Strategies for managing change - How to avoid the 70% failure rate

8 key steps to success

When considering strategies for managing change, it is sobering to realise that 70% of all change initiatives fail to realise the intended benefits - and many just simply fail!

As Machiavelli put it so succinctly in “The Prince”:

“It should be borne in mind that there is nothing more difficult to arrange, more doubtful of success, and more dangerous to carry through than initiating a new order of things.”

Strategic perspectives

Here are the specific resources on this site that are directly related to "change strategy":

Change management strategy - the key leadership issues

Change management strategy is very specifically about moving from the output of your strategic review to a successful programme implementation. Here is how to directly address key strategic leadership issues by taking full account of the people who are most impacted by the change

Strategic thinking and leadership - resources

A cross section of strategic thinking and leadership resources listed on this page represent material that I have found to be useful - and each of the resources outlined are in their own way a gateway to a wider range of resources related to strategies for managing change.

Strategic leadership questions

Here are some good strategic leadership questions to ask yourself during the planning process before starting out on your change management initiative

Strategic vision and programme implementation

Bridging the gap between your strategic vision and a successful programme implementation is absolutely key to realising the benefits of your initiative.

But this is a big gap - and it is one that is frequently not recognised.

So often I see organisations attempting to move straight from strategic vision exercises - mission statements and the setting of strategic objectives into the detail of a project level implementation.

Here is my own model for change that addresses the key hidden cultural aspects of an organisation - and in so doing links vision to implementation - by showing what needs to be addressed:

8 key strategies for managing change

In my experience of practical strategies for managing change, and based on my studies and research, I have identified 8 key areas that need to be considered and addressed in order to maximise your chances of success with a change initiative.

I have listed them above in summary form, now I will take each in turn and cross reference to the key related material on this site.

(1) Drivers

Assessing the case for change: Force field analysis is the creation of the American social psychologist Kurt Lewin, widely regarded one of the early 20th century founders of modern psychology, who developed the change model - known as "Lewin's Freeze Phases" - and which still forms the underlying basis of many change management theories models and strategies for managing change.

Lewin’s force field analysis work provides useful background and a practical tool for assessing the case for change – a necessary precursor for the creation and implementation of a programme based approach to managing change, and an integral aspect of strategies for managing change.

(2) Business As Usual

The single biggest and most important early decision that you will make, is to decide whether the change can be handled within the context of business as usual or not.

The “Business As Usual” test - Incremental or Step Change?

(3) Resources and Capabilities

The size of your organisation (number of employees or people directly involved) together with your knowledge base will determine what resources to consider to implement your strategies for managing change.

Recommendations re options and uses of external third party change management resources

(4) Leadership

Leadership versus management - Is change just about the management or, does it involve leadership? If so, what's the difference?

Define leadership - How you define and exercise leadership in the present climate will be a significant determinant in your organisation's fortunes and is thus a key aspect of your strategies for managing change.

What are the leadership styles that are most effective in leading change and especially in the current environment?

How do you inspire your people in tough times? How do you provide inspirational motivation to people living with the constant insecurities engendered by the current economic climate?

How do you deal with downsized workforces populated with employees who suffer from any or all of the following negative emotions: insecurity, dread, apathy, passivity, carelessness, and resentment?

(5) Cultural Impacts

What are the effects of your business culture on change management?

Organisational culture - is more important than you may realise. It determines how your people will respond to a change initiative.

(6) Preparation and Planning

The amount of time allocated to the pre-programme review and planning process is variable - the size of the proposed change and how business critical it is, are useful guidelines.

But whatever time is allocated, it is time very well spent as the process is designed to make you:

(1) Think deeply about your proposed change;

(2) Understand as fully as possible the impact it is likely to have, and

(3) Work out clearly exactly how you are going to reap the benefits from the change.

(7) Macro management

Of all change management methodologies, at the macro level, the programme management based approach to change management is the one most likely to ensure that you avoid the 70% failure rate.

A programme management based approach has as it goal, the full realisation of the business benefits [that will be derived from the delivery of the new capability]. In my view, this is a very big shift in emphasis from the traditional [and unsuccessful] project based approach to change.

It is this holistic approach that links vision to strategy and all the way through to implementation and successful benefit realisation.

This is why I have based so much of my whole approach to successful change management on a programme management based approach to leading and managing change.

(8) Micro management

Managing change in the workplace requires hands-on detailed management [micro management on occasions] in the specifics of how to do it, and especially during the early stages.

It is up to you to define and communicate those actionable steps, and to manage your people through the process of implementing and integrating those steps as the new modus operandi.

At the micro - day to day management level: Incremental change = translating vision and strategy into actionable steps.

Leading your people through change, putting it all together and managing the whole messy business

I am a firm believer in “proper preparation and planning”, and I firmly believe that it is worth making the investment of leadership and management time at the outset of a change initiative, to save an inestimable amount of time and resource with a rushed and ill-considered initiative.

Change is a messy business fraught with complexity, multiple factors and many things that can, and usually do, go wrong. There are 3 broad areas that need to be included in successful strategies for managing change, namely:

• Leadership that directly addresses the transitions and emotional dimension of those impacted by the change, and provides inspirational motivation
  
• A change model and methodology that covers the multiple factors that must be addressed
  
• Action management that shows and assists people with the specifics of exactly what is required of them

These are addressed in the "Practitioners Masterclass" which takes a holistic view of the key areas and shows you how to put all this into practise.

And all of this is examined, co-related and integrated with the other key areas leading your people through change, putting it all together and managing the whole messy business.

To equip yourself, stay one step ahead with the tools and processes that will enable you to manage the messy stuff - check out the Practitioners' Masterclass [or click on the image to the right].

Accessing wider resources

You will find many Resources in this site - plus many Free downloads of all key strategies for managing change.

Also, throughout this site you will find that there are many external links to quality information re all aspects related to strategies for managing change, all of which I have checked out personally all of which I have checked out personally, and which I trust you will find beneficial.

Please do make use of the How to manage change in practise section to raise questions re change management tools, or to seek clarification or to add your own perspective or experience.

The Site Search facility will enable you to search on any word or phrase within this site, or you can use the Site Map

SAVE this WEB-PAGE as PDF for File or Print

Putting all this into practise

• EZINE - Understanding change management

• Discussion & Feedback - What's your experience?

• FREE Consultation - "Ask The Change Management Expert"

• Resources - Practical support - for change management

Home Page

Return to top