Equal Pay refers to the legal requirement that men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. Pay Parity extends this concept to ensure fair compensation across all demographics and worker types (including temporary workers) for comparable work.
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I’m Laura, Strategic Operations Director at RedWizard. Since joining in 2017, I’ve specialised in global temporary labour programmes, focusing on... Read more
Worker classification refers to how a worker is categorised based on their relationship with the company. This typically involves distinguishing between employees and independent contractors, even when engaging workers through staffing agencies.
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Tenure in temporary labour refers to the length of time a temporary worker, contractor, or freelancer is engaged with a company, even when working through a supplier. It’s not about how long they’ve worked for the supplier, but how long they’ve been assigned to your company.
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I’m Laura, Strategic Operations Director at RedWizard. Since joining in 2017, I’ve specialised in global temporary labour programmes, focusing on... Read more
While April is traditionally the cruellest month, I think we’d all agree that the first three months of the year are pretty grotty! – They’re cold, grim and resources are usually at their thinnest after the Christmas excesses. So, when deciding on our next piece of content, resource optimization seemed a highly appropriate topic. Best defined as ‘a way to make the most of what a business has,’ it’s a highly-skilled balancing act that, if done successfully, means a business has not just enough to survive – but thrive. And in these rapidly changing times, few things are set in stone; as we saw from the pandemic, things are subject to short-notice shift like never before. But it’s not just keeping track of the tangible – it’s more about adopting a ‘maximise mindset’ that will keep your business ahead of the curve.
While we hope this helps you understand how you can mitigate against resource-related risk, it’s not a boring budgetary run-down. It’s simply knowing how to protect what you’ve got, and we do that every day anyway, from insuring our cars to unfurling umbrellas in bad weather. So, if small-scale resource optimization can keep you safe and dry, imagine what it can do on a bigger scale In fact, it can include making the most of what you find frustrating and difficult; after all, some of the world’s biggest names, such as Apple, Google and Facebook were tiny experiments with little budget, borne out of curiosity and frustration with the way things were. And like their founders, you’re in business to make a difference, so don’t forget to file that drive under ‘resources.’
Let’s kick off with a simple question – what are your resources? Put simply, they’re anything that you need to run and develop your business. From people to printers, it’s easy to tick off the traditional ones, but as technology has shifted so has the nature of what you need to succeed. So, alongside the baseline necessities, don’t forget your employee loyalty, social media reach – even your company’s reputation. And as we’ve occasionally reflected on here at RedWizard, size very much matters too; after all, we’re a small company who are happy to keep it that way – it gives us a flexibility and focus that’s key to how we make big changes for our clients. Now it’s time to list your own resources – you might be surprised at what you can uncover.
Whatever you’ve uncovered, your people will hopefully be top of the list. Here are some important points about keeping them there.
According to Luan Nyugen, the author of ‘Building Strategy and Performance,’ ‘the more of a resource you currently have, the faster other resources will grow.[3]’ Similarly, too little of one resource can badly limit the others. While this symbiotic growth – or decay – can’t carry on indefinitely, it’s wise to view your resources relative to each other. A lot of money but no employee loyalty and a poor reputation won’t win you any plaudits, but nor will a great bunch of people trying to work with ageing technology. A good exercise is to identify and understand the interdependencies between your resources. From there, it’s easier to prioritise accordingly.
When it comes to targeted programmes of change, risk mitigation is a critical first step in identifying the risks aligned with the change and developing a plan to either manage or eliminate them. The risks faced will vary according to their sector, but any change that involves people (and what change doesn’t?) will invariably carry risks regarding alienation, motivation and confidence. Falling morale is a particular concern on lengthy projects[4]. Other people-related risks listed in the PERIL database, an online library that compiles the various reasons why projects fail, involved conflict, where people failed to get along and work cooperatively, and poor motivation.
But while resource mitigation might seem like a minefield, it’s just an extension of what you do every day anyway. And while nothing in life is guaranteed, the more effort you put into keeping what you’ve got safe, the more you will be able to flourish.
