Feedback Form
Home Features Mastermind Forums About Advertise Blog Network Contact Be An Author

Change Is A Constant

Change Is A Constant

Several years ago a senior executive told me he was, "Sick and tired of hearing about change." He's probably almost terminally sick of change today. Change is now a constant. Businesses try to change their business models, the way they process information, and how they deal with suppliers and customers. Six Sigma is no longer something only the "big guys" try. It seems everyone is jumping on some kind of Business Process Management (BPM) bandwagon.

A recent 8,000+ word report on BPM by Gartner, a leading provider of IT market research, reflects current thinking regarding making desired changes. They open their report with, "Implementing BPM is difficult. The main problems to any significant change are the human barriers - inertia and vested interests." Ten pages later the authors state, "More recently, management has recognized the importance of the human contribution to work - The ability to lead and collaborate has become important as value networks are increasingly interdependent." Later they contend, "Good management now requires a balance of skills in process, staff management,
and use of IT."

That's it for the human element. The other 7,900 plus words detail the technical aspects of BPM. Please don't misunderstand; this is not an indictment of Gartner. Their document simply represents current business paradigms. The human element of business process management is often addressed with psycho-babble, marginalized with vague platitudes, or conveniently ignored.

Let's set the record straight, the people side of process improvement is no mystery. In collaboration with Dale Carnegie and Associates, a giant aircraft manufacturer works with teams of people to produce simultaneous advances in technical and non-technical areas. Here's a snapshot of what we've learned.

Process improvement initiatives, including Six Sigma, lose momentum due to the human element. Black Belts often tell us that "buy-in" and momentum are critical to their initiatives. They typically invest sixty percent or more of their time trying to restimulate participation and focus, and twenty percent using their technical Six Sigma capabilities. This is the same breakdown of an individual's success pattern. As people move up the corporate ladder, they produce eighty or more percent of their results using non-technical abilities but, they take their mental- models with them.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt, the brilliant author of The Goal, constantly reminds us to check our premises, or "rules". Here are several paradigms we've uncovered in our work helping organizations move from where they are to where they dream of being.

Underlying Assumption #1: Simply knowing something is the answer. We often get requests from executives to achieve outcomes such as assisting technically competent individuals in developing their ability to deal with others, become more confident, be better listeners etc. The goal is clear until the person on the phone adds, "Can you do a half-day seminar for these people?" We can conduct an effective workshop, but simply talking to people about the subject or engaging them in "exercises", seldom produces desired changes. It surprises us how many business people actually think from the knowledge acquisition paradigm. At first, we thought executives were just trying to save time and money. We were wrong.

If you are serious about producing outcomes, vigorously avoid the knowledge paradigm trap. When we hear the knowledge acquisition assumption, we ask, "If people improved in the areas you requested and your business results stay the same, is that okay?" This quickly uncovers the business objective behind the request. If we don't do this, our client may waste precious resources on the wrong things. Unless we clearly tie project outcomes to a business objective, skills rarely stick.

Focus on desired outcomes rather than simplistic "learning objectives." Underlying Assumption #2: We need "buy-in." "Buy-in" implies agreement. If you try to gain consensus or agreement on everything by everybody, you'll never make progress. What you require is support. Not everyone supports a business initiative in which they do not agree. It's fine to disagree, and smart executives invite challenges to their ideas, but not in the implementation stage.

You gain alignment and support through listening, not speaking. This is one of the most common missteps, especially in Business Process Management initiatives. "Rolling out" an initiative with a one-way PowerPoint® pitch seldom gets a project up to speed. This approach actually creates resistance.

Engage others in conversations around your desired outcomes and each individual's connection to them. Hear what is important to them and listen for alignment rather than artificially trying to create it.

Underlying Assumption #3: We need to change other's behaviour in order to
achieve our goals. We admit we've fallen into this trap. A change in behaviour may be desired, even required, however, this assumption is based on a "single-cause" mindset. There is no single-cause behind most human behaviour. Processes sometimes have a bottleneck or underlying cause, but as Eliyahu Goldratt and Peter Senge clearly tell us, a global or systems view often exposes a different reality. Our colleague Robert Fritz contends, "Structure gives rise to behaviour."

Similar to our Gartner report example, we observe many executives acknowledging the human element in the early stages of an initiative, but only focus resources, time, and attention on it when it becomes a "problem." People are not a problem to fix; they are the source of desired outcomes.

Underlying Assumption #4: Creating the future we desire is a problem to be solved. Listen to conversations around your boardroom table. Gauge how much time you invest in problem solving. When a water pipe breaks, that's an immediate problem. Fix it. Creating the future we want is not a seek-and-destroy mission; it's a design-build process.

Our business culture is steeped in problem solving. We reward those we perceive can solve problems. Unfortunately, many of our business "firefighters" are pyromaniacs. They create many of the "fires" they put out. For example, when executives speak in vague concepts and generalities, they wonder why others don't "buy-in" or "get it". What's to get? Is it clear what you are creating? Is what you don't want clearer to others than what you want? If so, people will have difficulty doing their part helping you create your desired future.

In one case, we worked for several hours with an executive to clearly communicate what he was creating. It was time well invested. He outperformed his peers by several months at less than a third of the cost.

