Change is inevitable and yet when communicating change within an organization we often can end up missing key communication aspects that help employees feel respected and the organization being viewed as a sensitive employer.
Be it a change in a team, a structure, the executive members or a process employees have a right to know and be consulted before it happens. They also need to have a say in how such change occurs if it impacts them directly or indirectly. Here are a few pointers that internal communicators can be aware of which designing and leading change management initiatives.
- Watch for body language: Often the focus is on the words that are included into a change plan or the e-mail communication which reaches employees but we forget that our body language can convey a lot more. For example, if the leader delivering the messages in a town hall is fidgeting or reading from a script or not looking at people in the eyes (culturally this action will mean different things) the chances are that employees may not believe your story completely. Spend time to coach your leaders about their own presence and how they can be perceived while sharing communication with a group.
- Actions matter: If the change message is about transparency then demonstrating that in actions will give employees the confidence in their leaders. In a change management event after briefing his team the leader then asked managers to stay behind. The excluded group felt slighted and doubted the intentions of the leadership team even though the briefing for the managers was only to help them manage their team’s expectations. Could have been done differently? Yes, surely.
- Time your change: Getting a change exercise done swiftly is possibly best if you can manage expectations with stakeholders. However, sending an e-mail about the change before briefing the impacted set of stakeholders can lead to confusion. An e-mail, however well drafted, can always be open for interpretation. Nothing can be better than sending a note summarizing the changes after the initiative is over.
- Demonstrate sensitivity: Most change management exercises, especially if they are related to organizational structures, begin top-down. As in, the leadership team gets to rewrite their structures and then the cascades happen down the line. That works in traditional structures although in large organizations it can mean that employees further down the ranks wait the longest for word on any changes. This can be unsettling to say the least. To minimize anxiety for those further down the line it is either helpful to speak to them in parallel while the changes happen upstream or give them opportunities to have a view on the outcomes.
- Stay accessible: There can be nothing more disturbing than finding leaders or managers missing when change happens. It is always best to keep options for ‘drop-in’ consultation or planned team and individual meetings so that everyone has had a chance to share how they feel and what they believe will be the best way forward. Also by indicating their availability in a transparent manner leaders will hopefully be viewed more positively.
- Test run the new ways of working: Every change will mean that how people interact or how the workplace engages will change, ever so slightly – or dramatically! For employees it can mean that they sit now in different places or commute to a new location or work with new employees – the changes will vary. Most importantly, consider how and what the new change will look like when stuff happens. Test runs a few examples of the ‘old’ processes on the new one to be sure that there are no gaps. If there are you have time to fix them.
- Capture tacit knowledge: With everyone focused on the changes what can drop between the cracks is the crucial knowledge that exists in the minds of the impacted set of employees. Even if there isn’t a job loss taking place when employees move to different roles the transitions may falter leading to more effort in re-training and upskilling people. Have a way to store key documents and learning centrally so that it becomes a repository for the organization in the future.
Helping employees through change is a priority of every internal communicator. By staying close to the action and alert to feedback that can shape the change we can be more effective in delivering the right outcomes.
What other recommendations do you have to communicate change effectively?