[1] How to Mitigate Resource-Related Risks in Project Management (saviom.com)
[2] Trust in Leadership – One Key Factor During Organizational Change • ScienceForWork
[3] Handling Interdependence Between Resources (saylordotorg.github.io)
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I’m Laura, Strategic Operations Director at RedWizard. Since joining in 2017, I’ve specialised in global temporary labour programmes, focusing on... Read more
The facts are frightening. By 2030, climate change could be irreversible. Our oceans are dying. And a child born today will experience seven times more extreme weather in their lifetime than anyone living now – even if the emission targets are met. So, as world leaders meet at COP26 in a last-ditch attempt to stop the climate crisis that is building with catastrophic momentum, why the stall with shifting ourselves to action?
Well, the psychology behind failure to change is a fascinating, frustrating, and occasionally fatal one. From the Titanic’s captain shrugging off seven iceberg warnings to the UK’s initial Covid response – remember singing happy birthday while washing your hands? – ignoring danger doesn’t make it go away. But fight or flight are not the only paths people can take, and in fact, 80% of us will freeze when faced with catastrophe, becoming confused and passive. But it’s the icebergs that need to freeze, not us, so just how do we change effectively in the face of such an existential threat?
Firstly, it’s not totally our fault. We survived as a species by paying attention to short-term, immediate dangers – the lion on the plain, the food that smells bad, the stranger at the door. Threats that build up over time can be discounted only until we can’t ignore them any longer – and the sinister crescendo of climate change has been decades in the making. Add into that such cognitive biases as hyperbolic discounting (the present is more valuable than the future), the bystander effect (other people will fix it), or the sunk-cost fallacy (the more we’ve invested into something, the more we stick with it even if it’s no longer working; maybe you’ve tried to put the brakes on a failing project only to be met with pushback from those writing the cheques?), and it’s easy to understand why embracing change at this level can be so difficult. But there are ways around our wiring that will help us behave differently.
Okay, so walking to the shops is probably not going to save the planet on its own, even less so when certain superpowers are still staying schtum on when they’re going to cut their own carbon emissions. But while we need companies, countries – and maybe a few notable celebrities – to change their ways as a global priority, individual action is still what makes for systemic change. To think of the two as mutually exclusive is a false – and disheartening – dichotomy. Think of the Kaizen approach, where ongoing positive changes, however small, grow to become continuous improvement; the consistent decisions we make as individuals will build together in force and fury over time, too. Think of the seismic shift against racism – it all started with one woman refusing to give up her seat on a bus. Speaking at an event for Forum For the Future, Paul Polman, Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce said it best when he said, ‘We can all make a difference, that’s what we must unlock in every one of us.’
That the climate crisis is a genuine emergency means it’s mandatory that we pitch in together, rip up the rule-book, and start sharing knowledge, experience, and ideas to spark new and disruptive innovations. As well as individual action, technological advances, structural changes, environmental policies, the vast resources of the financial sector, social media, government, and cultural attitudes all have a seat at the table. So it’s by working with unfamiliar sectors that you’ll discover different perspectives and, in time, solutions. And don’t forget that you can also demonstrate your commitment to collaboratively tackle climate change by signing up to an organization set up to help you do just that. Business In The Community, TheClimatePledge, or the BusinessClimateHub are all worth a look.
The situation is dire and so are the headlines. But the only problem is that they just don’t motivate people – bad news never does. So, to encourage people to change, remember this canny psychological trick; when given a challenge, people respond best to one that is framed positively, whether in business or otherwise. So, ‘you’re all going to die if you don’t separate your recycling properly,’ will be much more poorly received than ‘your street will receive a renewables grant to get free solar panels if you separate your recycling properly.’ People want to know what they can aspire to achieve, not battle to avoid, and too much doom just shuts down people’s capacity to believe that things can change. And this is a lesson for general change, too; communicate that it’s positive and beneficial, and people will feel that way about it, too.
Imagine a climate change expert comes to your town. You listen to them speak along with 5,000 other people, but a few weeks later you’ve not implemented anything they recommended. Now imagine that they came to your street and talked directly to you. That you’d implement far more of their suggestions – and tell other people about them, too – is a given. And why? Because when people feel they have more ownership of a project, they feel they can influence its outcome more, too. And if you act, those around you become more likely to act, too, because of the ‘endowment effect,’ – the idea that if we own something (even simply an idea), we value it more. So, while not particularly glamorous, a local litter-pick is more likely to galvanize people than the world’s richest man telling us what to do. Impact production company, Exposure Labs, used this very principle in South Carolina to help mobilize communities to effect change by showing films that started conversations around the personal impact of climate change. These relatable stories triggered practical actions that eventually changed the narrative, both socially and politically. So, if you can create change at a meaningful, manageable, micro-level – and you most definitely can – then you’re joining a domino effect that will build upon its own momentum.
