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Change is required, how you undertake this is the measure of you……….

Change is an ever present process, it can be your friend and enemy in equal measures, but one thing is for sure, change will happen. These words have been spoken in various derivatives by many, my desire is to talk to those experiencing change and to those that are driving the change process.

I, as we all are, am part of change process, at times this may seem difficult, something that we do not understand.  At times it may be exciting and filled with a sense of anticipation. The owners of the change process in my view determine greatly the extent to which people on the receiving end of the process behave, succeed and operate.

You see, change processes are things that need to well managed, thought out and controlled by whoever is undertaking them. Not to do this properly undermines the very process, resulting in the participants carrying excessive amounts of anxiousness, or anticipation.

Progressive organisations, some argue, are in a process of constant change.  They need to be, in order to remain at the forefront of their industries.  The key factor in these organisations is that they are driving the change process, both from an industry as well as internal requirement point of view and not reacting to it.  These organisations are in the minority.

Reacting to change is a requirement of probably most organisations on a global scale.  While many will not own up to this, this is the simple truth.  The leadership see the need to change because the traditional business model is strained and therefore embark on the process. The speed and planning behind this, or lack thereof, is often what gives rise to weeks and months of internal as opposed to external focus.

So where I am going with this……

Organisational change should be viewed as a constant. It is a requirement of any business to shape itself to the market forces, technological challenges and ever changing customer landscape. This should always be seen as a positive.

To the driver’s of the process, your planning and implementation needs to be meticulously thought through.  While it is perfectly acceptable to change tack during a change process, it is not acceptable to not have covered off the eventualities and participants before the process is undertaken. You will need a team of people around you that firmly support every step of the change process in order to succeed. This team will need to be carefully selected.

To the participants in the process, you may feel anxious or excited, you may feel confused and even hurt. This is completely acceptable. You cannot though make yourself a victim of the process, how you elect to deal with the change process is going to determine your future success.

As the saying goes, “The only constant is change”, allow me to add to this with a challenge……”Do you really believe this, or is change something that you do only out of necessity?”