Personal Change Vs Organizational Change
Personal Change Vs Organizational Change
Personal change refers to an individual's transformation in behavior, mindset, habits, or life circumstances, often driven by self-reflection, goals, or external events. It is typically self-initiated and focuses on growth, adaptation, or overcoming challenges.
Organizational change involves the transformation of structures, processes, strategies, or culture within a company or institution. It is usually driven by internal or external pressures, such as market demands, technology, or leadership shifts. Unlike personal change, it affects multiple stakeholders and requires planned interventions to manage resistance and align people with new directions.
Both types of change are essential for resilience and progress in a dynamic world. Employees working at an organization in transition may have to go through personal change.
Change Leadership Vs Change Management
Change Leadership Vs Change Management
Change leadership focuses on the "why" and "what" of change, setting the vision, inspiring, and influencing people to embrace new directions (Kotter, 1996; Prosci). It's about creating a compelling narrative and fostering a culture that genuinely desires transformation.
Change management, conversely, addresses the "how" of change. It involves the structured processes, tools, and techniques for planning, implementing, and monitoring specific change initiatives, mitigating resistance, and ensuring smooth transitions for individuals (Prosci; Lewin, 1951).
While distinct, both are crucial for successful organizational evolution, with leadership providing direction and management providing the means to execute.
Sources:
- Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading Change. Harvard Business Review Press.
- Lewin, K. (1951). Field Theory in Social Science: Selected Theoretical Papers. Harper & Row.
- Prosci. (n.d.). The Difference Between Change Management vs. Change Leadership. Retrieved from https://www.prosci.com/blog/change-management-vs-change-leadership
Kotter’s 8-Step of Leading Change
Kotter’s 8-Step of Leading Change
John P. Kotter, a Harvard Business School professor, developed an influential 8-step model for leading organizational change, outlined in his 1996 book, "Leading Change." This linear, sequential approach emphasizes the critical role of leadership in successful transformation.
The 8 steps are:
- Create a sense of urgency: Highlight potential threats or opportunities to make people understand the need for change.
- Form a powerful guiding coalition: Assemble a cross-functional team with influence and expertise to lead the change.
- Create a vision and strategy: Develop a clear, compelling vision for the future and a strategy to achieve it.
- Communicate the vision: Share the vision widely and frequently, using various channels to gain buy-in.
- Remove obstacles: Identify and address barriers to change, empowering employees to act on the vision.
- Generate short-term wins: Create and celebrate early successes to build momentum and demonstrate progress.
- Consolidate gains and produce more change: Use initial wins to fuel further changes, relentlessly pursuing the vision.
- Anchor new approaches in the culture: Embed the new behaviors and ways of working into the organization's culture to ensure long-term sustainability.
Kotter's model provides a structured roadmap for organizations to navigate complex change initiatives effectively.
References:
Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading Change. Harvard Business Review Press.
We can customize a training for your organization based on these models.
McKinsey 7-S Model
McKinsey 7-S Model
The McKinsey 7-S Model is a widely recognized strategic framework developed by consultants Robert H. Waterman Jr. and Tom Peters at McKinsey & Company in the 1970s. It proposes that for an organization to perform effectively, seven internal elements must be aligned and mutually reinforcing.
These seven elements are categorized into "hard" and "soft" S's:
Hard S's (easier to define and manage):
- Strategy: The plan devised to maintain and build competitive advantage.
- Structure: The way the organization is organized, including reporting lines and hierarchy.
- Systems: The formal and informal procedures and processes that guide daily operations (e.g., HR systems, IT systems, financial systems).
Soft S's (more intangible and culturally influenced):
- Shared Values: The core values and beliefs that guide the organization's culture and decision-making. (Often considered the central element, influencing all others.)
- Skills: The capabilities and competencies that exist within the company's workforce.
- Staff: The organization's human resources, including how they are recruited, developed, and motivated.
- Style: The leadership approach and management style adopted by top management, and the overall operating approach of the company.
The model emphasizes the interconnectedness of these elements, suggesting that a change in one area will inevitably impact the others. It's often used as an analytical tool to assess an organization's internal situation, identify misalignments, and guide change initiatives to improve performance and ensure all components work harmoniously towards strategic objectives.
References:
Peters, T. J., & Waterman, R. H., Jr. (1982). In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies. Harper & Row.
Lewin’s Change Management Model
Lewin’s Change Management Model
Kurt Lewin, a prominent social psychologist, developed one of the most foundational and enduring models for understanding organizational change: the Lewin's Change Management Model, often referred to as the Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model. Developed in the 1940s, this three-stage process provides a simple yet powerful framework for managing transitions.
