Question

In CMH, it discusses the organizational development levers. Which levers do you think would have the most impact on leading successfully through a change initiative? Explain your response. 5 points.

Answer 1

Organisations can only change when people in them change. The engaged employees should be able to recognise both on why the change is needed and its potential value. The levers of change are decisions and actions that leaders can take to engage the employees in the change and to leverage the knowledge of the employees those who are already engaged. The levers of change set employee engagement in motion and give this a momentum. These would help employees impacted by the change move through their own personal transition.

Managing Change focuses on the following 5 important levers-

1. Communication Plan- This plan outlines the information that we share with the employees regarding the change. An effection Communication is developed to share the right information to the right audience at the right time. The plan should be able to address the following questions-

*Why do we need a change? What if we don't?

*What's in it for the employees?

*How are we doing Change management? What are the results of change?

2. Sponsor Roadmap- This includes the requirement of specific actions we need from senior leaders to fulfil their roles as effective sponsors. The practicioner for the change management needs to provide guidance and direction. Sponsorship is critical in this aspect because-

*Employees follow sponsors for commitment, direction and vision

*Employees listen to sponsors about why change is happening

*A strong sponsor coalition is critical to sustain results from change

3. Coaching Plan- The coaching plan is mainly about the managers and supervisors and their engagement with their direct reportees. Managers would be closest to employees and their relationship would be crucial for the change management. Employees seek managers' support for answers and direction during times of change. Managers have to play different roles during change such as Communicator, Advocate, Coach, Resistance Manager, Liaison.

4. Training Plan- The training plan defines the knowledge needs, knowledge gaps and training requirements for a project or initiative. The plan inventories the skills during or after the change occurs. Employees need training during change but the training is effective if the employees have understood about why (awareness) and the decision to change (desire) precedes it.

5. Resistance Management Plan- The resistance management plan captures the approach to proactively and reactively respond to resistance when it occurs during change. Reactive Resistance Management is executed by Managers and Leaders throughout the organisation. Proactive Resistance Management leverages the foresight of the team to identify:

*Where Resistance likely comes from

*What resistance likely looks like

*How to mitigate for the root causes of the resistance early in the initiative.