50 Reasons Not to Change

Change is frightening for many. It removes us from our comfort zones and  challenges us to think of new ways of doing things. Hopefully change is something that happens to all of us, but as we know it is often avoided and we do so with a variety of excuses.

1. How do you react when you hear colleagues using some of the excuses listed in the 50 Reasons Not to Change graphic?

My personal pet peeve is hearing "we've always done it this way." It really does drive me nuts. My initial resonse is to ask "does that mean it cannot be done more efficiently?" It is rare that things cannot be improved upon, but even if the examination determines that a particular system component is working correctly that does mean that it should be exempt from future examination. The world is constantly changing and what works today might not work tommorrow. There needs to be constant feedback and examination of processes.

"It needs committee study." I hear this and I know that nothing will be done...ever. Languishing in committee is the death knell of any proposed change. Yes I get that topics need to be discussed and data gathered but to consistently refer to committee tells me that you are unable to make a decision.

2. Do you ever use any of these excuses yourself?

I am often hampered by lack of equipment so I have avoided some change by using that excuse. In my defense the proposed changes did not include the equipment and support needed to carry them out. I can only devise so many workarounds before the change is worse than the problem it was meant to fix.

3. How can you overcome the thinking that creates those responses to change efforts?

It can be very difficult to overcome these entrenched mentalities. Often cognitive dissonace sets in and the target becomes even MORE resistant to change. In many ways this has to be overcome before the change process really starts. In other words, the target has to see a need for change. In the private sector falling sales or monetary losses will often drive change. Even then, there will be resistance and you will probably lose some people depending on the scope of the change.

Once change is in progress it may be that you have to employ coercion techniques, persuasion, compromise, or even outright directive approaches to overcome entrenchement. I prefer reasoned discussions but often people become emotionally invested in their positions, then I find it useful to explore the whats-in-it-for-them portion of the equation. That way they are able to transfer emotions to the new concept.

4. Do you agree with Seth Godin’s concept that change is driven by tribes?

A bigger discussion can be found here where a comparison of Godlin's Tribe Theory and Watt's approach to Influence can be found. Tribe theory is based on a interlocking relationships and those relationships are not always clearly defined. As with any tribe there are a mulitude of variables in play among those relationships such as politics, friendships, romances, and any other human to human interaction possible. This isn't particulary new but it does help frame the discussion in a way that stops setting such clear views boundaries of leadership and influence. And THAT is something with which I can agree. Leading people takes more than strategy (thought that has to be there) it takes an understanding of the relationships and connections among the followers.

5. What can you take away from this exercise to immediately use in your career?

I work for an organization that can be very slow to change. There aren't a great deal of external motivators in play to force change. This has led to a great many entrenched managers. Understanding how these paradigms of resistance have been put in place has been instrumental in trying to change my small corner of the world.

NASA Culture Change

For those of you that want an hour of CSPAN here you go! Grab your popcorn, grab the kids, make a night of it. All kidding aside it is important to understand cultural change in NASA as it pertains to culture change in organizations. Also, it isn't a bad speech from a business perspective and I think it is a great example of a how an organization has hit the reset button and accepted responsibility for how their culture has failed

1. Why did NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe address NASA employees to describe the plan to
bring about proposed changes to NASA's culture?

NASA's employees needed to hear how leadership was accepting responsibility for the failure in culture. He will need the support of the organization's people in order to execute change. It also sends a message that this is a priority for leadership.

2. Was he believable? Is it important whether he appeared to be believable?

I think he was but I also have not had much experience listening to O'Keefe's prior speeches. In some ways managers lose credibility when they repeat themselves over and over yet take little action. I think for a culture that has gone awry actions will speak far louder than words. That being said I think he said things that many people needed to hear. His words on climate and being able to "speak up" were very important and they do send a message. Couple those with action and I think that the cultural will go a long way towards being improved.

3. Why did he talk about NASA values?

It is helpful to remind people of shared values. Not only for the people listening but for himself. Value systems need to be consistent throughout an organization and throughout their partners and when leadership is not only sending the message but acting the message those values percolate throughout the various levels of the organization. However NASA is a large organization with many layers and the message, while consistent in a speech, won't be applied evenly throughout those layers without much effort on the part of Mr. O'Keefe.

