Our company visits with leaders of different organizations across a wide variety of industries. A recurring theme we encounter when discussing how to transform an organization is dealing with people who have settled into a comfortable rhythm in their jobs. It usually comes down to an attitude of “we’ve always done it this way and it works”, or as we say down south, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The leaders and managers have usually tried a number of things ranging from empowering the small teams to make their own decisions, to team building exercises and creativity workshops, to mandating new processes. Frankly, none of these approaches are bad if the proper context is established first.

The number one reason for ineffective transformation when working with organizations is a failure to communicate a vision, and to develop buy-in for the vision. Mandating new processes and procedures is met with a perception of adding more work on top of the existing workload, or adding work that does not advance the organization toward the desired objective. This is because a new desired objective has not been effectively communicated, and the old objective has not been fully buried. Likewise, team building exercises and creativity workshops are perceived as trying to resolve inter-personal conflicts on the team, which may be needed, but the participants continue do the same things as before — but with a happier environment. They may even commiserate together about how the new mandated processes are a waste of time.

Perhaps the biggest mistake in attempting to transform an organization is to simply empower the workgroups and/or employees to make their own decisions prior to recasting the decision. In the absence of a new direction, this empowerment will more than likely result in the employees taking the safe road and sticking to doing what they have always done. If you want to empower employees to find new ways to improve any aspect of the business, you must be absolutely certain they understand and buy into the new direction. To see successful transformation, leaders must establish and communicate the vision; they must gain alignment, or buy-in, from all those who will be impacted by the vision; and they must manage the execution of the vision through clear and regular communication on all levels.

There are two main components that come into play in this process. First, there must be successful communication. Everyone communicates differently and what is being said may be perceived in dissimilar ways by those who hear the message. When crafting our communication as leaders, we must consider the how our words and tone will be perceived by a variety of personality types, and include language that will resonate positively with all types of hearing. Fortunately, this is a skill that can be taught and Bluewater Leadership is able to help you develop these skills.

The second component is that the vision must be complete and clear. The vision must be more than an idea. It must contain a strategy, both business and organizational. It requires a review of the core processes that will support the strategy, along with an organizational structure that is aligned with the core processes. There have to be systems in place to allow for coordination or processes between individuals and teams, and to provide for continued development of the workforce. Finally, the culture must be understood. It is well understood that culture is the shared values, beliefs, and behaviors within an organization that define the personality of the organization, but very few leaders have an accurate snapshot of their organization’s culture.

Too often, leaders attempt to simply begin making changes in a quest for quick results. But without proper vision and communication, or context, the changes rarely bring the desired results. If you would like to find out more about how to implement transformational change to your organization, give us a call at (704) 281-6017.