Here's a breakdown of the three stages:
- Unfreeze: This initial stage involves preparing the organization for change. It's about creating a sense of urgency and demonstrating why the current way of doing things is no longer sustainable or effective. This phase aims to break down existing habits, assumptions, and resistance to create an openness to new ideas and behaviors. It often involves communicating the need for change, challenging the status quo, and addressing concerns.
- Change (or Movement): Once the "unfreezing" has occurred, this stage focuses on implementing the actual change. New processes, systems, behaviors, or attitudes are introduced. This phase can be a period of confusion or uncertainty as individuals learn and adapt to the new ways. Effective communication, training, support, and leadership guidance are crucial during this stage to help people navigate the transition.
- Refreeze: The final stage is about solidifying and embedding the new changes into the organization's culture and daily operations. The goal is to make the new behaviors and processes the "new normal" to prevent a regression to old ways. This can involve establishing new policies, procedures, reward systems, and continually reinforcing the changes through recognition and ongoing support. The aim is to stabilize the organization in its new state.
Lewin's model emphasizes that change is not a single event but a dynamic process that requires careful planning and management to be successful and sustainable. It highlights the importance of understanding and addressing human behavior throughout the change journey.
References:
Lewin, K. (1951). Field Theory in Social Science: Selected Theoretical Papers. Harper & Row.
We can customize a training for your organization based on these models.
ACMP's Change Management Framework
The Association of Change Management Professionals (ACMP)
The Association of Change Management Professionals (ACMP) is a leading global organization dedicated to advancing the change management profession. While not a prescriptive, step-by-step model like Kotter's or Lewin's, the ACMP's Standard for Change Management© provides a comprehensive framework of generally accepted practices and processes. It outlines what good change management entails, rather than dictating a single methodology.
The ACMP's "change cycle" or framework is structured around five key process groups:
- Evaluate Change Impact and Organizational Readiness: This initial phase focuses on understanding the change itself, its potential effects on the organization and its people, and assessing the organization's capacity and willingness to adapt. This involves defining the change, identifying stakeholders, assessing culture, and conducting risk assessments.
- Formulate Change Management Strategy: Based on the evaluation, this group involves developing a strategic approach to guide the change initiative. It includes defining communication, sponsorship, stakeholder engagement, and learning strategies to ensure alignment and prepare for the transition.
- Develop Change Management Plans: In this phase, the detailed plans for executing the change are created. This encompasses comprehensive communication plans, training plans, resistance management plans, and integration with project management plans.
- Execute Change Management Plans: This is the implementation phase where the developed plans are put into action. It involves managing communications, delivering training, engaging stakeholders, and monitoring progress to ensure the change is adopted.
- Complete the Change Management Effort: The final stage focuses on ensuring the sustainability of the change and formally closing the initiative. This includes evaluating outcomes against objectives, conducting lessons learned, reinforcing new behaviors, and transitioning ownership to ensure the changes are embedded into the organization's DNA.
The ACMP Standard provides a common vocabulary and set of practices that can be adapted to any type of change, emphasizing the importance of a structured approach to managing the human side of organizational transitions. It serves as a foundational document for their Certified Change Management Professional (CCMP) credential.
References:
ACMP Standard for Change Management (2014), www.acmpglobal.org
The image file on the left is from ACMP website.
The Prosci Methodology and ADKAR
The Prosci Methodology and ADKAR
Prosci is a global leader in change management research and best practices, and their Prosci Methodology is one of the most widely adopted frameworks for managing the "people side of change" in organizations. The methodology is built on extensive research into what makes change successful and what causes it to fail.
The Prosci Methodology comprises three core components:
1. Prosci Change Triangle (PCT) Model: This framework highlights four critical aspects for successful change: Success, Leadership/Sponsorship, Project Management, and Change Management. It emphasizes that for a change initiative to be successful, these four elements must be aligned and integrated.
2. Prosci 3-Phase Process: This provides a structured, yet adaptable, approach for managing organizational change. The three phases are:
- Phase 1 – Prepare Approach: Defining the change, assessing impact and readiness, and developing a customized change management strategy.
- Phase 2 – Manage Change: Implementing the plans by communicating, coaching, training, and addressing resistance.
- Phase 3 – Sustain Outcomes: Ensuring the change sticks, reinforcing new behaviors, and celebrating success.
3. Prosci ADKAR® Model: This is the most famous and widely recognized component of the Prosci Methodology, focusing specifically on the individual's journey through change. ADKAR is an acronym representing the five outcomes an individual needs to achieve for a change to be successful:
- A - Awareness: Of the need for change. Individuals must understand why the change is necessary and the consequences of not changing.