How Companies Can Make Better Decisions

You have to love the Harvard Business Review great information without all the glitz and glamour of PBS. This week's video is an interview with Marcia Blenko of Bain & Company. She is discussing decision making as the building block of leadership effectiveness. This means that ultimately that change management will also need to be build on effective decision making.

Marcia Blenko argues that decision effectiveness correlates positively with employee engagement and organizational performance. How do you think that employee engagement relates to decision effectiveness?

To put it bluntly and in non-academic terms...people know when their leaders haven't a clue. There can be a tendency for managers to exist in a fog where they think their ineptitude is some how transparent to the people at the bottom of the organization chart. In my personal experience the people at the bottom of the chart are often more in tune with how the company is living and breathing than the people at the top. It is my firm belief that productivity follows morale. Poor morale makes people work just hard enough not to be fired. That link will be the best part of this blog. However, when people feel that effective decisions are being made, even if they are not always in line with what a given person wants, they are more motivated and engaged. This may mean that leaders need to actively listen to what their people are telling them. People are generally wanting to be heard so badly that they are willing to pay for the privilege.

What are some impediments to good decision making?

Marcia lists a few in her interview and I could just refer back to that but instead I will give an example from my own organization.

Leadership in an organization is a learned art. There are very few natural, charismatic leaders that also make effective decisions. Within my organization there are very few trained managers. Sure they are highly educated doctors, psychologists, and the like but having a PhD in psychology doesn't always equate to effective leadership. Add in a healthy does of bureaucratic tomfoolery (family friendly blog here) and you have a recipe for completely ineffective decision making. I feel that being properly trained to handle managerial tasks is crucial and lack of that training is an incredible roadblock to good decision making. I often use the argument that in order to manage three doctors I would need to have a great grasp of doctoring. In order to manage a healthcare system I need to know how to lead.

Blenko suggests that there are four elements of good decisions: quality, speed, yield, and effort. In your opinion, is there anything missing from this list?

Good decisions are no bigger than they need to be in order to get the job done. I would argue that precision would be a fifth element of decision making, and no I am not going to link to two movies in one blog post.

To elaborate I feel that some decisions can be too sweeping in scope. In order to overhaul an entire system one must fully understand all the variables in play. It may be that smaller, more targeted decisions towards one variable can have bigger ramifications down the road. The Law of Unintended Consequences should always be considered when making decisions. There are times bold strokes may be needed but careful leadership will always encompass the downstream effect of decisions. In other words, make a change, measure results, make a change, measure results. Rinse, Repeat. If one does not measure the results of an action before taking another you can wind up chasing the gauges to what can be called an unintended air-frame/ground interface.

A Day in the Life

Another video! I rather enjoy these as I tend to learn something from each one. This video isn't a reflective as others but it was interesting to see how Southwest keeps morale up among their crews as well as promote a culture. As a bonus this video starts with some sweet 90's corporate music. Enjoy. 

Is the Culture Committee at Southwest effective in establishing cultural norms?

Southwest is known for having a unique corporate culture. I think the Committee is doing an excellent job as exemplified by this hilarious attendant. If you watch nothing else you should watch video to see how Southwest's culture is personified. With that I can move on.

From what you can tell, what is the purpose of the culture committee at Southwest?

From just the initial video I would say the purpose of the Culture Committee is to promote the welfare and moral of the crews on the aircraft. However, it is probably safe to say that the committee has more than one function such as designing new programs to keep morale high and ensuring that needs of the crews are being met.

What would you see as a viable mission for a culture committee in your place of work (or your last place of work if you are not currently working)?
Patient care can be a demanding field and there are many ways that culture committees can be useful. However, the hospital does endeavor to provide regular gatherings as well as food and drink for the staff. In addition, the union often does cookouts and bar-b-ques outside in the common areas where staff can gather for a a free lunch. It isn't always possible to promote a uniform culture in an organization as large as the Department of Veteran's Affairs but locally the union does a fantastic job of providing those little thank-yous that go a long way.

What can you take away from this exercise to immediately use in your career?

I have always thought that a positive and fun culture can go a long way towards keeping employees happy. A happy worker is a productive worker. Within my unit we try to keep things as light as possible but that carries with it the danger of seeming flippant to outside observers. It is a careful balance!


With that in mind I am going to go watch the Super Bowl.