Every change in an organisation, whether a new system, a new structure or a new way of working, reaches the same moment: people stop listening to the plan and start watching the leader.
For more than twenty-five years, Prosci has asked practitioners what most helped their changes succeed. The same answer has come first since 1998: active and visible sponsorship from senior leaders. In the same research, projects with extremely effective sponsors met their objectives 79% of the time; with extremely ineffective sponsors, 27%.
What people want from their leader
To see you. Not a launch speech followed by silence, but a leader who is present during the change, in meetings, on the floor, and when it is difficult.
To hear why. Prosci's research finds that most employees want to hear the business reasons for a change from the top. “Because we have decided” is not a reason.
To hear what it means for them, from the person they work for. 58% of employees prefer to hear about the personal impact of a change from their direct supervisor. That makes first-line managers the second voice of every change, and they need to be ready before their teams ask.
To be heard. People accept a decision they disagree with more easily when they have been listened to first. Listening is not agreeing; it is showing that their concern was weighed.
To see you do it. People believe what leaders do, not what they say. A leader who announces a new way of working and keeps the old habits has told everyone which one counts.
To see you stay. Most changes do not fail at the start; they fade. Leaders who keep asking about the change months later tell people it was not a campaign.
What sponsorship looks like in a week
Three things a sponsor can do every week: ask one team how the change is going and listen to the answer; remove one obstacle the team cannot remove alone; thank someone by name for something specific they did.
A word on managers
Senior leaders sponsor the change; managers carry it. If managers are not convinced, prepared and supported, the message reaches their teams diluted or not at all. Before you brief the organisation, brief your managers, and listen to them.
How Tahseen can help: Tahseen gives sponsors and coaches a clear part in every improvement project: each step is signed by the people named for it, in order, and leaders can see where each project stands without asking for a report. Our change program, built on BTFA™, works with leaders on the beliefs behind their own behaviour. If you would like to talk about leading a change in your organisation, write to us at hello@tahseen.om.
BTFA™ is a methodology and trademark of Duxinaroe Ltd, created by David Bovis. Tahseen's founder is a certified BTFA Master Coach.