David Shectman offers insight as to why most organizations abandon change efforts before they see results, and how to approach this dilemma.
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As absurd as the title of this article may sound, it’s the reality of most change efforts in the corporate world. Nearly every organization wants to change in some way—higher revenue, lower expenses, better marketing, greater efficiencies. Yet most organizations want quick results and won’t hang in throughout the change process.
If change were a linear process, then the world would be a much simpler place. But change isn’t linear, so the experience of going through it remains a swirl of highs and lows, progress and setbacks, endurance and perseverance. People are not robots—thank goodness—so the way that organizations experience change needs to reflect the complex, nuanced reality of human systems.
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Kurt Lewin, a noted social psychologist, was one of the founders of the Organization Development field. His thinking went into creating some of the most important and prominent change institutions in the world, including the National Training Laboratories (NTL) in Bethel, Maine. Lewin’s greatest contribution to the world may be his model for change. He described a change process in which three steps occur: 1) unfreeze, 2) change, and 3) freeze. That’s it. It’s that straightforward. And nearly all other change models build on this foundation.
Of course, the devil is in the details because each of the three steps contains massive and challenging work. Unfreezing includes letting go of the existing mindset. It’s a way of disrupting the status quo. The way we think, work, and act all gets called into question or reexamined. Then changing, as a step, includes making the modifications to the system or process in question. This step often involves the observable efforts that people can see. Finally, freezing includes crystalizing the new way of thinking and acting. The results become the new norm.
The challenge, especially for those experiencing the change process, is that steps one and two (unfreeze and change) are extremely disorienting to people. Again, people are not robots and behavior is not always rational. Even healthy, positive change encounters resistance among people because it often threatens an accepted and familiar way of doing things. Even if the change is beneficial to all involved, people still resist it because it’s new and different.
This reality throws a lot of people for a loop, including the people leading the change effort. “Why in the world are these people fighting me moment by moment? This change will benefit them,” is a refrain commonly heard around the water cooler during change projects.
So, what’s extremely common in the workplace is that companies will launch a change effort, experience a temporary decline in morale and results (as people adjust to the disorientation), and then scale back or abandon the change effort. It happens all of the time. It’s why many efforts just don’t work.
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Many people have come to call it: “The Rollercoaster of Change.” This is a good description. Rollercoasters are thrilling, jarring, and disorienting. Not everyone likes them. Rollercoasters force people to confront fears around speed, height, and movement.
But the wisdom among practitioners of change, those who lead these efforts regularly, is that things get worse before they get better. As organizations begin changing, disorientation sets in and people often start looking for safety. It’s not uncommon for companies to take a step back when this happens.
So, for you, while dealing with a change effort, consider the following suggestions:
- If you’re a coach, consultant, or trainer, be up front with your clients. Tell them that change isn’t an easy or linear process. It might get worse before it gets better. Set expectations properly. It’s often hard to do when selling work, but you and they will be much happier in the end. The likelihood of success also rises when people know what’s coming.
- If you’re a leader taking a company through a change effort, be discerning and patient. Sometimes people resist change because they don’t understand what’s happening or because they’re just struggling with a new way of thinking or acting. This type of resistance doesn’t mean that they’re a problem. Offer some grace and latitude as they adjust to the new normal. On the other hand, some people don’t want to see the new way. They’re so threatened by change that they’d rather take the entire ship down than do something new. They shouldn’t be part of the future. Learn to tell the difference.
- If you’re going through a change process as an organizational contributor, give some benefit of the doubt, both to yourself and those leading the efforts. First, for you, remember that humans are extremely adaptable. If you take a deep breath and step into the unknown, chances are you’ll figure out whatever you need to learn. It might not be smooth or seamless; but it will happen. Second, for the leaders in your company, they don’t have all the answers. They may act like they do, but they don’t. Yet in most cases they are genuinely trying to do what’s best. And if you offer help, you might just make the difference that puts the whole thing over the top.
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It’s not easy to step into the unknown. Change efforts in organizations often force people to confront this reality. Yet hanging in through disorienting times typically pays off for most people. The only thing that’s worse than going through a big change effort, however, is starting one and then abandoning it. It’s the worst of all outcomes.
When people embrace courage, perseverance, and adaptability, they change, organizations change, and results come—even if they come later than anyone would like.
Step in, step up, and step through.
Photo credit: Flickr/Rascals fan