Who would play YOU in a movie?

Who would play YOU in a movie?

Depending on whether your answer is Helen Mirren, Bruce Willis or Daffy Duck says something about how you see yourself and the world in which you operate. In life we all get to create our own narrative and we present ourselves to match our version of that image. We stereotype ourselves! How can we use this when managing change?

In an earlier blog I talked about increasingly using storyboards, cartoons, posters, and images as a faster, better and more pervasive way of communicating messages for people over-run by emails, newsletters and reports.

When we introduce ourselves we all present a story, or who we are, where we are from, or some other nugget of information which like a scene in a movie gives clues to our persona, values, beliefs and predictable actions. Since we were born communication serves 3 purposes.


1. What people say, do and act toward us, defines our self-image
2. We need to build both communications and relationships to survive
3. The use of communications allows us to influence our world

When training with athletes I’ve noted a marked difference in performance when I tell them to choose whether to be a hero or a victim. If I say work harder, some might. But if I ask them to imagine being chased by a rapid dog all do! Simply telling people things doesn’t work as well as if they picture themselves in a situation and adopt the persona that they’ve agreed upon.

I have been talking to a film-maker who is a truly great communicator. He can influence happiness, sadness, anger and love by working with his audience to create a narrative and a sense of identity and empathy. This is more than just story telling. This is the use of images, sound and timing to effect the neurological patters in the brain and create chemical changes effecting attitude and behaviour.

Our subconscious analysis all communications on 3 levels.

A.    What's going on here?
B.    What will happen next?
C.    How am I being treated?

The film-maker manages all these processes to create understanding, expectation, anticipation, suspense….a thriller!

This person is all the more remarkable because they are a volunteer working with disadvantaged and disenfranchised children who show no respect and to all intents and purposes have low self-esteem and lower social conscience. Yet he can motivate and inspire without conventional rewards or punishments: no cash and no shouting.

All communication is about TOPIC and RELATIONSHIP. Subconsciously we ask: What is being said, and how am I being treated?

What can we learn from story tellers, film makers and our relationships with children which can help us engage with people and effect better and healthier change?

Here are my thoughts…

Consistency – be consistent in your approach, and aligned to their wants and needs
In film-making the clothes, the look, the walk and the talk are designed to make it easy for the audience to spot the baddie. It isn’t so long ago that cowboys wore white if they were good or black if they were bad. 10 years ago a villain had a German accent. Often now the villain has a British accent. Being consistent make the message easier to follow.

Reciprocity – offer something free and they will be grateful, indebted and receptive to you
In theatre as well as film-making there is a concept of pay-back: that might be matching kindness or revenge but it is a standard narrative from Shakespeare to Tarantino. People understand give and take, although not all do it!

Social Proof – case studies, testimonies, podcasts, references add to credibility
As much as we like to think we are different, we are all pretty similar. That’s how best sellers or block busters become bit hits; because we all like the same things and our sense of social belonging urges is to like things even more if somebody else like them. It helps re-affirm our own social identity.

Authority – being authoritive, qualified, recognised and respected add to credibility
If I told you a series of facts you might challenge them with facts of your own. If I gave you my opinions you might counter with yours. But telling a story requires the listener to suspend judgement until the end, and gives the story teller authority to proceed unchallenged.  It also allows the viewer to switch allegiances between the players without becoming fixed to a position themselves, giving them greater freedom to manage their position.


I believe that the process of change management is the process of Story Telling. It helps people understand and relate to people, situations, and opportunities and gives them the opportunity to select or identify with a particular character or role and explore their own thoughts and feelings through that character without actually putting themselves in harm’s way, at risk or judgement or failure.


Tim Rogers
Founder ciChange
timrogers@ciChange.org
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/CI-Change-4301853
ciChange seminar and networking events for 2013 sponsored by Total Solutions Group http://www.tsgi.co/

The problem with Kotter’s 8 Steps = Implementation

 The problem with Kotter’s 8 Steps = Implementation

I recently blogged about some changes in the Jersey Rowing Club which provide useful lessons for Change Management in business (link below) A valued reply suggested John P. Kotter's book - "Leading Change" has an 8 step process which describes many of the Club's findings.

http://projectspeoplechange.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/change-management-in-clubs-and-community.html

The problem with Kotter’s 8 Steps is that they don’t consider the challenge of implementation.

Kotter's eight step change model can be summarised as:

1.       Increase urgency - inspire people to move, make objectives real and relevant.

2.       Build the guiding team - get the right people in place with the right emotional commitment, and the right mix of skills and levels.

3.       Get the vision right - get the team to establish a simple vision and strategy, focus on emotional and creative aspects necessary to drive service and efficiency.

