20 Rules of Change Management in Organizations. When implementing change, no two organizations are the same, nor is there a ’one-size-fits-all’ approach because each organisation is different in structure, size, vision, culture, business needs and most all, each change management is different. However, despite the range of approaches to change management, there are common guidelines for delivering a successful change. The content of this presentation is intended as a tool to facilitate best practice of change management, thereby guide the actions that will result to successful change.

1. 20
Prepared by
Catherine Adenle
catherinescareercorner.com
Rules of Successful
Change Management
in Organizations

2. 1
Acknowledge
and
understand
the need for
change
Know everything regarding the need for change and
use the information to set the stage.
Know why. Understand end goals and rational of what the organization is
trying to accomplish and how the change fits into the corporate vision.

3. 2
Use the need for change to create a
compelling and clear vision with the climate
needed for an organizational change
Connect the vision to your organizational strategy
Engaging stakeholders when developing a vision for change will, in the
end, let you articulate one that resonates strongly and impels
people to act. Stakeholders must be
clear about their contributions to the desired improvement.

4. Develop a robust change plan and measures.
Successfully managing the complexity of
change is virtually impossible without a robust plan that
is supported by strong project management.
Include what will be different, objectives to achieve, outcomes
that will be measured, the exact change and workforce
development to align with it.
Share the framework, roles and responsibilities and what you want to see as
the end result.
3

5. 4
Understand the importance of people
during change. Be prepared to align the
workforce to support the change
Organizations don’t change, people do or they don’t!
The people aspect of change is the most difficult to manage. 60-75 percent
of all restructuring failed, not because of strategy, but because of the
"human dimension.“

6. 5
Powerfully communicate the need for change.
State aims and steps to take the change vision
from idea to action.
Outline change benefits.
Use a framework based on the desired results and
behaviors required for the change. Derive a water tight
call to action communication plan.
Communicate throughout, repeat message often. Don't wait for leaks and rumor
mills to be in full force before telling people all about the change. Assess
readiness and make adjustments.

7. 6
Resistance to change is normal, so
expect it. Be prepared to actively
manage resistance
Understand the transition cycle that highlights the
pattern of feelings and behaviours that employees
typically go through during change.
Be prepared to educate, coach, communicate, negotiate, co optate, coerce,
facilitate, involve others, and offer support in order to deal with resistance
and manage the pace of transition.

8. 7
Understand common reasons why
employees object to the change
Employees resist change efforts from a perspective that
makes perfect sense to them.
Knowing the reasons will give you the opportunity to correct or align your change
strategy and actively manage resistance to change. Align the organizations’
human resources systems to support employees in transition

9. 8
Appreciate that people throughout the
organization will have different
reactions to change
Some people are naturally more "change-adept."
Spot and encourage the early adaptors.
Develop change-adept employee profiles to better understand how to
develop these qualities throughout the organization.

10. 9
Be candid, continue to engage
employees, communicate openly and
truthfully. Continuously communicate
Under the rationale of "protecting" people, don’t
present change with a too positive spin and don’t sugar-
coat the truth.
The more you hide or lie about things, the wider the trust gap will grow.
Successful change doesn’t happen unless there is open and honest dialogue. The
rationale is that if people understand the benefits of change, they are more likely
to participate in the change and see that it is successfully carried out, which in
turn means minimal disruption to the organization.

11. 10
Listen, engage employees in ‘real two-way’
dialogues, not one-way communication.
Gather feedback and derive solutions.
This will help to diagnose gaps in change plans and
allow employees to speedily make the required
transition
Listen to people and encourage a two way communication.

12. 11
Governance: Build a change management
team with roles and responsibilities. Create
supportive alliances dedicated to the change
An internal change management team of experts will
support the company’s strategic business initiatives.
They will provide behind-the-scenes support in the form of communications,
change-readiness analysis, training, and stakeholder engagement strategy the
executive sponsors may not have time for.

13. 12
Build a solid foundation for employees’
inclusion and participation via consultative
communication approaches
The power of inclusion is immense
Trust in the innate intelligence, capability, and creativity of your employees,
buy in is easier when you include people. Evaluate the results of activities,
determine the root cause of any gaps and implement corrective action.

14. 13
Empower actions from people in support
of the change towards achieving
quick wins related to the change
There’s power in empowering others to work
towards a common goal
Provide the structure, policies and processes that will allow people to take
actions that are beneficial to the change.

15. 14
Create, showcase and share
short term quick wins. Reward
aceivements
Large scale organizational change needs
momentum, a sense of achievement, and optimism.
Therefore, it is essential that some results are achieved quickly. This will
provide good feedback about the validity of your change vision and
strategies. It will also give those working hard to achieve the vision
recognition and encouragement.

16. 15
The Transformation process is not an
event. It’s a mental, physical and
emotional process. Treat it likewise
Lack of "emotional literacy" can derail change.
Don’t disregard the wrenching emotional process of large-scale change --
address the emotional component and don’t underestimate its depth.
Allow for individual differences in employees capacity to cope with change

17. Change
16
Sustain change. Once change has happened,
focus on how to make it business as usual so
that things don’t slip back
Reinforcing change is essential to make sure it sticks.
Maintaining a results orientation will be critical to change success.
Evaluate the results of activities, determine the root cause of any gaps and
implement corrective action.

18. 17
Continue to reinforce change,
implement corrective actions, celebrate
successes, recognize and reward achievements
Reinforcing change is essential to make sure it sticks.
Maintaining a results orientation will be critical to change success. This will
take away power from cynics.

19. 18
Measure change successes, review lessons
learned, transfer ownership and after
action reviews
Measuring and sharing change successes are essential
to demonstrate the result of vision. People will
continue to connect with vision and see how change
addresses problems.
Maintaining a results orientation will be critical to change success.

20. 19
With ongoing commitment at the top and across the
organization to guide organizational behaviours, and
lead by example, embed change and continue to build
a culture of constant improvement
Standardize change once it has happened. Focus on
how to make it business as usual.
Reinforcing change is essential to make sure it sticks.
Maintaining a results orientation will be critical to change success.
Evaluate the results of activities, determine the root cause of any gaps and
implement corrective action.

21. 20
Through the change, nurture a new
culture by developing other positive
behaviours and shared values
Through a series of minor follow up successful
changes, build solid business as usual change
management capabilities.
The idea is to continue with wave after wave of change and not stop until the
organizational vision is a reality.

22. 1
References
• What is Change Management?
• Leading Organisational Change? 30 Most Critical Questions to Ask Yourself First
• Change Management in Organisations: How to Get it Right First Time
• 20 Reasons Why Employees Resist Change in the Workplace (Presentation)
• Leading Change? 10 Crippling Reasons Why Employees Will Resist
• Communication in Change Management
• Examples of Leading Change Management
In organizations, dealing with
change successfully is often
difficult, but not changing is
far more fatal!

23. Prepared by
Catherine Adenle
catherinescareercorner.com
http://catherinescareercorner.com
http://twitter.com/catherineadenle
http://uk.linkedin.com/in/catherineadenle/