As an illustration of the bad ideas, think back on the 'isms' that have
been around in the last 30 years, and think how many had any actual
staying power.
An example of the second kind occurred to me today. I resisted a change
proposed by a technology manager who wanted to put a new system in that
was easy to implement and 'gave' responsibility for certain work to people
who did not previously have that responsibility. We reviewed the system
which was really pretty easy to implement. Then I asked did he know what
the new process should look like. He did not know. Did he think it would
be different? Yes, certainly, but he did not know how. Then I asked
about organizational changes. Yes, that was a possibility, but he was not
sure what they should be. Then I asked about training. There is some
forecasting involved, estimating, gross margin calculation, and so forth.
Who would provide the training. He did not know, but certainly not his
organization. Was this system a high priority of the organizations that
would use it? Well, it should be, but it might not be. He hadn't actually
discussed it with them. What about the corporation? Did it value this
system? No, it was not high on the list of strategic initiatives, but it
should be.
I said he could implement the system once he had done some basic research
on the topics, if at the end he was still convinced it was the right thing
to do. He also needed to understand that he would be accountable for
successful implementation of the new system, and we would measure success
by quite literally asking people what they thought of it.
I know he left thinking I was an old fogy who resisted change. The
reality is I have seen far too many implementation plans that do not
consider the needs of either the organization or of the people. While I
gave him permission to continue and clear direction on how to make it a
success, I sense that he will not follow through.
There are, of course, many other ideas that are very good, and deserve to
be implemented once the proper preparation has been done. And there are
many change managers who actually do a pretty good job. But it is also
true that a lot of 'change management' is more about 'embracing the need
for change' and other slogans rather than about clear and specific tools.
--Rol Fessenden LL Bean, Inc 76234,3636@compuserve.com
1. Challenge the process. 2. Inspire a shared vision. 3. Enable others to act. 4. Model the way. 5. Encourage the heart.
(Compliments of Kouzes & Posner, "The Leadership challenge")
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>