4.       Communicate for buy-in - Involve as many people as possible, communicate the essentials, simply, and to appeal and respond to people's needs. De-clutter communications - make technology work for you rather than against.

5.       Empower action - Remove obstacles, enable constructive feedback and lots of support from leaders - reward and recognise progress and achievements.

6.       Create short-term wins - Set aims that are easy to achieve - in bite-size chunks. Manageable numbers of initiatives. Finish current stages before starting new ones.

7.       Don't let up - Foster and encourage determination and persistence - ongoing change - encourage ongoing progress reporting - highlight achieved and future milestones.

8.       Make change stick - Reinforce the value of successful change via recruitment, promotion, new change leaders. Weave change into culture.

Steps 1 to 4 are about mobilising and motivating people. Steps 7 and 8 are about seeing the changes through and keeping momentum. Only steps 5 and 6 suggest any action and neither propose what that action should be, only that there needs to be some.

There is a big difference between having a time-table and having action. Kotters’ structure is excellent and world famous, but it is also generic. It does address the Why (No1 Urgency) and How (No2 Guiding Team) but frankly empowering people to do something is not going to bring change unless you are clear on which people and what something: who; what; when; where.

For this reason I think it is important to share examples of successful change which include this detail. If you would like to share examples of who; what; when; where you have seen change please contact me or contribute to this blog.

Tim Rogers

Founder ciChange

timrogers@ciChange.org

http://www.linkedin.com/groups/CI-Change-4301853

ciChange seminar and networking events for 2013 sponsored by Total Solutions Group http://www.tsgi.co/

Change Management in Clubs and Community

Change Management in Clubs and Community

Change Management is not about businesses. It is about people. So change in Clubs and Community are as relevant and important to Change Management as what happens in businesses, politics or public service. Indeed most Clubs and Community have financial challenges, an element of politics and a focus on membership, community and participation.

I have witnessed a complete transformation in the Jersey Rowing Club and having now recognised this I have been thinking about all the small incremental steps which perhaps at first were not obvious or significant but cumulatively created major changes which were visible in the Club House, in the behaviour and attitude of the members and in a significant increase in participation and passion for the club events.

The steps below are not necessarily complete, or in the right order, but as I noticed them.

Step 1 – The Club House was tidied up. White-Boards were erected for ‘race briefing’ and various other changes in layout, including adding bike-racks outside, suggested a new feel for the Club.

Lesson: If you want to make a difference, start by changing the environment so that people notice new paint, new carpets, or what-ever it is that you choose to do.

Step 2 – The Training Boat was patched-up and made sea worthy, and little changes like this were photographed and mentioned on FaceBook. The FaceBook community was embraced by the Club Committee who increasingly used it to share good news stories.

Lesson: Make sure that the changes benefit people and be public about sharing the good news. Let people know what you are doing for them.

Step 3 – Admin was made simpler by allowing direct-debit for memberships and on-line entry for races. Maps and information went on-line and became much easier for both Committee and Membership.

Lesson: Make life easier for people. Reduce the hassle and the barriers. Often success is just making life less difficult!

Step 4 – New software was used to greatly ease the organisation of races and more mathematical logic was applied to the handicapping system which made races closer, fairer and more exciting. The number and frequency of races was increased and courses were made much closer to shore for greater spectator and supporter excitement.

Lesson: Embrace technology where it can help you. Be logical, objective and fair about how you do things: whether that is handicapping races or remunerating people make sure that it does not appear arbitrary.

Step 5 – More people participating created more income and there was investment in new boats and support for novices. The Youth Academy which was already in its infancy became more popular as the club became more vibrant with a greater range of talent, age and competiton in the club as a whole.

Lesson: Use quick wins to fuel the passion for big wins. Start with small changes and end with a legacy.

Step 6 – With more people rowing and spectating there became more interest in helping and volunteering. There was an increased sense of pride. So when the new Club Captain unveiled some honours boards to recognise and pay tribute to his predecessors and those that had worked so hard to make the club what it is, this seemed to be a key milestone having made all the changes but still recognising the value and importance of the past.

Lesson: In times of great change some may feel left behind. Build bridges to link the past and the future and help people celebrate both in the present.

This is Change Management in real life and there are not many examples which are better or more easily seen and understood.

I shall leave the final word to the Club Captain that made all this happen..

1.       It has been deliberate and planned

2.       Make a quick new management statement

3.       Listen to what people complain about and then analyse to see if they are right, often the problem is different to their perception

4.       Understand that leadership is not just good management

5.       Be open, honest and transparent

6.       Don't rush to be offended

7.       If you accept others make mistakes, they'll accept yours

8.       Don't avoid difficult conversations

9.       Translate you ideas into a language that the audience can Understand

10.   Have a vision,  that is smart.

11.   Have the good luck to get an organisation ripe for change, with the right team that just needed a champion to get things going

Live your values. I deliberately don't moan, I try to show an example and hope people follow.