That we’re faced with a critical need to change means that we’re going to ask you to remember – and to share – just one fact; change is not an external thing – it’s just you making different choices. Put even more simply; things don’t change, you change. And whether you choose to make small changes or big changes, they will, if practiced consistently, create a genuine, transformative momentum. And once you’ve got people moving together, those tiny steps will become increasingly bigger waves, until those waves become the ultimate change, as people’s decisions to choose differently become decisions to live differently. And maybe, just maybe, that will help save us all.
Strategic Operations Director
I’m Laura, Strategic Operations Director at RedWizard. Since joining in 2017, I’ve specialised in global temporary labour programmes, focusing on... Read more
If you’re a goal setter, you’ll know that no matter whether it’s weight loss, quitting bad habits, or just vowing to walk the dog in all weathers, the distance between ambition and achievement is almost impossible to cover if you don’t know what you need to measure.
Take weight loss.
Pounds shed might seem a sensible start, but what about your body fat percentage? Or your cardiovascular ability? Or then again, now we live in a world of body positivity, who cares what the scales say? Maybe you should consider how happy you are instead?
This ricocheting conundrum is enough to drive most of us back to the biscuits.
But, alas, it’s true: your progress, whether business or personal, needs insight more than masses of meaningless data, which is why having metrics that matter, well…matters.
A study of 2,000 adults by Second Nature found that January 12th is the day that most New Year diets fail.
Among the reasons given, the pressure to achieve unrealistic goals, hunger, and irritation were often cited, whilst the reasons to diet fared even more poorly. For instance, some people felt pressured by loved ones, others by health scares, and even 10% stated that they simply stated it was just adherence to tradition.
Now, imagine a business where your goals were triggered by fear, pressure and habit, and your reward was to feel stressed, irritable and panicked while you spent the days wondering if you’d ever reach the unrealistic target you’d set yourself.
The lesson is clear: being able to measure your success with metrics that reflect what you really want to achieve can be the difference between success and failure.
So, how does that apply to business?
Of course, some metrics are obvious: you can’t run a business without money or customers, so while you’ll already have some in place, take time to assess if they’re still doing their job.
Maybe you inherited them from your predecessors and they’re overdue an upgrade, or maybe it’s the method of the measurement that needs changing – which brings us onto data.
Since 2018’s GDPR refresh, the more data you have, the riskier it is, so before you even consider how you collect and cleanse the data, think first about what you actually need to know.
What are the insights that will really drive your strategy? Only after answering this question should you consider the way in which you gather, analyse, and store data, bearing in mind that the weighty reputational damage and/or fines that can come your way if you fall foul of the guidelines.
Also, don’t forget your suppliers and partners. If you need data from them, provide absolute clarity as to what’s needed right from the start, reducing the work – and risk – on both sides.
Many companies, particularly start-ups, focus on so-called ‘vanity’ metrics, such as downloads, registered users and page views. But none of those measure what really matters when it comes to building a broad, engaged customer base.
Dig a little deeper and you’ll want to find out how many of those registered users are active every day, or how long they linger on your page. Do registered users really engage, or do your emails sit in their inboxes, unread? Bots can send traffic to a website, but sustained, genuine engagement can’t be hacked.
British economist Charles Goodhart’s eponymous law states that ‘when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to become a good measure.’
So, even if X rival has Y many customers, or Z many downloads, don’t let that become a target to beat if it doesn’t matter to you. Think of social media, for example. Many companies find that a LinkedIn page can do much more for them than a Twitter feed can, but it can take a lot of time and money to find that out.
Moral of the story: don’t jump on bandwagons that aren’t going to your destination.
Go back to absolute basics
Try to distil your answers into just one sentence that typifies your ambition, both in the short and long-term. Hopefully, having done that, you’ll have defined what it is you’re here to do, and what you’ll need to know to check you’re on course.