Another executive repeatedly describes a burning platform "forcing" people to jump off and move to a "higher" platform. It is an unfortunate analogy. Attempts to manipulate based on fear motivation may appear to achieve short-term gains, but results crash and burn (sorry) when veiled threats fail to materialize into a genuine disaster. People fade into a "this too will pass" mindset or need an even more "serious" disaster to move them to action. This executive is better off using the same vivid language to engage others in creating something of value to the organization
and to each stakeholder.

Replace "make the problem go away" with "bring what we want into existence."

Underlying Assumption #5: Workload causes stress. Workload does not cause stress. The problem with "stress leave" is that the cause of stress goes with the person. This is less simplistic or heartless than it sounds. Unrealistic objectives, poor resource allocation, fuzzy initiatives, and ineffective communication cause plenty of waste in an organization. Management is responsible for much of the confusion. Management is responsible for producing results through the willing cooperation of others. The workload/stress assumption is responsible for a plethora of ineffective "solutions" that treat symptoms, not causes.

A well-executed Business Process Management System combined with advances in key player's competency in gaining willing cooperation, alignment, and accountability, goes a long way to reduce stress in the workplace. Much of the stress we see is sincere, committed individuals trying to get things done in a structure that makes goals almost impossible to achieve. In contrast, after two months of a synchronized approach, one executive declared, "We almost quadrupled our business in the past two years, yet I've seen less stress around the office than I've ever seen". Workload increased dramatically, but we increased our human capacity.





Change Is A Constant - To learn more about this author, visit Dave Mather's Website.

Like this article? Share it with your friends

Article Feedback
 Article Feedback No article feedback found.
  Leave Your Feedback
article feedback

Article Feedback
Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Are your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website

Anne Barr
Anne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website


To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us.

About The Author


Dave Mather
(Visit Dave's Website) Dave is a 37-year veteran Business Coach. Mr. Mather designs and conducts customized Performance Improvement Systems for organizations across Canada. Dave regularly aligns employees to a common vision in a period of weeks rather than months or years. The end result is a success rate for clients of three to five times that of the national average. Dave's background is in the broadcasting industry where he worked as a newscaster and radio personality for 6 years. He has traveled across Canada and the United States and has personally trained over 45,000 people to improve their performance. Dave has been heard by over 100,000 people through his various courses and platform appearances and has conducted workshops for businesses in Canada, The United States as well as in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Australia, and South Africa. He has been quoted by many publications including The Detroit Free Press, Hamilton Spectator, Globe and Mail, Toronto Sun, Readers Digest and Toronto Life. Dave specializes in working with senior managers/owners helping them turn what is

Dave Mather is a Gold author on EvanCarmichael.com
About The Author

View Author Blog
View Author Blog

View Author Video
View Author Video

Free Downloads


Dave Mather's

Complete
List Of
Sales
Articles

Name
Email
Author's Free Downloads
Business Success By Design Icon Business Success By Design

More Dave Mather
2009 New Years Resolutions That Work
Make 2009 Your Best Year Ever Part IV
Levels of Sales Competence
ProblemSolvings Problem
Executing Your Strategic Framework Part II
Make 2009 Your Best Year Ever Part II
Business Tip 2 Follow The Money
Make 2009 Your Best Year Ever Part V
Execute Your Strategic Framework Part I
Change Is A Constant
Free Downloads


 
 
 


Evan Elite Authors
Stephanie Robey  
Jeff Foster  
Joe Dager  
Evan Elite Authors

Become An Author
Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details.
Become An Author

Evan's Latest Video
Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media
Evan's Latest Video

Business Opportunities
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"

How to Start An Online Business

Click Here To Learn More
Business Opportunities



Evan's Newsletter
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
Name:
Email:
Evan`s Newsletter

Free Downloads
Life Purpose Icon Life Purpose
New Sales Leadership Paradigm Icon New Sales Leadership Paradigm
Start Right Icon Start Right
New Year Revolutions Icon New Year Revolutions
Sale Systems Icon Sale Systems
Free Downloads - Complete List

Entrepreneur Tools and Guides
Top 50 Diversion Blogs
Top 50 Diversion Blogs
Top Diversion Blogs of 2009
 
Write The Press Release
Write The PR
Press Release Builder
 
Entrepreneur Tools and Guides

SEO For Africa
SEO For Africa
Mai Astou Sène Mbousnakh ,Thiès, Senegal,
Mai Astou Sène
Mbousnakh ,Thiès, Senegal
SEO For Africa

If I Were A Startup...
Catherine Daw, > $4 Mil in revenues
Catherine Daw
> $4 Mil in revenues
Julie Mitchell, $470k to $1.1 Mil in 2 years
Julie Mitchell
$470k to $1.1 Mil in 2 years
If I Were A Startup... - Complete List

Famous Entrepreneurs
Pierre Omidyar, Ebay
Li Ka Shing, Hutchison Whampoa
Li Ka Shing
Hutchison Whampoa
Famous Entrepreneurs - Complete List

Entrepreneur Advice
Keith Ferrazzi, Never Eat Alone
Keith Ferrazzi
Never Eat Alone
Timothy Ferriss, 4 Hour Work Week
Timothy Ferriss
4 Hour Work Week
Entrepreneur Advice - Complete List

Popular Articles
(Premium Authors)

     Learn To Influence Your Interactions In Groups
By Dannye Williamsen
     If You Have To Leave A Group, Make The Most Of It!
By Dannye Williamsen
     Shifting Your Perspective
By Dannye Williamsen

Have A Suggestion?
Toronto Salsa Classes / Toronto Salsa Lessons Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
Have A Suggestion?

More Evan Carmichael
More Information