. Again, this is particularly important during the earliest stages of an organizational change process. Sometimes the rationale given for the change loses its true meaning as it is presented over and over or filtered for the public. You may find this information is the only true insight as to the real influencers and initiators of the change.

Listen to the Buzz About Reorganization

The best thing to do, particularly in the earliest stages of the change, is to soak it all up. Pay attention to not only what is being said but also to how it is being said. You can usually tell how people really feel about something by how they say things. Listen for the buzz throughout the organization about how different people feel about the changes. This can be important signs of how these changes will be implemented and by whom. In this buzz, you can gain insights into the real influencers and initiators, which will ultimately help you deal most positively with the change. (See the exercise at the end of this chapter to sharpen your buzz abilities.)

As we will see in chapter 7, organizational change is much like a political process. There are factions, for example, struggling for power and position as everything begins to realign. Some of these factions may have great influence on the eventual outcome of the changes. Listen carefully to what is talked about informally throughout the organization to learn what is driving these influencers.

Understand the Reorganization Rationale

Find out what your organization ultimately expects to achieve with the change. Are there hidden agendas? Be aware that what is officially presented as the objectives and rationale for the change may represent only part of what management really hopes to achieve. This is where things get interesting. Look for inconsistencies among the initiators of the changes. Is what they say the true rationale for the changes? Listen also for things that just don’t make sense. You may hear very fuzzy reasons or hear some that even seem counterproductive for the change. When you hear these, you should assume there is some other reason that is not being stated publicly.

Take, for example, the official reason for a major change in a sales organization of a large corporation: “In order to better serve our rapidly expanding customer base, we are realigning our sales organization to be able to meet this objective. A new organizational reporting chart is attached.”

Sounds pretty logical, right? But the attached reporting chart shows a significant reduction in the number of salespeople in the new organization. If you were affected by this change, surely you would ask yourself: “Is this reorganization really about trying to serve the customer better, or is it simply about reducing the number of people in our sales force? Is the real purpose of this change to cut operating costs?” It is entirely possible that a smaller, more efficient sales force may indeed serve the customer better. But if this is the case, why wasn’t this stated as the objective of the changes being made?

This is an important point that everyone, particularly those who sponsor it, must understand as change is introduced. If you want everyone in the organization to support the change, they need to fully understand its true objectives. Follow the duck test—if it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, and smells like a duck, then it probably is a duck! People know a duck when they see one. Similarly, people know the difference between an initiative to get closer to the customer and a cost-cutting effort.

Is the Reorganization About People or Process?

If the change is about people, it was probably designed to give people either more or less responsibility. If it is about process, certain functions of the organization will be changed. This is where the subtleties of organizational change come into play. Sometimes the purpose may be clearly stated as an effort to develop certain people for future assignments. Sometimes, however, the purpose is a little harder to decipher. Process changes may involve different personnel assignments, but their main purpose is to make operations more efficient. If you think the change is to address a problem, then it is likely about process.

The distinctions to watch for are in the stated objectives for each type of change. In either case, you will have an excellent glimpse of the long-term strategy of the organization’s leadership and where their plans will take the company.

Watch Out for Reorganizations in Disguise

Sometimes reorganizations are disguised, to try to avoid upset feelings or other emotional impacts on the organization. Regardless of what it is called, reorganization by any other name is still a reorganization. The difficulty is that it isn’t like the duck test. Although it doesn’t look like a duck, sound like a duck, or smell like a duck, it is still a duck! Calling a downsizing by some other name may make it seem less traumatic in the short term, or reduce its impact on the public, but ultimately it weakens the credibility of the change initiators. Just as in other aspects of life, actions speak louder than words. Watch for what actually occurs after a change announcement. Do you see a hidden agenda behind the change? The better the observer you are, the more opportunity you will have to position yourself positively for coming changes.

