Leadership of change is certainly one of the most challenging tasks for a company or organization manager. Employees can resist the change leading to delaying of the change. Although there is much information and many models for implementing change this has always remained a challenge for management and leadership, but as in many other cases simple is beautiful.
In change implementation it is most important to remember that a change is not completed until the last member of organisation accepts the change. At the heart of change leadership the challenge is that implementation of change is undertaken by people who often reacts emotionally to that change. Whatever the change the following three factors are crucial to its success.
1. 1. Change always starts with oneself
No person can change another nor can anyone can be forced to change. In a change situation everyone is responsible for implementation of the change. Change can not be implemented by simply announcing to a person that he or she must change the way they act. As a leader of change it is important to instill understanding of the need to change, to inspire willingness to change and to support those effected through the change.
So, leadership of change is supporting others to accept the change and to help them use the changed ways of working.
It must also be remembered to end the implementation of change, because change cannot continue endlessly.
2. Disseminating of ownership of change
Change requires commitment and a feeling of ownership is the best way to commit a person to change. When a person develops feelings of ownership he or she is also more willing to make sacrifices for that which is owned. Being involved in the planning and/or the implementation of a change will develop the feeling of ownership.
As a change leader you have to remember that your feeling of ownership towards the change started to develop when you started planning the change, so you can not expect your employees to accept the change instantly because they must have time to develop their own feeling of ownership of the change. To increase the likelihood of a successful change it is recommended to include employees in planning the implementation of the change. This gives them the opportunity to develop feelings of ownership towards the change and so the change will be easier for them to accept.
3. Time to adapt to change
In companies and organizations, changes are planned by management long before employees are informed. So, managers have more time to adjust to change than the employees. Each of us needs time to learn how to act in a new way. Mahatma Gandhi’s words “In a gentle way, you can shake the world” apply to planning and implementing change. People struggle to adapt to rapid change. Psychologically adaptation to change occurs in the mind in a certain pattern and that change too needs time. It must also be remembered to end the implementation of change, because change cannot continue endlessly.