Change that sticks: Change management for the adoption of complex systems. Kip Soteres & Beth Archie, Soteres Consulting

Transcription

1 Change that sticks: Change management for the adoption of complex systems Kip Soteres & Beth Archie, Soteres Consulting

2 Founder & President Soteres Consulting Since 2015 VP, Director & Manager Roles Highmark Health PNC Bank BlueCross BlueShield of TN Cadence Design Systems 2001 to 2015 Kip Soteres Change Communications Expert Recent clients include the BlueCross BlueShield Association, Oakmont Country Club, Kennametal, HEARTH Transitional Housing, Care.IT, Kahani Cloud & Boyden Global Executive Search Gold Quill & Silver Anvil awards for communication excellence Significantly outperform industry standards for change communications Published & cited by Ragan Communications & the IABC s Journal of Employee Communications Management Led dozens of M&A communication efforts across multiple industries 2

3 Audience poll Raise your hand if you ve ever launched an initiative that did not achieve its end goal. Any initiative: Mergers & acquisitions/restructuring Large system implementations Cost reductions Innovation efforts Quality or customer satisfaction efforts Mission, vision & values initiatives 4

4 Because 75% of organizations do not achieve desired results 5

5 Don t take it from us McKinsey & Company: A recent survey of business executives indicates that only 30% of change programs are successful today. IBM: Nearly 60% of projects aimed at achieving business change do not fully meet their objectives. Harvard Business Review: Approximately 70% of all change initiatives fail. Forbes/Towers Watson: A new Towers Watson study shows that only 25% of change management initiatives are successful over the long term. Connor Partners: Change practitioners have some culpability for the atrocious 70% failure rate of change initiatives. 6

6 Don t take it from us John Kotter interviewed 400 people in 130 organizations that had deemed their change efforts successful. The Conclusion: central challenge is not strategy, not systems, not culture. It s about changing behavior, which is less a matter of giving people analysis to influence their thought than helping them to see a truth to influence their feelings. 7

7 The power lines are down at the point of the problem 8

8 What kind of business situations does this apply to? 9

9 Anything that requires employee acceptance to capture ROI HR technology M&A integrations Process re-engineering Employee adoption

10 We need a proven approach that solves for human factors. 11

11 Effective change: Some surprises Sustain change by engaging emotions. Anticipate natural resistance. Avoid mental overload, the biggest enemy of change. Set micro-goals: 60-70% solutions work best. Keep communicating, but evolve the story. Tie significant change to measurable behaviors. Probe for positives; create a winning locker room. 11

12 Change resistance curve Satisfaction I ve heard of a change, but it won t apply to me. This isn t important to my work/the organization. Denial Resistance I won t do it. It doesn t make sense. I will try. We ll see what happens Hope Commitment Exploration I can see some results. This might work. This is the way we do things around here. Prepare for resistance as a natural part of change. Two-way communication channels are crucial. Stay attuned to employees. Constructive criticisms are opportunities to adjust. Win good will by listening. Employees who resist are by definition aware of coming changes Complaints are not failure; they are initial success. 13

13 Applied to IT implementations Satisfaction The system isn t perfect, but we make it work. Jim will kill it. I don t understand why someone thinks we need this. It will go away. It won t affect us. Denial Resistance I don t have time. Not a priority. Has Jenny seen this? I will try. We ll see what happens This might work if they make a few changes. Commitment Hope Exploration I see how we can make this work. How can I help? What more do you need from us? This is the way we do things around here. Prepare for resistance as a natural part of change. Two-way communication channels are crucial. Stay attuned to employees. Constructive criticisms are opportunities to adjust. Win good will by listening. Employees who resist are by definition aware of coming changes Complaints are not failure; they are initial success. 14

14 Core methodology Make it simple: Set simple goals; define simple & specific behaviors Prepare the way: Equip leaders to be successful; know your stakeholders; engage everyone in the change; anticipate resistance Appeal to the emotions: Use strong & consistent messages; seek out good feedback; create champions & ambassadors; celebrate successes Use your metrics: Pursue continuous improvement; pause; pivot & press on 15

15 Make it simple or How to confuse a rabbit using carrots When possible, make completion simple, centralize resources & promote CONFIDENTIAL. with CUSTOM TEXT. brief push messages. Create a one-stop repository for questions & complaints. 16

16 Practical tips for making IT implementations simpler 1. Consistently communicate one centralized resource for questions & comments 2. Segment audiences & simplify for information they need to know (e.g., manager & super-user resources); exclude unaffected audiences 3. Do not mass train until the tool is available 17

17 Prepare the way Leaders drive the business rationale & inspire; expect initial resistance Managers translate change to employees & convey a positive tone Support functions implement & support the business Consider the advantages of not positioning support functions as the standard bearers for change efforts. 18

18 Practical tips for preparing the way for IT implementations 1. Engage stakeholders early. Use their inputs & communicate your responsiveness to their valid feedback 2. Understand company context some weeks are better than others for launch; you don t have to launch just because the tool is ready 3. When possible, use soft launches & a phased approach to implementation 19

19 Appeal to the emotions Take good feedback, visibly implement it & loudly communicate it Set small micro-goals to sustain feelings of success Create champions & ambassadors at every opportunity Consider focus groups before implementation

20 Practical tips for engaging emotions during IT implementations 1. We need your help anticipate hitches & communicate that possibility; activate stakeholders to help you improve the tool in the weeks following launch 2. Coach executives & managers to brace for initial resistance to change their response to feedback will set the tone for the implementation 3. Create champions & celebrate milestones 21

21 Define success with metrics Get success, pause to celebrate & pivot to the next behavior. 22

22 1. Control your definition of success be clear about prioritized success metrics & harness efforts to ensure those targets are met Call volumes? Satisfaction scores? Utilization? Practical tips for using metrics to promote employee acceptance Speed of implementation? 2. Establish smaller milestones & goals regular success builds confidence & momentum; falling short of small goals is easier to acknowledge & correct 23

23 But if you do only one thing Make it simple Be responsive; remove barriers & excuses Complex solutions make their own problems 24

24 Contact For more information about this presentation, To download this presentation or for more information about change communications strategies, visit soteresconsulting.com

25 Thank Thank you you for for your your time! time! 26 23

26 Simplicity creates focused results Stories are the best way to make things simple for people in a way that they can remember & act upon days or months later. 27