- D - Desire: To participate in and support the change. This is a personal choice driven by an individual's own motivations and values.
- K - Knowledge: On how to change. Individuals need to know what to do differently, including new processes, systems, or skills.
- A - Ability: To implement required skills and behaviors. This is about putting knowledge into practice and performing the new tasks.
- R - Reinforcement: To sustain the change. This involves actions that help make the change stick, such as recognition, rewards, and feedback, preventing a return to old ways.
The ADKAR model is a powerful diagnostic tool, allowing change practitioners to identify where individuals are struggling in the change process and then tailor interventions to address specific gaps (e.g., if there's a lack of "Desire," simply providing more "Knowledge" won't be effective). By focusing on individual readiness and adoption, the Prosci Methodology aims to maximize the likelihood of achieving desired organizational outcomes from change initiatives.
References:
- Hiatt, J. M. (2006). ADKAR: A Model for Change in Business, Government and Our Community. Prosci.
- Hiatt, J. M. (2006). The Definitive Guide to Change Management: The ADKAR Model. Prosci.
- Prosci, Inc. (This covers the overall methodology and related frameworks).
Nudge Theory
Nudge Theory
Nudge Theory is a concept from behavioral economics that proposes that subtle interventions in the way choices are presented can influence people's decisions and behaviors in predictable ways, without restricting their freedom of choice or significantly altering economic incentives. It essentially "nudges" individuals towards a desired outcome.
The concept was popularized by Richard H. Thaler (a Nobel laureate in Economics) and Cass R. Sunstein (a legal scholar) in their 2008 book, Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness. They define a "nudge" as "any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people's behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives."
Key principles of Nudge Theory include:
- Choice Architecture: This refers to the design of the environment in which people make choices. Nudges leverage an understanding of human psychology and cognitive biases to create environments that make it easier for people to make "better" decisions (often defined as decisions that are beneficial for their well-being or for society).
- No Coercion or Mandates: A crucial aspect of a true "nudge" is that it does not remove options or force a particular behavior. For example, placing healthy food at eye level in a cafeteria is a nudge; banning unhealthy food is not.
- Leveraging Defaults: People tend to stick with the default option. Automatically enrolling employees in a retirement savings plan (with the option to opt out) is a classic example of a powerful nudge.
- Transparency and Ease of Opt-Out: Ethical nudges should be transparent and easy for individuals to avoid if they choose to.
Nudge Theory has gained significant traction in public policy (leading to the creation of "nudge units" in governments worldwide) and in various sectors like healthcare, finance, and marketing, to encourage behaviors like saving more, eating healthier, or complying with regulations.
References:
Thaler, R. H., & Sunstein, C. R. (2008). Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness. Yale University Press.
Kübler-Ross Change Curve
Kübler-Ross Change Curve
The Kübler-Ross Change Curve, often simply called the Change Curve, is a powerful model used to understand the emotional and psychological stages individuals typically experience when confronted with significant change. While it is widely applied in organizational change management today, its origins lie in the work of Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (1969).
Initially, Kübler-Ross developed the "Five Stages of Grief" to describe the emotional journey of terminally ill patients facing their own mortality. These stages were:
- Denial: A state of shock and disbelief, refusing to acknowledge the reality of the change.
- Anger: Frustration, resentment, and a sense of "why me?" as the reality sets in. This can be directed at others, the situation, or even oneself.
- Bargaining: Attempts to negotiate or find ways to avoid or delay the change, often by making promises or seeking compromises.
- Depression: Feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and helplessness as the full impact of the change is realized and previous attempts to avoid it fail. This can manifest as low morale and decreased productivity.
- Acceptance: Coming to terms with the change, accepting the new reality, and beginning to explore how to move forward within the new circumstances.
In the context of organizational change, these stages are adapted to reflect how employees react to new policies, restructurings, technology implementations, or other major shifts. It's crucial to understand that:
- Not everyone experiences all stages, nor do they always progress in a linear order. Individuals may cycle back through stages, skip stages, or experience them with varying intensity and duration.
- The model serves as a diagnostic tool for leaders and change managers to anticipate reactions, empathize with employees, and provide appropriate support (e.g., clear communication during denial, active listening during anger, and resources during depression) to help individuals navigate the transition more smoothly towards acceptance and commitment.
References:
- Kübler-Ross, E. (1969). On Death and Dying. Macmillan.
- Image credit: https://experianta.com
We can customize a training for your organization based on these models.
