When we resolve to make a major change in an organisation, or in anything else, it is usually the case that, to be successful, the change must be comprehensive and without compromise. Failure to successfully effect a change is often foreshadowed by the early appearance of compromise or a rush to follow an alternative instead of staying on course.
Alternate plans to an otherwise comprehensive change are numerous and most of them are simply excuses for the coming, self-fulfilling failure. For instance, backing down from a full plan to reform the company's rules and regulations by accepting half-measures and extending them only to a select few. This kind of non-universal change can be met with a great sense of injustice and therefore doomed to failure.
Likewise, meting out punishment and sanctions unevenly among the guilty, to mark a strong stance towards wrongdoing, will only make it more difficult to finish off the full plan at a later date.
Sometimes we back down on a complete change by breaking the proposed change into smaller components. This is often done in the hope that some of the more popular components may catch on early, and once the momentum is initiated, the snowball effect will bring about a full change in short order. This technique can help doom the drive for change.
Think of a plan for a wholesale shuffle of executives in the corporate suite that fizzles to only just a few sure-fire cases. Such an incomplete overhaul may well leave some staff stranded; a fiefdom in disarray. The outcome is lowered morale and productivity instead of a fresh new improvement.
Half-baked change can backfire. For instance, a cut-over from paper-based workflow to an integrated, online system should take place on schedule. Any compromise, delay, or even worse, a partial cut-over, will leave the company with the old paper-based system surviving alongside the new one, resulting in a disintegrated system. Data integrity will be compromised. In time, the errors will accumulate to such a degree that the database system will be rendered unintelligible.
Salary and benefits reform also does not take kindly to haphazard cut-over. Benefits perceived to be preferentially doled out will be poorly received. No congratulations will be extended to the early, lucky colleagues. Buy-in for the next groups to enjoy the benefits will be hard to come by. This partial measure ends up driving away the good folks even though the company may have a full bag of gifts in hand.
The beginning of the year is as good a time as any to review what promises have been made. To align the organisation and its teams, it is beneficial that planned changes have clearly written objectives with key dates specified. Changes we promise should therefore be changes we can deliver.
Change in itself is difficult. Complicating it with compromise, dilution and delay makes it unnecessarily more difficult. It is better that the change fails on its own merits than from half-heartedness and wavering. With no excuses and no complaints, the rest of the organisation is expected to move along with you from the current to the new changed state. Onward and forward.
Don Bhasavanich is a councillor at the Thailand Management Association. He may be contacted at dbhasa@gmail.com. Follow his articles in Hi! Managers on the first Wednesday of each month.
