‘Change is hard,’ says the adage. Well, yes, but there’s a reason: when the potential risk of a change is unknown, it presents a possible disruption to the culture. Indeed, no change will be implemented – regardless of the needs of the group or the efficacy of the solution – if the risk of change might be higher than the risk of staying the same.

Currently, change management models overlook risk management and end up incurring resistance when the people with hands-on or customer-facing jobs – with their pride, egos, relationships, knowledge, habits, daily schedules – are excluded from the process and given activities they weren’t a part of generating.

Indeed, when companies fail to assemble and hear from those who currently touch the problem and will touch the new solution, they end up with two types of risk: an unforeseen and costly problem popping up during a project; a project that doesn’t meet its goals, is over budget, and/or doesn’t get implemented.

In this article I’m going to focus on what I see as the main risk in all projects: overlooking the inclusion of the full team at every stage in the process. When leaders assume they know enough to set objectives for a project, they are at risk of failing on both counts.

SOLUTION DESIGN MUST BE SYSTEMIC

Without including the voices of those who are or will be involved in the problem and/or potential solution, a new initiative is at risk regardless of the problem, the need, or the efficacy of the solution. The full complement of voices are necessary to

• gather information and understand the full problem set;
• design solutions for the needs and goals of all;
• set goals that all agree with and will maintain the change;
• recognize and manage the risks of change that must be understood at each level;
• design paths forward to implement and maintain the new;
• achieve buy-in that all are committed to;
• set up a core team to supervise and support the new initiative through time.

Without including these steps, leaders cause their own resistance. When people are told what to do without having been part of the process, they resist. No one likes being told what to do without being part of the decision. Not to mention it’s possible they weren’t hired for the job they’re being asked to do and wouldn’t have chosen to do it.

WE CAUSE OUR OWN RESISTANCE

I believe the job of leadership (corporate, healthcare, coaches, managers) is to facilitate excellence amongst their teams, not the ones who must have the answers and set objectives. Without teammates and management collaborating, sharing ideas for better outcomes and developing new goals together that serve all (including the company), the success of any proposed change will be at risk.

I was recently asked by a group of System Dynamics (SD) practitioners to help them with client implementation. Seems they were paid millions of dollars and spent months developing solutions to large scale problems, only to have these be ignored. What was going on?

When I asked the group who set the goals for the project and who they gathered information from to understand the full scope of the problem, the answer to both was ‘leadership’. And therein lie the problem. Because practitioners set goals and objectives without buy-in, without the full data set, they were at risk of failing right from the start.

Here’s a dialogue I had with a SD practitioner working on a problem for the U.S. Army Corp:

PR: Yesterday I interviewed five Generals!

SD: Did you also interview five Privates? Five Majors?

PR: No. Why would I do that?

SD: It’s the only way you can collect an accurate data set, include the voices and needs of everyone involved in maintaining the problem, and help them set appropriate goals and understand the risks inherent in the solution implementation.

PR: Oh. I assumed whoever set the goals had the full data set. Besides, is it really my responsibility?

SD: It’s only your responsibility if you want them to implement.

Here’s a link to that implementation seminar. It offers a model for change projects that begin by first understanding and managing the risks:

I’m also currently working with a now-demoralized sales team that’s suffering the aftereffects of massive restructuring from a new CEO whose goal is to enhance revenue. He’s reorganizing teams, developing new departments, and changing reporting and commission structures – all without a single conversation with the sales team that faces real – and fixable! – marketplace problems that have nothing to do with any reorganization. It’s like spending resource to rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic.

AVOIDING RISK AND RESISTANCE

I’ve spent my adult life unpacking the 13 steps to change that occur in all decision making/change management processes. Here are some thoughts on understanding risk and avoiding resistance before starting a project:

• Everyone who touches the problem and/or solution must be included in information capture and goal setting. Note: there are bottom-line risks if only a subset of necessary information is captured, or projects are set by the goals, assumptions, needs of a small percentage of the representative population.
• The risks of change must be enumerated and understood, with policies in place to manage before any implementation begins.

Sometimes it’s less biased if an outside consultant facilitates the change. I’d be happy to coach your company to facilitate any type of change, and ensure all risks are managed, permanent solutions are implemented, and there’s no resistance. sharondrew@sharondrewmorgen.com

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Sharon-Drew Morgen is a breakthrough innovator and original thinker, having developed new paradigms in sales (inventor Buying Facilitation®, listening/communication (What? Did you really say what I think I heard?), change management (The How of Change™), coaching, and leadership. She is the author of several books, including her new book HOW? Generating new neural circuits for learning, behavior change and decision making, the NYTimes Business Bestseller Selling with Integrity and Dirty Little Secrets: why buyers can’t buy and sellers can’t sell). Sharon-Drew coaches and consults with companies seeking out of the box remedies for congruent, servant-leader-based change in leadership, healthcare, and sales. Her award-winning blog carries original articles with new thinking, weekly. www.sharon-drew.com She can be reached at sharondrew@sharondrewmorgen.com.