I thought I would talk to you all about Change Management and what I learnt in a few workshops I attended. I will not go through all aspects of change and the management of change but have found recognising the transition process and how individuals deal with it is the first step to manageing it. The process of change is very important for a trainer to know, understand and prepare their clients for. It can also help us in our lives as we can identify what stage we are at &/or help others cope in the stage they are at.
Change Management is focused on the activities required to help transition business people impacted by the change from their current state by a new way of working. In my line of work this is applicable to every job that I and my team do on a daily basis as changing to or starting a new software operating system involves changing their daily tasks, procedures and sometimes their whole job role and responsibilities.
Change can be a stressful and or exciting experience. In each of my training sessions, I use this diagram and explain the different ways different people cope with change and the different stages.
The 8 Steps to successful Change (by John Kotter)
1. Increase urgency
2. Build the guiding team
3. Get the vision right
4. Communication
5. Empower action
6. Creating short term wins
7. Don’t let up 8. Make the change stick.
There are many techniques, tool and approaches to successful change management (as you can find from the simply googling ‘Change management’ and visiting sites listed below) but the key is to find what techniques and approach works for you and your student to coax them through their stage and help them see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Techniques commonly I use are; Stay positive and assertive, never let their negativity towards the change get you down. Show empathy and affirm the results they will get if they stick with it but don’t let your guard down as they will follow a leader and try and get out of it if they can.
Unfortunately as trainers we can not choose who we train but I have found the best people are those who embrace change and look forward to the learning experience knowing the results they will achieve. All trainers have to deal with change to some extent and often have to console their students through the transition process. Depending on their company and role, effective change management can be part of effective Project Management; another role which I believe most Trainers attain without getting the title, but this would be another blog story.
Some good sites on Change Management are; http://www.businessballs.com/changemanagement.htm http://www.change-management.com/ http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/changemanagement.html http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=257
Hope you all are dealing with the change of juggling work and your tafe diploma…if not hope this helps!
Liv
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