Create the right environment for change
The physical environment is an important aspect to consider when identifying how you are going to make change stick. There are a number of quick wins that can be generated by creating the right environment and some fundamentals that really should be part of every change plan. If you’re looking for quick wins then look no further than some of these changes:
Communication – Use your physical project space to communicate the change you are trying to bring about. Share the vision, the plan and the successes to date, so that when people enter that space the story is there for them to explore.
Transparency – Open doors as soon as you can. People become suspicious of change because it often starts hidden away behind lock and key. That’s hard to reverse and will make the transformation slower and heavier to manoeuvre.
Community – Create a sense of community amongst the change team. They will be battered and bruised by the resistors and stretched very thin by the deadlines, so they need to know they have a ‘safe space’ to come together and work on getting the job done.
As well as taking no time at all to implement, they are also really easy to introduce and cost very little money. However, if you want to make change stick, there are some more significant changes that you may wish to consider. When comparing them to the above, they do take a bit more time to implement and will make a larger dent in your project budget. But please don’t ignore them, as we guarantee they will make a big difference in the success of your project:
Flexibility – Create several work settings for different activities, making sure any working space caters for a wide range of personalities. Remember, a successful project team is made up of a variety of characters with a range of strengths and weaknesses. They have different working requirements and need to be able to work effectively to make change happen.
Technology – The technology used needs to support the flexibility that is being created in the workplace. Empower the people driving the change to work in whichever way and wherever they feel will generate the best outcome.
Ways of Working – What does success look like? The people creating the change will be the advocates for it, so start to introduce ways of working amongst the change community first. If they live and breathe the ‘to be’, it will be a lot easier for them to sell.