Make them flexible
Whatever your sector, while metrics provide insight, they can also be active drivers for change, particularly if the solutions that support their monitoring have the versatility to ‘slice and dice’ the data to provide different perspectives. Consider using an independent data analytics specialist to discover new insights.
Get comfortable with discomfort
As Peter Drucker, the father of business management, said, ‘if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.’ Discovering your meaningful metrics might be uncomfortable at first, but it’s necessary.
Remember that the right metrics can provide multiple insights
Take the British Retail Consortium’s data on footfall.
On first read, it simply reveals hard numbers, but the insights from that can inform strategy and innovation in many different areas, such as post-pandemic behaviour, number of empty retail units, British retail success compared to EU economies, the resilience of retail parks as opposed to their high-street counterparts, the impact of remote workers on the city retail environment; the list goes on…
Finally, don’t forget the importance of a great PMO.
Whether yours is in-house or out-sourced, an effective PMO team keeps the company’s heartbeat going by providing critical metrics on strategic alignment, operational efficiency, execution and value delivery. And not only are those vital to the success of your projects (or portfolio or programme…), but to that of your overall business, by supporting a standardisation of best practice, culture, governance, and resource management, too.
If you liked this, you might also like our article about wellness metrics:
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I’m Julie Barrow-Read, known to all as Jools, and I’m the founder of RedWizard. With a 20-year background in strategic... Read more
A masterclass by Picasso
Pablo Picasso, born in 1881, was arguably the most famous artist of modern times. A name synonymous with a rare and revolutionary genius, he was a high-spirited, gifted and difficult man who, it was rumoured, could draw before he could speak.
Highly dismissive of following the herd, Picasso sought above all else to innovate beyond what had already been, principles which are vital when changing ourselves, our businesses, and our world. In the words of the man himself:
‘Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and asked why not.’
One of Picasso’s greatest strengths was that he remained open to life, both its beauty and its terror.
As bullish and forthright as he could be, he was also incredibly moved by the world around him and drew deeply on his emotional responses to fuel his work, particularly during the volatile early years of the 20th century, in which he lost a lover while the First World War raged, and Einstein’s theory of relativity turned the known to dust.
From his melancholy ‘blue’ period, triggered by the suicide of his friend Carlos Casagemas, through to his masterpiece Guernica (which Hitler deemed ‘degenerate’), Picasso took from what was to turn it into something new and powerful.
This act of changing pain into art is a clear precis to the modern-day business attribute of agility, where both the need and the willingness to respond quickly can be the difference between success and failure.
Businesses who survive change are not coincidentally the ones who are able to rapidly shift their processes, making moves that are as much about attitude and open-mindedness as they were about logistics.
He was also quick to see things differently and create accordingly. In 1907, along with fellow artist George Braques, he invented Cubism, in which images were torn up and rebuilt as a distorted visual that shifted standards and perceptions. By tearing up the rule book, Picasso created not just a new style, but the very freedom and space for other people to do the same.
Modern artists who’ve been inspired by him include Jasper Johns, David Hockney and Jackson Pollock, and all great business leaders have left similar legacies.
Breaking new ground might be painful, but don’t shy away from making difficult decisions just because no-one else has. Somebody has to take that step sometimes – why shouldn’t it be you?
But while Picasso made many radical changes in his life, he didn’t make them for the fun of it.
As art for art’s sake will always lack a certain depth, unnecessary change can likewise seem gimmicky and alienating. Being change ready, for example, is an important foundation on which to begin to design and implement a new solution, so don’t waste time rearranging surfaces when it’s the substance of the change that matters.
Finally, Picasso hated the complacency that could come with success. Looking at big companies such as Nokia or Yahoo!, who fell at this hurdle, you can see this is a timeless truth. He could’ve been addressing a business change conference when he said
‘Success is dangerous. One begins to copy oneself, and to copy oneself is more dangerous than to copy others. It leads to sterility.’
Of course, nobody wants to be struggling, but staying competitive means keeping a healthy awareness that if you don’t change, maybe another company will. A little bit of dissatisfaction can keep your competitive edge sharper than most, and to be self-critical is to keep yourself open to opportunities that others might miss. We are all a work in progress.
Asking ourselves questions such as ‘How can we see things differently?’ can unlock myriad possibilities as to the future we are creating with each decision we make. It may take guts to throw away the familiar and jump into that fertile void of potential, but most of us live each new day in an old way.
