Change Management is About People not Process
Everybody wants to manage change more effectively, whether it is personally, inter-personally, or strategically. This is a core competency of any leader. We are in a constant state of change. A change management program for managers is like the common cold, it is everywhere. These programs focus on process and usually follow step-by-step models.
A change management training course can be helpful for managers to understand the characteristics of change. These programs are a dime a dozen, but often miss the mark. A good change management training program can give leaders confidence and equip them with the competencies necessary for change.
Change Management that Balances People and Processes
But it can also be about the emotional stages of change that people predictably go through during any change, whether it is a positive or negative experience. A change management program for managers tends, however, to focus on process rather than people. WINNERS-at-WORK recognizes this and has identified four emotional stages of change that people pass through.
Our change management training course balances people with process. We believe that managing the emotional stages of change is more important than the process steps that need to be taken. Our program considers the four emotions of denial, resistance, exploration, and commitment. Psychologists tell us that these are predictable human responses when faced with change.
The Emotional Stages of Change Management Training Program
This is about the psychological responses to change and how leaders ought to prepare and manage these responses. Our training uses experiential learning to hold a mirror up to leaders so they can see their own reactions to change.
The training course then teaches managers how to implement strategies that—not only consider these emotions, but also what strategies to implement to minimize their impact on it. The traditional change management training program bypasses these concerns and provides leaders with simplistic paint-by-numbers solutions that often fail to meet the mark.
For example, a traditional change management program for managers will explain is painstaking detail Kotter’s eight step model, as if each person in the change management training program is the same and has identical needs. This is a mistake. It is about meeting participants where they are at.
Our change management training program does introduce Kotter’s model and others, but balances this with the emotional changes of change, I have just mentioned. A program that doesn’t recognize that it is people that need changing, not processes, misses a crucial point.
Change Management is also about Values
Successful change is intertwined with values. A change management program for managers should emphasis that all change management is supported by a set of core values. People response well to values, if it is presented in the right way.
A change management training course should highlight the critical role that values have in change. Values drive behaviors. If people aren’t aware of the fundamental values at stake, they are less likely to be convinced of the validity of the change.
Our course invites people to consider such values are respect, teamwork, and innovation. Values are considered, and participants are asked to consider how these, and other values, can be communicated in the context of the change management processes these leaders are challenged with.
In summary, this is challenging and ever-present concern for managers. A program needs to be comprehensive enough to consider the human aspects of change. But the typical change management training course doesn’t delve into emotions and values. Our change management training program redresses this inadequacy.