"Change," Planning, Planning, Action!

How does any organization change and more importantly thrive during change? Planning, Planning, Action.
by John Errigo, M.S.

I am going to write about how to make real change sustainable and grow the most precious asset of any organization, the human relations aspect of an organization. Action research is a term used by many in the Training and Organizational Development field to get to the root of what needs to change and how to bring it about in an organization. I am going to write about how to make change happen as a result of good sequential action research methodology.

The exact way change happens cannot be controlled, however the planning that helps induce change can be controlled and this is what I value most about Action Research. During the pre-launch phase, planning is crucial for any amount of change to transpire. “It establishes the foundation for a successful change effort (Rothwell, Sullivan).” Change happens first by understanding what needs to be changed: “What is the business case for change? Why is change warranted to address current crises or seize future opportunities (Rothwell, Sullivan)?”

In order to begin a new course of turning around the ship, planning cannot be a major element missing, the self-reflection piece. I am certain any leader who wants to bring about change must first reflect on how change will impact staff and how this change will bring about a positive contribution to the operations and the overall vision or direction the company is going.

When I make a decision as a manager, I think of how this decision will impact the staff member and how this decision will contribute to the vision of the company. The reflection-time during this pre-launch is critical.

In the Launch phase of Action planning, it is the beginning of the change effort. This is where staff will understand the vision, help motivate them to accept the vision and allow room for them to understand how this change will be of benefit, and how? The who, what why and how of change and what it will mean to them, how it will effect their lives. All of these aforementioned items create a sense of buy-in.

Change is also about communicating the reality of a situation, being authentic, giving a reason for change, communicating the vision of what will happen and how staff are valued as part of the “big picture.”

“Post-Launch phase involves a sustaining change effort over time (Rothwell and Sullivan).” If there is adequate planning, preparation, executing of the vision, and a staff buy-in, a good long-term change effort could be produced. The fruits of the post-launch phase is determined by how well the pre-launch and launch phase were executed. The pre-launch and launch phase are like the initial investment and the post-launch phase is where the dividends and capital is gained and or accrued.

Action research does in fact contain a high level of planning, and action research is the process guide to change. The launch phase does involve a high level of staff buy-in and the result of the change in post-launch involves a high level of ambiguity since the change in staff as a result of the action research cannot be scripted or always defined.

The benefits of action research are within a continuous change effort. Patience is important since the pace in which change occurs may be ambiguous, however the positive results of the efforts of action research helps define change as a positive continuum in the organization.

All rights reserved (2010) and my not be duplicated or referenced without written permission of author: John Errigo, M.S., by corporate authorization, HODT, Inc. (synergy@hodtinc.com)