Just imagine what we could create if we embraced the possibility to live differently and change boldly.
That a man like Picasso, mercurial and visionary, may only come about once a century, perhaps even less, should not prevent us from understanding that we can all be innovators, and that we can all find that sweet spot where response meets revolution.
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I’m Julie Barrow-Read, known to all as Jools, and I’m the founder of RedWizard. With a 20-year background in strategic... Read more
Best characterized by asking an employee how – as opposed to what – they’re doing, it can be most easily described as a genuine and practical interest in, and consideration for, your staff, and it can reap very rich rewards for companies. A study by Soma Analytics revealed that, amongst other criteria, companies whose end of year reports featured the phrases ‘mental health’ and ‘wellbeing’ three or more times had double the profits of those who didn’t.[1] Yet, convincing a busy C-Suite that wellness matters can be tricky; after all, how do you implement it and, more importantly, how do you measure it? Read on to find out how.
Wellness matters because people who are motivated, cared for and valued are more likely to perform better. And if they perform better, your business performs better; it’s the most basic business maths there is. In fact, get wellness into the heart of your business, and it’s a win-win for everyone, resulting in improved bottom lines, reduced labour turnover, and enhanced motivation[2]. It also goes hand-in-hand with engagement, a subject on which Simon Little, Chief People Officer at Navico is passionate. Describing the plusses of an engaged work-force, such as people making discretionary effort, he makes the salient point that, ‘if everyone does that, you’ve got a very clear competitive advantage over an organization where your employees don’t.’
And wellness has also got one of the best ROIs going, with Deloitte’s most recent report into mental health in the workplace revealed that businesses can expect to get £5 back on every £1 spent invested in securing employee wellbeing.[3]
If you’re an HR professional, you’ll know that the workforce has a problem. With 42% of employees suffering insomnia, 56% suffering at least one dimension of workplace stress[4], and the rise of presenteeism, an insidious issue which doesn’t affect absence but does affect productivity, engagement and quality, business is under assault from sickness. Add Covid-19 into the brew and the mix gets truly toxic.
As Matthew Knight, founder of freelancers’ support network, Leapers, explains, ‘the narrative of “work/life balance” suggests that work and life are two distinct things whereas work is a huge influence on your life, and what’s happening outside of work is a huge influence on work. So there’s really no mental health at work – just mental health.’ Couple that with the fact that over 70 million work days are lost each year to sickness, at a cost of £2.6bn to British businesses[5], and it’s clear to see that prioritizing wellbeing isn’t just a tick in the box but a metric that you simply can’t afford to ignore.
Any performance metric must answer the question, ‘did the initiative deliver what was expected?’ so begin by discovering what you want to improve by analyzing the As-Is. KPIs such as the Bradford factor, labour turnover, and referrals to Occupational Health can be combined with interviews and questionnaires to highlight your current situation and provide valuable insight into what you might wish to work on. You can then define the deliverables, and whether it’s increased productivity, improved staff retention, or heightened engagement, you’ll be spoiled for choice when it comes to the innovative and constructive measurables that will help provide insightful, solid information. Here’s our pick of tips and tools;
Check out Teamphoria to improve a sense of community, OfficeVibe to drive performance, or Impulse, that seeks to understand employees’ emotional response to organizational policies, or help your employees to track their health with Medintu.
Clear communication helps foster a feeling transparency within an organization, so talking with your employees is a great way to measure the mood. Whether you consider email surveys which afford anonymity, or regular sit-downs to talk through any concerns, keeping these channels open will help you understand how you’re doing. And remember that mental health remains a sensitive topic, so consider couching questions on this topic in a positive light, for example, how energized they are by their work, or how productive they feel.
Trust in a three-tier system to help measure short, medium and long-term results across a series of benchmarks, such as participant engagement, readiness for change, and ROI, and you’ll get a full picture of how the initiative is working for you, enabling you to refine your strategy at any stage.
There’s plenty of choice when it comes to designing and implementing your wellness initiative, whether you choose to deliver in-house initiatives or recruit external specialists. A quick Google reveals a whole host of external providers, such as Elevate Your Health or The Wellness Team, while serious subscribers can sign up to Mind’s initiative, which helps assess and improve your approach to mental health against a national index.