Keep in mind that organizational change is a dynamic process—one that never really ends. A basic survival skill in organizations today must be to learn to deal positively with these constant changes. It is like swimming in an ocean of change. No sooner has one wave of change hit you than another is on its way. If you let the first wave knock you down, you risk being drowned by the next one. But if you learn to ride the first wave, the second will propel you even further ahead.

Generational Differences in Change

Although people’s reactions to change are certainly a function of their personality and past experience, generational differences also affect how individuals react to change. For example, younger workers are perfectly comfortable getting any kind of message texted to them—whether it’s an upcoming change or a change in their relationship status. You remember how the example character James Smith reacted to getting a text about change happening in his organization. The chart below illustrates how different generations react to digital communication options.

12 Early Warning Signs

Being able to read the signs that organizational change may be imminent will help you prepare for coming change initiatives. The following warning signs that organizational change is stirring should be blips to watch for on your early-warning radar screen. You’ll also find additional detailed information about change and an exercise in the Appendix on page 169 that will help hone your early-warning people skills.

Sign 1: Problems Are Not Addressed at Once

A telltale sign is that problems in the organization are left unaddressed or are allowed to go on longer than anyone would have expected. “When are they finally going to do something about that?” is a common question heard throughout the organization as people try to understand what is happening. The reason for this delay may be that the change initiators have not yet decided how to deal with the problem in the new scheme of things.

Sign 2: Key Decisions Are Postponed

Key decisions may be postponed for the same reason. The change initiators may be delaying these decisions until their new organizational plan is in place.

Sign 3: Positions Are Left Unfilled

Once again, delay is the name of the game. Organizational change often includes new assignments and reporting relationships. Sometimes it involves a complete restructuring of the organization. To fill a single position without announcing the entire new organizational plan may be even more of a problem than leaving it vacant for the time being.

Sign 4: Decisions Don’t Seem to Make Sense

Sometimes the decisions seem illogical to people who are not the initiators. This is like seeing only one isolated piece of a puzzle before it is fit into its proper place and completes the picture. Alone, it may not look like anything recognizable or familiar. But as part of the completed puzzle, it is clearly seen as an integral part of the bigger picture that has now been revealed.

Sign 5: The Rumor Mill Gets Active

Everyone loves a rumor. No matter how hard the organization tries to prevent them, rumors will always be part of organizational change. Information just seems to have a way of leaking out. The more sensitive and confidential the information, the greater the chance that it will be leaked. People just can’t seem to keep their mouths shut when it comes to knowing something that someone else would love to hear. As a general rule, if two people know something, then technically it is no longer confidential, as everyone knows someone they feel that they can trust with secrets. It is dangerous, though, to rely on the rumor mill as your only source of information during times of organizational change. The rumor mill is not always accurate. In fact, it is sometimes very inaccurate as false reports circulate through the organization. Typically the rumor mill provides at least a warning signal that change is in the air, and it seems that there’s a little truth in every rumor. It is a good idea to be aware of what the rumor mill is saying and watch to see if it is right or not.

Sign 6: Outsiders Tell You Something Is Happening

Often people outside of the organization are the first to know that something is going to change. This may be information that was shared with them in confidence (remember the definition of confidential). Or they truly don’t appreciate the sensitivity of the information they are sharing. Regardless of the reason why these outsiders were told, it’s a good idea to be cautious and count it as at least a blip on your radar screen.

Sign 7: Changes Occur in Key People’s Behavior

If you know something, it is hard to act like you don’t. Those who are planning the change may not even realize they are acting differently as a result of knowing what is about to unfold in the organization. Although they may valiantly try to maintain an image of business as usual in front of everyone, sooner or later there is bound to be a crack in this veneer. Look for unusual reactions to situations from these key people, and be aware that they indeed may be the initiators of the next change. If their actions don’t really fit the current situation, maybe they are already factoring in what they know about what is coming.

Sign 8: More Closed-Door Meetings Take Place

Clearly, some aspects of a change initiative need to remain confidential no matter how transparent a company says it strives to be. Preliminary information tends to confuse and concern everyone unnecessarily. The initiators are doing the right thing by keeping these discussions to themselves. However, seeing this going on should be a tip-off that something is in the wind.

