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The Ten Commandments for Strategic Change

Most changes cause disruption and in many cases, massive disruption. It is up to you to determine how acute this disruption is and how long it will last. Be as up front as you can about why the change is being done at this time and how it will unfold.

1. Thou Shalt Know Thy Audience - thoroughly.

Know who will resist, who will embrace, and most importantly that the vast majority will not fall into either camp. If you have the capacity; identify and group individuals on the basis of MBTI of other personality profiling systems and anticipate and plan for individual and group reaction.

2. Thou Shalt Not Cram Round Pegs Into Square Holes

(social workers typically do not make good accountants, nor typically do IT project managers make good change managers). Do not create objectives that cannot be met or fail to acknowledge the non-transferability of highly specialized core skills.

3. Thou Shalt Keep The Good Of The People And The Good Of The Organization In Balance

If you tip one way or the other, you risk sacrificing all. All change initiated by organizations is not good. Some is poorly thought through, hurtful, destructive, and may result in outcomes worse than if no change had occurred at all. Be strategic about what changes you make and most importantly, why you are making them.

4. Thou Shalt Communicate In Language That Is Clear, Precise And Fair

make sure you neither oversell the benefits nor understate the disruption of the change process. Most people have built-in "BS meters" and trust is usually at an all-time-low during a change process. Make sure you do not make it worse by "beating around the bush", muddying the message with jargon or poorly thought through rationale, or out-and-out lying. Be direct and forthcoming in your presentation and messaging.

5. Thou Shalt Undertake Exhaustive Analysis of the environment, people, processes, finances, strategies, statistics and other program and project factors before embarking on your change process.

 Do not confuse project, program or organizational movement for strategic improvement or advancement. I once contracted with an organization which did not heed this commandment, and five years later, many employees are still reeling from what amounts to a poorly planned and executed organizational change process that resulted in the toxification of the workplace.

6. Thou Shalt Create a Clear, Compelling Vision and consistently share it with those affected by the change - at all levels.

If you do not do this, you have tied your hands from the start.

7. Thou Shalt Not Celebrate Victory or Pat yourself on the Back Too Soon after beginning the execution phase of the change process.

Change processes are almost always longer, more onerous, and onerous than initially conceived. To remind yourself of the folly of celebrating too soon, simply remember 'Dub-ya' on the Aircraft Carrier at the outset of the War in Iraq.

8. Thou Shalt Trust The People, But None Too Much.

Most people are Machiavellian and if changes aren't "taking", you might be shocked to hear some of your highly regarded and carefully selected "change agents" bad-mouthing or undermining the process - your process. While it is important to maintain a vigil regarding your overall strategic objectives, it is also important to keep an "ear to the ground" and to perform course corrections based on information provided by the environment. In essence, constant adjustments around a theme are more likely than getting planning dead right the first time.

9. Thou Shalt Remain Positive and Convey a Positive Attitude throughout the Change Process

Most importantly after the initial shock is over (don't be a Polly-Anna, but be realistic and hopeful). Sometimes setting the ball in motion is enough to have it move to where you want it to go. However, this happens only with a clear vision and a positive orientation toward the change. By all means convey a sense of urgency, but do not dwell on the dire consequences of either doing or not doing it. Paint a picture of an improved organization - realistic, honest, and accurate.

10. Above All, Thou Shalt Be Honest With Thyself And Others.

Most changes cause disruption and in many cases, massive disruption. It is up to you to determine how acute this disruption is and how long it will last. Be as up front as you can about why the change is being done at this time and how it will unfold. While your employees (especially those most impacted by the change) may not always like or agree with what is transpiring (or you for that matter), they usually respond positively or at least not negatively to forthrightness and honesty. While you might not be loved after the process, chances are you will be respected.

A final caveat:

If you were not the architect of the change and if the change was based on poor information or a poorly thought through strategy, then you have two choices. First, you can plan and execute the change, or if it conflicts significantly with your personal values, you may have to consider moving to an organization whose values are more aligned with yours. In either case, my advice is for you to avoid taking ownership. If you do decide to execute in the face of strong value and belief system dissonance, be prepared for significant stress and anxiety.

Above all, look after yourself throughout the change process. Good luck.

Shane Busby, MBA, (www.busbyplans.com) is a management consultant based in North Vancouver, Canada. Shane provides advisory services in strategic planning, business planning, and change management. Shane is a lifelong learner, an avid student and teacher of business tools, techniques and processes.

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