Your technique is a valuable practice to gather ownership in the process. People will adapt better if they feel they are part of the change agent. Your efforts to bring people together for team success encourages this transfer of ownership.
I consider myself a change agent.
I stepped into a new leadership role with an organization that was use to operating under a different leadership style of implementing change. The team was use to working with a top-down management style regarding change.
I believe in the pulling your team into the idea surrounding change verses push the ideas of change. Through asking open-ended question to generate open communication within the team created an environment that supported open communication. The team was encouraged to become more engaged in framing the right area of opportunities, developing alternative solutions and potential implementation strategies to activate change. The management team became more comfortable sharing constructive feedback amongst one another. Thus pulling the team into the decision making process. The end result was the team identified alternative solutions and implementation strategies to move the change process progressively forward. Ultimately the team took full ownership of the change process.
Change is change regardless of the type of change involved. A leader can us the same strategy regardless of the type of change that is on the table.
I am definitely a change agent. I believe that continuous improvement is a business necessity. Therefore, change must be ongoing or you are not improving. That does not mean that I do not express any concerns to proposed change. Diversity of opinion, and resistance to embrace a change may drive conflict. But I see this conflict as a necessary pert of the improvement process. The key work is improvement, and change must drive that end.
You are probably not a blocker but a person who requires more information and better analysis before you move forward. There is nothing wrong with being caustious but not at the expense of progress. Sometimes after analysis you need to use the research from a pilot. Nothing seems to run smoothly from the start but with fine tuning it gets better.
I sometimes can be categorized as a change blocker. I say this because in my company I have seen many plans put into operation before being carefully planed out. This is a recipe for disaster. I am very reluctant to change unless it comes with a strategy.
Sometimes making sense with change is the hardest challenge. Many business and management experts such as Drucker explained change as necessary. Change is fulfilling our mission. During change we may need to revisit the mission of the company to make sure we are parallel with our actions of change. Questions to ask during change are:
What is our mission?
Who is our customer?
What does the customer want?
How does this affect us both externally and internally?
Change should only for improvement purposes.
I consider myself both a change agent and a change blocker. The reason I feel this way is because as a manager it is my responsiblity to guide my employees toward a common end result, such as fulfilling the company's mission statemet. I prefer to consider myself as a guide for change. Many times employees will suggest change and I will guide that suggestion to a change status or a block status because of various reasons. Yes it does depend on the type of change involved. Some changes are company driven because of economy or business practices and others are employee suggestions. The interesting part is managing people through change so that it makes sense.
Change can be for the better. It is important that change is a constant search for the best practices. Due to our changing environment in our work surroundings nothing stays the same. We must be willing to be forward thinkers.
I would say overall I am a change agent. I believe in change when it can improve/streamline work processes & eliminates busy work. I think the trick is to keep and open mind at what is being proposed. All to often the statement "why fix what is not broke" can justify resistance, and in some cases it may be a very valid statement. The key to change is to remain open, think it through and see the big picture.
I am on a college accreditation board of directors. I am leading a major change event within the organization. We are soon to be a 100 year old agency. Much of the regulations have been outdated with changes in technology and the operations of colleges. Our motivation to the council members is looking at the next 100 years and how we need to be prepared. You are correct in some push back but we have set up an ad hoc committee to begin to put the structure of change into place for implementation. Our process will take two years.
I believe that I try to be a change agent as much as possible. I try to always stay positive when dealing with difficult situations. Although, change blocking may sometimes be the easier choice if you do not focus on a positive outcome. There are so many situations that may come up to where it would be easier to resist change, but having patience and understanding can help in changes that develop in any company.
Monica,
You are correct with open-mindedness and forward thinking. This attribute calls for us to be good listeners. We need to allow for good brainstorming so everyone can get their thoughts out in the open. Building trust in change happens when we all have the ability to listen.
Good job on your comments!
Generally supportive team players want to grow the company and work toward a "best practices" mentality for the organization, this would include behavior such as open-mindedness and forward thinking.
Renee,
Usually change proposals are for the improvement of a company in its process. It may be necessary to hold up the current plan but it is equally important to give direction with alternative solutions or re-engineering of the current plan. Adding knowledge to enlighten your team of the necessity or not to make changes is important to give ownership around the table.
Monica,
Your mention of team is essential to implementing the change necessary for resolutions. From a human behavior perspective it is not unusual to have blocks and mistrust for change. What kind of behaviors would be a give away for recognizing support or non-acceptance?
Especially with regard to process changes. As a change agent you must first be able to recognize a block or problem. I have been part of a team that has seen process blocks in our online delivery of courses. I have brought these to the attention of the interested parties and changes have been implemented to increase efficiency. Changing the status quo is not easy. As you mentioned in earlier threads persistence is key.
I do consider myself both a change agent and a change blocker depending on the situation at hand. I am a Change Agent when the proposal would benefit the team promoting success to achieve goals. However, if the change is made without thoroughly thinking and comparing pros and cons of the situation, then I would consider myself a change blocker.
What are the qualifications to be a change agent?You had mentioned you are a change agent. What changes have you been specifically involved? How have your peers or supervisors attemped to block an initiative?
I consider myself a change agent. I interface with different departments within the school and give me best to coming up with effective strategies to improve our program. When I see a potential block or problem, I take the initiative to discuss it with my manager and offer solutions or other more viable options.
William
Change for the right reason is a value added proposition. It is important we keep an open mind to change proposals and ideas. We must not be a deterent to change but we should be responsible with our stakeholders and be a risk taker with confidence in our actions. Change is the formula for staying in front of the competition.