Initiatives that build openness, such as collaborative work environments can help create a culture in which people feel at the heart of the business, while traditional enticements such as subsidized gym memberships remain popular choices. Opportunities which link employees to the community, such as voluntary work or mentoring, can increase a feeling of purpose and connection, while more imaginative steps, such as starting a choir or letting dogs into the workplace, are growing in popularity. Encouraging exercise within the workplace, such as creating team ‘step count challenges,’ could help forge bonds and get fit at the same time, while training and equipping mental health ‘First Aiders’ to be people’s first port of call can really unleash your company’s potential to show their creativity and compassion for each other.
But the most important aspect to understand is that by putting people first, particularly when it comes to business change, you are prioritizing their wellness. So whether it’s business as normal or anything but, sincere and long-term wellness initiatives will help keep people engaged, happy and productive. Indeed, if your business is facing a change, consider using a people-centred approach that emphasizes employee wellbeing.
Like anything, wellness can be misused, so it’s important it’s treated with integrity. Citing employee well-being as the reason to move to remote working won’t come off well if you’re actually cutting 70% of the workforce by doing so. Remember, employees value the clarity of a message, however unpalatable, so while wellness can be used to support, it must never be used to try and bury bad news.
So, what do you think of workplace wellness, are you implementing it and if so, how? We’d love to hear your feedback!
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I’m Julie Barrow-Read, known to all as Jools, and I’m the founder of RedWizard. With a 20-year background in strategic... Read more
Prosci’s ADKAR model has stood the test of time in the world of change management. But… what if we added a new element to the model? Could it unlock the desire to change?
For those new to change management, ADKAR is a framework for understanding change at an individual level. It focuses on five key elements, all of which must be in place for change to be implemented successfully—Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement. Each element acts as a ‘building block’ and one cannot happen without the other.
Out of all the elements, desire is the one that interests me most. The desire to embrace change is a personal decision—it can’t be forced. This is where logic falls short. And creating more awareness about the need for change doesn’t make a blind bit of difference. It’s a relief to know that we still have control over our own minds—at least to a certain degree!
“More and more awareness will not result in desire… desire is difficult because it is ultimately a personal decision that is not under our direct control. ”
—ADKAR e-book
Prosci’s approach to desire is to positively influence a person to embrace change by:
• Effectively sponsoring change with employees and peers
• Preparing managers to be change leaders
• Assessing risks and anticipating resistance
• Engaging people in the change process
• Aligning incentive programmes
I’d say this is a very logical approach. And I’ve no doubt it will help to nudge people along. It may even result in them accepting change.
But…
Perhaps it’s possible to trigger a natural desire to embrace change in a person by introducing a new element to the ADKAR model—one that’s not based on logic—inspiration.
“Inspiration: The process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative”—Oxford dictionary
Sometimes a decision isn’t logical but it just feels right. That’s because we’re motivated by feelings not rational thought. It’s our feelings that drive us forward and give us confidence. When we’re inspired by a person or organization, we follow their lead, not because we have to but because we want to—it just feels right.
“People don’t resist change. They resist being changed.”
—Peter Sense, American systems scientist and senior lecturer
So, how can your business inspire individuals to change? First, it must have a deep-rooted sense of why it exists. And that comes from looking back, not forward. It’s not driven by strategy. It’s driven by staying true to a purpose or cause. Answer the why and tell your business story, be authentic, give each individual a sense of purpose, a feeling of belonging—make sure they understand that they’re part of something bigger.
Ultimately, an individual will feel inspired when they believe in your purpose or cause, feel they matter, they’re safe, and that they belong.
Below is a breakdown of what I believe needs to happen for these feelings to emerge:
Do I matter?
Everyone needs to feel they’re contributing in a unique way, so make sure your people feel:
• Valued
• Trusted
• Guided by inspirational leaders
• They can make a difference
• They’re appreciated and publicly acknowledged
I want to feel safe.
The world is full of uncertainty so it’s important to create an environment where people can learn, grow and take risks. Make sure your people:
• Have a voice
• Can clearly see the business cares and looks after its people
• Understand the important role they play
• Your business is not all about profit—people come first
I want to belong.
We all have a basic need to belong and feel part of a group. Make sure your people know they’re:
• Part of the bigger picture
• Part of a team, all working together towards a common purpose or cause
• Respected and admired
• They’ve similar values and beliefs to the business
Your thoughts?