Have you read the 'broken window' psychology that helped change New York?

Clive Russell

Captain Jersey Rowing Club

Change Communications – Part 2 Stakeholder management and communication planning

Change Communications – Part 2 Stakeholder management and communication planning

If you ask anyone about projects, programmes and change they will tell you about the importance of communication. Communication is the oxygen that flows through an organisation, unit or team that enables it to unite behind common goals and perform at its best.

At its best, effective communication unites, motivates and allows the organisation to understand its performance and results and the actions needed to improve them. At its worst, poor communication destroys trust and morale, creates division and hides the true extent of operational and performance weaknesses or failures and the actions required to address them.

If we have been exposed to a lack of communication or poorly prepared and delivered communication, we know how this can lead to cynicism and a breakdown in trust between management and staff or between different areas of the organisation. 

John Kotter, famous for his 8 Step Approach to Change says “Good communication does not mean that you have to speak in perfectly formed sentences and paragraphs. It isn't about slickness. Simple and clear go a long way.”

This is PART 2 of 2

1.    Tackling the challenge of communication

2.    Discussing tools for stakeholder management and communication planning

Stakeholder Management

A good start would be to compile a list of stakeholders and their current needs, understanding, expectations, hope, fears and concerns and plan communications accordingly. This can be done using a simple spreadsheet which is easy to understand and communicates visually in an instant the ‘hot spots’ for attention.

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/StakeholderPlan.gif

Method

A key consideration is what method to use for your communications with stakeholders. Some love email, some hate it. Some like reports and others like presentations. What is necessary detail for some is annoying for others. We need to consider personalities, learning preferences and appropriateness.

Some communications can be done by Newsletter, Blog, Email or Notice Board, but clearly personal, sensitive or difficult communications may be better Face to Face, in small groups, in a one-to-one environment of even supported by a counselor or mentor.

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/CommsChannels.gif

Thinking about method and what is suitable, feasible and acceptable can be aided reference to a simple spreadsheet which notes which methods are best for small, medium and large groups or along the sliding scale of personal, team or corporate messages.

Planning

Well managed Projects and Programmes have phases and stages, and necessary documentation and controls should be factored into each phase and stage.

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/ProjectDocs.gif

However simply documenting things is not enough. It may be important for governance and audit but it doesn’t guarantee understanding and commitment. Therefore Projects and Programmes should also have a communications plan for each phase and stage. Indeed logically if the communications, understanding and commitment come first the governance and audit should follow naturally!

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/ProjectComms.gif

Change Programmes are no different and the phases and stages may resemble something similar to a marketing launch or a political campaign. It is more than just words and documents; it is a schedule of various activities, events, signals and celebrations which form the jigsaw of oral, visual and emotional communication.

The items on the campaign plan may be categorized

a)     Digital:  What people will read. Examples: Facebook, Newsletters, Twitter, Emails, Reports

b)    Auditory:  What people will hear. Examples: Talks, Presentations, Briefings, Conference Calls

c)     Action:  What people will participate in. Examples: Workshops, Away-Days, Surveys, Events

d)    Visual:  What people will see. Examples: signs, badges, uniforms, posters and model behaviors (what does good ‘look like’ to the eye)

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/CampaignComms.gif

What not to do

Do not make the mistake of being paralyses and having no communications because ‘ we are not ready yet ‘ No communications sends a message and the vacuum may be filled with unhelpful speculation, worry, fear and the noise of others who take advantage of the thirst for information and the absence of facts to quench it.

It is better to have communications that are open, honest and human “..honestly there’s not much happening, but we are getting ready and we will tell you…” than nothing at all. Such honesty will in all probability provoke questions and dialogue which is much better than suspicion and silence.

See below for a link to a larger image

http://www.cichange.org/images/Image005_Road2Success.JPG

There have been a number of high profile scandals recently and inevitably in hindsight the investigation has been around who knew what, when and how.  Perhaps a bit of negative thinking can help us get it right by being pro-active and doing up-front what would be so obvious in hindsight.

If you were looking at your communications journey in the rear view mirror what would you expect to see?

Now make sure those sign-posts and stops feature on your plans ahead.

Further Resources

There are a couple of models referred to in this text which may not be obvious to people unfamiliar with Projects and Programmes. If you would like to meet or discuss any of the models and how they might be adapted and applied to your organisation please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Tim Rogers

Founder ciChange

timrogers@ciChange.org

http://www.linkedin.com/groups/CI-Change-4301853

ciChange seminar and networking events for 2013 sponsored by Total Solutions Group http://www.tsgi.co/