Bridges’ Transition Model
Bridges’ Transition Model
The Bridges' Transition Model, developed by consultant William Bridges (1933–2013), is a highly influential framework in change management that emphasizes the crucial distinction between change and transition. While "change" refers to an external event or situational shift (e.g., a new system, a merger, a reorganization), "transition" is the internal, psychological process that individuals go through in response to that change.
Bridges argued that organizations often focus solely on managing the external change, overlooking the human aspect of transition, which is vital for successful adoption. His model outlines three distinct stages that people experience during a transition:
- Ending, Losing, and Letting Go: This paradoxical first stage acknowledges that every new beginning starts with an ending. When faced with change, individuals often experience feelings of loss, grief, fear, anger, or sadness as they let go of the familiar. They may mourn old routines, roles, relationships, or even their sense of identity. Effective management in this stage involves acknowledging these losses, communicating clearly about what is ending, and allowing people time to process their emotions.
- The Neutral Zone: This is the "in-between" stage where the old ways are gone, but the new ways are not yet fully established or comfortable. It can be a period of confusion, uncertainty, anxiety, low morale, and even chaos. While challenging, the Neutral Zone is also a critical time for creativity, innovation, and psychological realignment. Leaders should provide extra support, encourage experimentation, maintain open communication, and normalize the feelings of being "in limbo."
- The New Beginning: In this final stage, individuals begin to accept the change, develop a new sense of purpose, and embrace the new reality. They start to build new skills, roles, and identities, leading to renewed energy, commitment, and a sense of moving forward. To support this stage, leaders should clarify the vision, provide training and resources, celebrate milestones, and reinforce the new behaviors to ensure the change becomes embedded.
The power of Bridges' model lies in its human-centered approach, providing guidance for leaders to anticipate and support the emotional journey of individuals through change, rather than simply focusing on the logistical implementation of the change itself.
References:
- Bridges, W. (1991). Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change. Addison-Wesley. (Later editions also exist, such as the 2003 or 2017 editions, often with Susan Bridges as co-author).
Satir Change Model
Satir Change Model
The Satir Change Model, also known as the Satir Transformational Systemic Therapy Model or the Growth Model, originates from the work of Virginia Satir (1916-1988), a renowned family therapist. While she developed it primarily in the context of family therapy to understand how families cope with stress and change, its principles have been widely applied to understand and manage change within organizations.
Satir's model describes the predictable pattern of performance and feelings that individuals and systems experience when a foreign element (a significant change or disruption) is introduced. It highlights the natural progression from an initial stable state, through a period of chaos and resistance, to eventually reaching a new level of integration and performance.
The model outlines five key stages:
- Late Status Quo: This represents the familiar, stable, and comfortable state of the system before the change is introduced. Performance is consistent, and routines are established. People operate within known expectations.
- Introduction of a Foreign Element: This is the point where the change, disruption, or new idea is introduced into the system. It breaks the existing patterns and challenges the comfortable status quo. This "foreign element" can be anything from a new technology, a new leader, a reorganization, or a new market condition.
- Chaos: This is often the most challenging and uncomfortable phase. The foreign element destabilizes the system, leading to confusion, uncertainty, anxiety, and a significant dip in performance. Old rules and methods no longer work, and new ones haven't yet been established. People may experience fear, resistance, blame, and a feeling of being overwhelmed. This phase is critical because it's where significant learning and adaptation can occur, though it often feels unproductive.
- Integrating Practice: As individuals and the system experiment with new ways of working and begin to make sense of the foreign element, they start to develop new patterns and skills. This phase involves trial and error, learning from mistakes, and gradually integrating the new information and behaviors. Performance begins to recover as new connections are formed and a clearer direction emerges.
- New Status Quo: The system eventually stabilizes at a new, often higher, level of performance and integration. The foreign element has been successfully incorporated, new routines are established, and people feel comfortable and competent in the changed environment. This new status quo typically brings improved effectiveness, innovation, or a more adaptive state than the original one.
The Satir model is valuable for change leaders because it normalizes the often-messy "chaos" phase, helping them understand that a temporary dip in performance and increased emotional turmoil are natural responses to significant disruption. It encourages empathy, open communication, and patience, guiding leaders to support individuals through the difficult middle stages towards a more integrated and effective future state.
References:
Satir, V. (1988). The New Peoplemaking. Science and Behavior Books.
Maurer 3 Levels of Resistance and Change Model
Maurer 3 Levels of Resistance and Change Model
The Maurer 3 Levels of Resistance and Change Model, developed by Rick Maurer, offers a practical and insightful framework for understanding and addressing different forms of resistance that emerge during organizational change initiatives. Maurer's core premise is that resistance is not inherently bad; rather, it's often a natural reaction to the way change is led and can provide valuable information if understood properly.
