Tackling Organizational Change: Key Concepts, Practical Flow and Iterative Adaptation
- Mark Nowak
- Oct 22, 2024
- 6 min read
Updated: Oct 22, 2024
Introduction
Humans have always sought after improvement. Improving how we live, adapting to changing environments, and continuously learning new skills is in our DNA. From the Egyptians to modern civilizations, continuous improvement has always been at the heart of human evolution. Although becoming more efficient, effective, and productive to survive to beat the opposition has always existed, organizational learning and change management as a practice really started to gain popularity and formality in the 1950s. Since then, many experts in psychology, philosophy, business, sport and other fields have contributed to the world of continuous improvement and organizational growth. The consensus among change practitioners is that change is not easy and that there is not a single right way to do it.
This blog aims to explore a few ideas that have helped us bring change to people, teams and organizations. We look at the key concepts to keep in mind when leading change, such as the outcomes, the culture and the leadership. We'll also look at the general flow of change, starting from observation to implementation to assessment.
There is an extensive catalog of material on how to implement and cause change in the organization. We encourage you to be curious and explore other techniques, tools, frameworks methods, behaviors, and stories.
Key Concepts
Organizational change, like any complex system involving human behavior and institutional structures, requires careful analysis and consideration of all the elements. This section covers some of the most important concepts we have drawn from empirical observation and theoretical frameworks.
Sponsorship
Sponsorship is the driving force behind change, supporting the vision, providing focus, and embodying the change itself. It is the authority and advocacy that makes change possible. Sponsorship, while not sufficient alone, is a necessary component of effective change. Without it, large-scale change efforts often stall due to resistance and organizational gravity.
Questions to consider...
Who is sponsoring the change and how are they demonstrating their commitment?
How often do you meet with the sponsor(s)? Are meetings generating actionable decisions that facilitate change or are they merely addressing "Information Debt"?
See also:
Outcomes
The distinction between outputs and outcomes requires careful examination. Outputs are tangible results of work - they are observable actions and artifacts. Outcomes are the real life impacts of those results on people, teams and organizations - they are the measurable systemic changes.
Make sure you're approaching outcome definition through a lens of critical analysis. Many people struggle to avoid conflating outcomes with outputs. For example, if a team says, "We need a Daily Stand-up," that's an output. A true outcome would be, "We are achieving our goals more effectively because of better communication and alignment."
Questions to consider...
What problems are you solving, and are they clear to you, your sponsors and the people affected by change?
Are there any situations where we might be conflating outcomes for outputs?
See also:
Success Metrics
Metrics provide direction, urgency and a way to assess whether the change is achieving its intended outcomes. Measurement of change must be both valid and reliable. This requires careful consideration of:
Validity: Does the metric measure what it claims to measure? Be careful of vanity metrics - those that make you look successful but don't reflect real progress. For example, tracking meeting attendance as a success metric doesn't measure the meeting's actual value.
Reliability: Is the measurement consistent and repeatable? Be careful of measurements that are snapshots in time and never used again, or, where it is difficult to measure the change in measurement. For example, conducting a one-time survey tells you only about that moment in time. If the survey is never conducted again, you won't be able to measure the impact of your change.
Utility: Does the measurement inform decision making? Be careful of metrics that don't lead to action. They may not necessarily be detrimental, but you may find yourself wasting time collecting metrics that offer you no value.
Questions to consider...
What evidence demonstrates improvement and progress towards desired outcomes?
See also:
Culture
Organizational culture represents a complex adaptive system of shared beliefs, behaviors, and assumptions. Any change initiative must account for existing culture to help build trust. Without trust, new practices and behaviors are unlikely to take hold effectively.
Questions to consider...
Which aspects of the current culture could help or hinder change?
What are the underlying assumptions driving cultural resistance?
What cultural strengths can you build upon?
See also:
Limit Disruption
Change, even when a positive improvement, can be unsettling. Large, rapid shifts can be overwhelming, leading to fatigue and resistance. Big batch changes also introduce multiple variables simultaneously, making measurement difficult.
Limiting disruption by working in smaller, incremental batches can make change more digestible and measurable. A helpful tactic is to create a pull system, where transparency about challenges encourages those affected by the change to ask for solutions, rather than having changes imposed on them.
See also:
Curiosity
Perhaps the most effective way to inspire change is to inspire curiosity. Encouraging people to explore new possibilities and question the status quo creates genuine momentum for change. Through coaching, mentoring and empowerment, you can facilitate experimentation, quick feedback, and continuous improvement.
Encourage experimentation and learning. Challenge the mindset of "that's the way we've always done it," and inspire people to envision what success could look like. Help them break away from traditional thinking and explore new, creative approaches.
See also:
Flow
Change is not a linear, one-time process but a dynamic evolution best suited to multiple iterations. Each stage of the flow to implementing change offers opportunities for feedback, learning and adaptation. These stages can run in parallel and overlap. This helps with responding to what works, rather than sticking rigidly to a predefined plan.
See also:
Where Are We Now?
Assess / Reassess
Start by understanding the current state. What is working? What isn't? This initial assessment helps provide an empirical measurement of existing processes.
This assessment is not a one-time activity and should be revisited frequently, depending on the volatility of your environment. See Feedback Urgency Model.
Capability Development
Change is only as successful as the capabilities of the people involved. Experiment with building capability through:
Checklists: Use structured checklists to ensure readiness, consistency, and high quality.
Tools: Equip teams with the right tools to drive change.
Training: Provide targeted training to build the skills needed for change.
Keep in mind the 70/20/10 model of learning, which suggests that the most effective development happens in three key ways: 70% through hands-on, experiential learning in real-life situations; 20% through social learning—gaining insights from others and building relationships; and 10% through formal education, such as courses, reading, and structured training. This model emphasizes the importance of practical experience and peer interaction as the primary drivers of meaningful learning.
Opportunity Creation
Create opportunities for change by encouraging reflection and empowerment:
Step back: Take a step back and allow people to learn on the job by themselves. Much like a child needs to fall off a bike, get up and try again, create an environment so that you can step back and enable similar learning experiences.
Experience Acceleration: Use simulations or pilot projects to test new ideas in a low-risk environment.
Transparency: Make the challenges and goals visible to everyone to maintain engagement and understanding.
Ownership: Help individuals and teams to take ownership of the change by granting them the autonomy to make decisions and take action. Establish clear guardrails that guide decision-making, enabling responsibility to be delegated from higher levels of the organization to those directly involved in the work.
Motivation Enhancement
Motivation is crucial for sustaining momentum. You can help build motivation by:
Rewards and Incentives: These are not necessarily financial rewards. This may come in the form of career progression, more autonomy, less stress, and so on.
Seek Input: Ask for feedback and ideas from those affected by the change.
Conclusion
The flow described above isn’t a strict sequence; it's a cycle that repeats itself, with different parts of the process often running in parallel. The goal is to make progress in smaller, manageable increments, gathering feedback frequently and adapting quickly. Remember to consider the Key Concepts when experimenting with new ideas and influencing change.
The key to effective change implementation lies in maintaining flexibility and encouraging ongoing adaptation. You can create a more resilient and effective change process that continuously evolves to meet the needs of the organization.
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