I’m confident that if each individual within a business understands the important role they play, how they can achieve on a personal level, believes their work is worthwhile, and feels inspired—the desire to embrace change will come naturally.
“People need to know that their work is worthwhile at both the individual and organization levels and this is arguably the most important need.”
—The Ken Blanchard Companies, a global leader in management training
Prosci’s ADKAR tools and methodologies clearly have great value. After all, 80% of fortune 100 companies have used ADKAR, so something is right! But having said that, there’s still mystery surrounding what makes an individual feel the desire to change.
The decision to change is ultimately up to the individual. True, but perhaps when an individual is inspired, they’re far more likely to positively embrace change.
Do you think there’s a missing element between awareness and desire in the ADKAR model?
#changeblogchallenge #changemanagement #projectmanagement #blog #leadership #PMO
This article was a response to the #ChangeBlogChallenge 2019 on Change Readiness
Founder
I’m Julie Barrow-Read, known to all as Jools, and I’m the founder of RedWizard. With a 20-year background in strategic... Read more
It was January 28th 1986.
A severe cold snap had swept across Florida, and icicles covered the launch tower at Cape Canaveral. The night before, engineers had begged NASA’s management to cancel the scheduled space flight due to concerns about a tiny gasket known as an ‘o-ring’ becoming more brittle the colder it got.
“We all knew if the seals failed, the shuttle would blow up,” said engineer Roger Boisjoly.
“My God,” came the response from NASA manager Lawrence Mulloy, “When do you want me to launch? Next April?“
That morning, engineer Bob Ebeling drove his daughter to the engineering complex. ‘He said “The Challenger’s going to blow up. Everyone’s going to die.” He was beating his fist on the dashboard. He was frantic.’
We all remember what happened next. 73 seconds after lift-off, and with millions, watching around the world, the slow, silent blooming of debris against the clear blue sky was met with horrified shock from the spectators on the ground, including the parents of Christa McAuliffe, a notable member of the crew who’d been selected from thousands of applicants to Reagan’s ‘Teacher In Space’ project.
The aftermath was brutal. The Rogers Commission released its report which heavily criticized NASA’s organizational culture and its decision-making processes that had led to a division between its engineers and management. The differing perspectives over the decade-long concern over the o-rings were significant; to management, why stall now when nothing had happened? But it meant the very opposite to the engineers, who knew the odds were shortening. A rotten culture, lacking in active risk management and psychological safety had doomed the flight from the start, but it took seven people to die publicly to prove the point.
At the time, NASA had a bullish, goal-driven culture where groupthink triumphed over individual expertize, or objective evidence. Engineers lived in dread at what would be sent up into the skies, and management targets were more important than the lives of their astronauts. The more launches they authorized, the better; the less they were distracted by the worried nit-picking of the engineers, the better.
And what are those indicative of? A lack of psychological safety, a critical concept that ensures everyone in a team feels it’s safe to speak up. Without it, people subscribe to the prevailing priority of those in charge, and feel reluctant to voice concerns, ask questions, or display their own vulnerabilities. Another example is a surgeon amputating the wrong limb because nobody else in the team feels it’s safe to point out the mistake.
Hopefully the risks in your business aren’t as stark, but there’s not an organization alive today that wouldn’t benefit from making psychological safety in the workplace a priority. So how do you do that?
Of course, the Challenger disaster lies at the furthest, darkest end of risk management failures; most of us will never operate at those extremes.
But the need to be able to work successfully and safely is only possible if you do what NASA didn’t: create a culture of genuine psychological safety in the workplace, which permits everybody not just a seat at the table, but the courage to speak up. In doing so, you become better at many other things, too.
Change is less frightening when you’re all onboard and there’s a genuine sense of ‘us.’ People are more likely to be flexible if they believe that they’re safe to be so. Innovation will flourish as people understand that there are no bad ideas. Yes, it takes confidence, skill and trust to create psychological safety in the workplace, but it is one of the very best things you can do for your organization, and the assets which matter most – your people.
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/35-years-ago-remembering-challenger-and-her-crew
Founder
I’m Julie Barrow-Read, known to all as Jools, and I’m the founder of RedWizard. With a 20-year background in strategic... Read more