The model identifies three distinct levels of resistance, each requiring a different approach to overcome:
Level 1: "I Don't Get It" (Information/Cognitive Resistance)
- Description: At this level, resistance stems from a lack of understanding, insufficient information, or confusion about the change itself. People may not grasp the "why" behind the change, the benefits, or how it will impact them or the organization. Their concerns are primarily rational and based on facts or perceived lack thereof.
- How to Address: This level requires clear, consistent, and comprehensive communication. Leaders need to explain the rationale, vision, and strategy for the change. Providing data, answering questions openly, offering training, and ensuring the message is understood by different audiences are key.
Level 2: "I Don't Like It" (Emotional/Personal Resistance)
- Description: This level of resistance is an emotional reaction. It's often driven by fear, anxiety, a sense of loss, or concerns about personal impact (e.g., job security, status, control, workload, or skill obsolescence). People may feel uncomfortable, threatened, or perceive the change as a negative personal experience.
- How to Address: Addressing Level 2 resistance requires empathy, active listening, and involvement. Leaders should acknowledge feelings, create opportunities for people to express concerns, provide reassurance, highlight personal benefits, and involve individuals in aspects of the change where possible. The goal is to reduce fear and foster a sense of psychological safety.
Level 3: "I Don't Like You" (Trust/Relational Resistance)
- Description: This is the deepest and often most challenging level of resistance. It's not about the change idea itself, but about a lack of trust, credibility, or respect for the individuals or leadership driving the change. Past negative experiences, perceived inconsistencies, or a history of broken promises can fuel this distrust.
- How to Address: Overcoming Level 3 resistance requires rebuilding relationships and demonstrating integrity. This involves consistent actions, transparency, accountability for past mistakes, genuine two-way communication, and, most importantly, building trust over time. Sometimes, bringing in trusted third parties to communicate or lead aspects of the change can be beneficial.
Maurer's model is valuable because it moves beyond a simplistic view of resistance as something to be "overcome" or "pushed through." Instead, it encourages change leaders to diagnose the root cause of resistance and tailor their interventions accordingly, leading to more effective and sustainable change.
References:
Maurer, R. (1996). Beyond the Wall of Resistance: Unconventional Strategies for Reducing Resistance to Change. Bard Press.
We can customize a training for your organization based on these models.
Deming Cycle (PDCA)
Deming Cycle (PDCA)
The Deming Cycle, also widely known as the PDCA Cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act), is a continuous quality improvement model that provides a simple yet powerful iterative four-step management method for the control and continuous improvement of processes and products. It was popularized by Dr. W. Edwards Deming, an American statistician and management consultant, who is widely regarded as a father of modern quality control. While often attributed to Deming, he himself credited his mentor, Walter A. Shewhart, for the original concept of "plan, do, see." Deming refined it and heavily promoted its use.
The four steps of the cycle are:
1. Plan:
- Objective: Identify the problem or opportunity for improvement, define the desired outcome, and plan the change.
- Activities: Analyze the current situation, collect data, develop hypotheses about root causes, and propose a specific, measurable change or experiment. This stage involves setting objectives, predicting results, and outlining the necessary steps to achieve them.
2. Do:
- Objective: Implement the planned change on a small scale or in a controlled environment.
- Activities: Execute the plan, collect data on the process and outcomes, and carefully observe any deviations or unexpected results. This is often a pilot test to minimize disruption.
3. Check:
- Objective: Analyze the results of the "Do" phase and compare them against the predictions from the "Plan" phase.
- Activities: Evaluate the data collected, assess whether the change achieved the desired outcome, and identify any problems, lessons learned, or new insights. Deming preferred "Study" over "Check" to emphasize deeper analysis rather than just verification.
4. Act:
- Objective: Based on the insights from the "Check/Study" phase, take action to either standardize the improvement or refine the plan for further cycles.
- Activities: If the change was successful, integrate it into standard operating procedures and roll it out more widely. If it was not successful, or only partially successful, learn from the experience, adjust the plan, and begin the cycle again with a new "Plan" phase. This reinforces the idea of continuous improvement.
The PDCA cycle is fundamental to various quality management systems, including Lean and Six Sigma, because it embodies the philosophy of continuous learning and iterative improvement. It helps organizations to systematically test ideas, learn from experience, and progressively enhance their processes and outcomes.
References:
Deming, W. E. (1986). Out of the Crisis. MIT Press.
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