Sign 9: Hints Are Offered by Top Management

At some point during the change process, the initiators may want to begin sharing at least some bits of information about the future. They may want to test the waters and find possible reactions in the organization to the changes. They may also want to lift the shroud of secrecy they have had imposed upon them for the initial planning stages. After a while it’s hard to find credible ways to disguise your activities and contain this type of information.

Sign 10: Unusual Visits and Meetings Are Noted

Just as politics makes strange bedfellows, so too does organizational change. Planning change in an organization may require people to work together whose roles don’t typically place them in the same room. But there they are, working together in earnest on some secret project that no one will give you a straight answer about. Seems odd, doesn’t it? Obviously, some big change must be about to take place.

Sign 11: People Are Asking Unusual Questions

To plan change requires information. It is unlikely the initiators have all the data they need without involving others in the organization. They may need to see technical information, personnel records, and financial reports in order to complete their planning. They may ask others in the organization questions that seem out of context. The information they request may seem foreign to any current project. “I wonder why he wanted to know that?” may be a question on many people’s minds during this stage of the change process.

Sign 12: Answers Regarding the Future Are Evasive

Again, there is a fine line between sharing information prematurely and maintaining your credibility with others during times of organizational change. The most effective leaders develop the skills necessary to maintain this delicate balance in their communication with employees during times of change. Trust, of course, is essential. Whenever you hear vague or evasive responses to legitimate questions that deserve answers, it is fair to assume that something is about to change but it is too early to discuss it. You may have just asked the question the initiators hoped no one would ask until they were ready to answer. The more evasive the answer, the more certain you can be that change is definitely on its way.

See the Organizational Change Exercise in the Tools, Techniques, and Exercises section later in this chapter for some practice at honing these early warning skills.

Poor Communication Can Stall Your Career

The following brief story illustrates just how important keeping informed at all times is to your career.

Jonathan Franklin was worried about his future with the company. He had worked for OneNet Solutions for the past four years and had already been promoted to a higher job level as promised when he was hired. But lately something was wrong that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He just felt he was being left out of certain meetings and his supervisors seemed to be treating him differently. But what bothered Jonathan most was that he was seeing newer employees get the assignments he felt he deserved. He wondered how he could have fallen behind so fast. Then one day he realized he wasn’t keeping up to date with what was going on around him at work. He always felt he was reading yesterday’s newspaper to try to learn what was going on today. So he started to pay attention and noticed that others put considerably more effort into keeping on top of the most current ways to communicate (including the company’s intranet and instant message features). He finally realized that fully participating in these technologies made a big difference to those who mattered, especially his supervisor—so he quickly got tech savvy.

The Seven Signs of a Stalled Career

Keeping up with communication is so important today that lagging behind in this area can significantly affect your career success. The following are seven signs your career may be stalled, and each one has something to do with staying in touch with the latest information buzzing around your organization. If you answer yes to a majority of these, perhaps you should take a lesson from our friend Jonathan.

1. You feel like you are always the last to know.
2. You are receiving assignments without much challenge.
3. You hear about meetings that you weren’t invited to attend.
4. Others get promotions you never knew existed.
5. Your boss’s boss seems less interested in you.
6. You don’t seem to be plugged into the rumor mill anymore.
7. You are eating lunch alone more often than before.

Communication Habits

Below are just a few of the communication sources you might want to pay more attention to in the future, especially if they are working well for others in the organization:

Rumor mill

Internet

Social media

Networking

Organization’s internal communication

Announcements

Boss

Meetings

Customers

Conversations

Other sources of information

Tools, Techniques, and Exercises

As you learned in the chapter, positioning yourself to win involves developing a savvy set of survival skills. You need to increase your ability to assess your organization’s intentions based on instinct and hard fact-based evidence. This section provides an opportunity for you to develop these skills using the following tools, techniques, and exercises.

