Change: cheer-leaders, managers and players

Change cheer-leaders, managers and players

When you seek buy-in from your staff are you recruiting cheer-leaders, players or managers? What can change leaders do to switch people from being spectators and supporters to players and managers?

A while ago I was invited to attend a Managers Away-Day at which a firm discussed some of the changes that were happening in their industry, as well as the economy and the business.

I noted that whilst there were  re-assurances about jobs being safe staff were interested in “Where is the money is coming from?” since this seemed to them to be the key safeguard and what will deliver the vision and mission for the firm, and enable it to keep its promises.

Most managers when talking about their role in managing change, talked about managing business-as-usual as well as being inspiration, assurance and champion for the future plans. This was good, but I noted that these are essentially “cheer-leader” roles to “support the change”. A good team needs cheer-leaders. It also needs managers/coaches and players and I didn’t get the impression that lots of people were volunteering to “drive and make the change”.

I think safeguards and re-assurances link well with cheer-leader roles that support change. I think new opportunities link well with manager/coach and players drive and make the change. 

It is all well and good for “cheer-leaders” to point to a safety net for people to jump into, but I suspect that sometimes you need a burning building and some coaching to persuade you to jump! Maybe this is why much inspiration change mostly happens when people have hit rock bottom and have nothing top loose.

The problem is that not being at rock bottom means that things are “satisfactory”. They are not great, but they are good enough. I see this all the time in clubs, societies and committees where everyone gathers to agree what needs to be done but few actually volunteer to be the people to do it.

I know very little about football, but I know enough to see 30,000 people support and only 11 on the pitch and 1 or 2 in the dug-out. There is lots of cheering, but for all the noise that they make it boils down to just a few who command extra-ordinary salaries because they are the people to do it.

In business “success has many fathers but failure is an orphan”. So what can change leaders do to switch people from being spectators and supporters to players and managers?

1. Provide opportunities for people to play, to have a go at implementing initiatives, projects and small changes. Let them get the scars, cuts and bruises which mark them out as players rather than onlookers.
2. Provide coaching and guidance to help people learn quickly and safely and feel confident and comfortable. The scars, cuts and bruises can be good, but we must not damage our people or put them at risk.
3. Provide opportunities for these players to reflect on theirs and other people’s efforts to get a feel for “team management” and an understanding of some of the issues that may not be obvious from the grandstand, but are real on the pitch.
4. Provide the rewards and accolades which might inspire people to make the switch. This need not be cash rewards, but more in terms of recognition and respect because beyond a basic level of remuneration this is what inspires and drives most people.

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/