Change Leadership for Middle Managers II

”Let’s set the stage, Jaded Julie. Our middle manager is faced with guiding her team through a period of change. We assume the change isn’t too sudden or traumatic—perhaps a Lean transformation—and we also give her some good leadership skills. How should she handle it?”

“I’ve got it, Curmudge! A new big word, rapport, which for once you didn’t spring on me first. ‘A relationship of mutual trust’ that she has with her team. She needs that to lead her team through the change. Fortunately, she knows the First Law of Leadership: ‘If you don’t believe in the messenger, you won’t believe the message.’ I’m surprised that the books don’t mention rapport more often.”

“Rapport (the ‘t’ is silent) between manager and team is certainly critical in change leadership. She will need that as she follows Affinity’s Model for Managing Change. In the first step, Vision, she will have to clarify the employees’ roles in the vision already articulated by the CEO and the management team. Then she must describe the Skills and Resources necessary to achieve the vision. In a Lean culture these will include Lean tools, such as 5S, that she will teach.”

“From our earlier discussions, Curmudge, we know that enumerating the Incentives for change to a Lean culture is pretty easy. Waste reduction and respect for people should help make the future more appealing than the present.”

“Finally, developing the Action Plan will be straightforward, because with Lean, the team members themselves will do it.”

“What could go wrong? This sounds pretty easy.”

“It shouldn’t be difficult, Julie, but remember our discussion back on October 29, 2007 about things that can go wrong in a Lean transformation.”

“I guess it won’t be a slam-dunk. Are there other issues that our change leader must consider?”

“Here are some reminders for the change leader that I picked from the documents that we referenced last time:

· Organizations don’t change. People do…or they don’t. People react differently to change, and we must treat a transformation as a physical, mental, and emotional process.

· Help the employees understand that today’s workplace is changing from paternalism to a partnership. With Lean, employees are treated with respect and are regarded as the local experts in the work that they do. In return, they are expected to participate in personal growth, contribute to problem-solving, and develop ideas for improving the efficiency and quality of their work.”

“Curmudge, I hope this means that ‘involvement breeds commitment,’ as I read in one of the papers.”

“Exactly. It’s quite natural for people to support a process that they have designed or improved. Here’s a related expression: Quality times Acceptance equals Effectiveness (Q x A = E). If people are involved in developing a good idea, their acceptance of it, and thus its effectiveness, are certain to be high.”

“Those are great insights, Curmudge. Too bad they’re not original. At least you know the right books and web sites to read.”

“Although there are many other change-management reminders out there, here is a final one that we mustn’t forget: Don’t let up. Transformations are fragile, so the manager must continue to lead, encourage, and coach her people in doing things the new way. Without continuous pressure, people will backslide into their old habits.”

“I’m confident that our middle managers will put your suggestions to use. By the way, Curmudge, you were a middle manager in your career back in an earlier century. Did you practice all of the things that you are telling us to do?”

“My answer, Julie, is to point out that I am the poster boy for the old German saying, ‘We get so soon old and so late smart.’ We’ll talk more about the personal side of change in a few days.”

Affinity’s Kaizen Curmudgeon