How Good Is Your Organizational Radar Screen Exercise

Imagine you had a device that could warn you about the next change about to occur in your organization. This marvelous device might be called an Organizational Change Radar Screen. All you would have to do is turn it on and look ahead to what is coming at you next. Does it sound too good to be true? Maybe not. Each of us already has such a device if we choose to use it. We have the innate ability to see what may be about to occur by using our intuition and reasoning power. Most change gives us some kind of warning or sign that it is about to occur. It is up to us to see these signs. How good is your organizational change radar screen? The following are a few examples of how such a blip on your organizational change radar screen might appear and should forewarn you of what is possibly on its way.

What are some examples of blips on your organization’s change radar screen?

Organizational Change Exercise

Once you have seen the signs of organizational change, it is crucial to know what is most important. This exercise is designed to help you understand what should be a priority during times of organizational change. Rank the following items in order of their importance by assigning number 1 to the most important, and so on. If you do not think an item has any particular value concerning organizational change, mark it with an X.

Frequent communication

Rumor mill

Access to top management

Explanation why change is necessary

Emotional support

Identifying everyone’s new role

Honoring the past

Goals of the new organization

New reporting chart

Resistance to change

Organizational Change Exercise [Answers]

There may be no right or wrong answers to this exercise. What is most important is different in each situation and organization. What you listed as the top priorities in this exercise are what you should set as goals in order to welcome organizational change. The following are general explanations of why each of the topics listed would be of value or not during organizational change.

Frequent communication—People need to know what is going on during periods of change. Organizations often provide information early in the change process but do not do an adequate job of following up after the change has been announced. People need frequent updates as changes are implemented.

Rumor mill—In the absence of regular communication from the organization, the rumor mill may fill the information void. It will ultimately be of little value, however, and should be marked with an X. Because the rumor mill is mostly inaccurate, it will only confuse the situation and will contribute even more stress to the situation. The more information the organization provides during change, the less active the rumor mill will be.

Access to top management—There may be many questions that can be answered only by top management. Employees will be anxious to hear management’s views of the changes that are occurring and what management plans for the future.

Explanation of why change is necessary—Change brings hardship for everyone. People need to understand why it is necessary for them to make these sacrifices. They need to understand why the change is happening and why things couldn’t simply remain as they were. They need to know that the cost was worth the return of change.

Emotional support—Too often, the emotional side of change is ignored. Emotions are not always logical. Organizations may quickly dismiss the emotional reactions of people affected by change as being frivolous. These emotions are very important, however, and must be given the necessary support and attention during organizational change.

Identifying employees’ new roles—One of the key questions employees have during organizational change is: “What is my new role in the organization?” Often the new roles are not addressed until the later stages of the process. Consequently, it is not always possible to answer this important question during the early stages of organizational change. The earlier the new roles are identified and communicated, the more comfortable everyone will be during the change.

Honoring the past—At first, this may appear to have little value to the change process. After all, the past is now history. You are moving away from the past to new beginnings. But the past will always be important to people. It represents who they were and who they still are today. Although people must let go of the past in order to move forward, they also need to cherish and honor what has been. Thus, it is important to allow people the opportunity to honor their past in appropriate ways that will help them move forward in the future.

Goals of the new organization—People need to know the goals of the new organization. If they do not know where the changes are intended to take the organization, they won’t be able to support the initiatives. Everyone needs to be striving toward the success of the organization’s new objectives, but first they must understand what they are.

The new reporting chart—Who is in and who is out of the new organization? This is one of the first things everyone will want to know. The new structure should be communicated as soon as possible.

Resistance to change—This is another item that will serve of no value and should be marked with an X. Resisting change will only make everyone more frustrated and unhappy with what will become inevitable.

What’s Next?

So you have now put yourself in a good position to face the change. What if you don’t like what you see? The next chapter provides some help on deciding whether it’s time to stay and fight or look for opportunities elsewhere.