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3 truths about change leadership

LEARNING TO FAIL BETTER: NEW RESEARCH BY HARVARD PROFESSOR AMY EDMONDSON

Humans don't like change much, and they especially don't like not knowing the "what, why, when, how, where" of change. So, participants in our Agile Change masterclass were asked by Dr Jen Frahm:

“What would it take for you to _embrace_ change \(and not _brace_ for change\)?”

Here's how they responded: _“Letting go of the past,” “understand the ‘why’,” “being able to ask questions,” “understand how and where it will impact me,” “an open mindset,” “having the information to process the change,” “honesty, transparency, and vulnerability.”_

The answers go some way to revealing **3 universal truths** about change leadership, which we’ll set out below.

Jen, co-founder with Lena Ross of the Agile Change Leadership Institute, taught us why there is a productivity dip into the "valley of despair" when change is introduced, and how leaders can mitigate the fear around change.

**3 universal truths about change leadership**

**\#1 All types of change are about people**

Jen says leaders will often introduce change in an offhand manner “Oh, it’s only a tech change” or “It’s just a system change.” She emphasised that change is always about people, not things.

**\#2 For each change there is a change initiator and a change receiver**

When announcing change to the receiver, the initiator must display empathy. Humans are hard-wired to respond intensely to loss. Change can feel threatening to the receiver on a number of fronts, as explained by the S.C.A.R.F. model of fear triggers \(Rock D. & Schwartz. J, 2006\)

- **Status** – Will I still feel good about myself? Will I have to be a beginner again?

- **Certainty** – What do I know for sure – when will I know more?

- **Autonomy** – Will I have control over whatI'm doing?

- **Relatedness** – Are you one of my tribe or will you eat me?

- **Fairness** – Is this a fair and equitable decision or process?

The brain’s amygdala regulates our responses, including our response to change. When feeling threatened, an “amygdala hijack” can occur, reducing our IQ by 10-15 points and causing us to do and say silly things.

**\#3 When change is introduced there is a drop in productivity**

The “valley of despair” describes this dip in productivity when a change initiative is first launched. Surprisingly, even little changes cause drops in productivity. This is a hidden cost to the business and is often not measured.

**How change leadership has changed**

As Jen told the masterclass that once upon a time, leading change meant:

- ******A strong charismatic leader**

**-** ******A predictable outcome**

**-** ******Clarity on what was to change**

**-** ******1-2 big changes every 3 years**

**-** ******A cadence of unfreeze – change- refreeze**

**-** ******A compliant workforce who wanted job security**

Now, leading change means:

- ******Diverse approaches to leadership**

**-** ******Significant uncertainty**

**-** ******Ambiguous options and potential**

**-** ******A firehose of change concurrently**

**-** ******Adopting agile approaches to change**

**-** ******5 generations in the workforce with high expectations and agency**

As a result, change leaders and their teams need to think, work, learn, and lead differently.

**Types of leadership best suited to change**

These days, leadership shifts include failing fast and getting feedback, agile approaches where done is better than perfect, leading with empathy and vulnerability, ensuring psychological safety, displaying curiosity, and improving at change communication.

Leadership styles best suited for a changing world are :

**Adaptive Leadership**

Is responsive over reactive. Relies on collaborative problem solving, not one expert. Comfortable with a framework for continuous change in times of uncertainty with no known solutions.

**Servant Leadership**

Service over the desire for status. This leader is a servant first, and has a natural desire to put people first over their position or status. They demonstrate empathy and promote autonomy.

**Distributed Leadership**

Informal over formal leadership. Sees leadership as a shared practice, and an outcome of all interactions is more important than the leader’s skill or knowledge.

**Leading change mindset**

Change leadership requires a different _mindset_ , says Jen Frahm. It means leaving the comfort zone and talking about **feelings and thoughts** , being okay to **not be the expert** all the time, producing something that is **not quite perfect** , **failing and learning** and talking about it opening.

In a nutshell, it’s sometimes having to move from engagement to empathy, from expert to beginner, from perfection to ‘done”, from failure avoidance to failure seeking, from self-judgement to self-compassion.

**﻿Conversation starter questions for team discussion:**

1. Jen talked about how all types of change ultimately impact people. **What's an example** you've seen where a small operational change had an unexpected impact on employee morale or engagement?
  2. The S.C.A.R.F. model describes different areas where employees may feel threatened by change. **Which of those dimensions** \(status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, fairness\) tends to be the most sensitive area for your employees when changes are introduced?
  3. The document mentions a "valley of despair" and drop in productivity when changes are first launched. **Have you observed** this phenomenon and if so, what strategies have you used to minimise the productivity dip?
  4. Several leadership styles are listed as being well-suited for change - adaptive, servant, and distributed leadership. **Which of those resonates most** with your own approach? In what ways do you emulate that style?
  5. The last section talks about the mindset shift required of change leaders today. **What mindsets or comfort zones** have been the biggest personal challenges for you to move away from in order to lead change effectively?

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3 truths about change leadership

Highlights from our Agile Change Leadership masterclass

Keep informed
Stay Inspired

3 truths about change leadership

Highlights from our Agile Change Leadership masterclass

Keep informedStay Inspired

Keep informed
Stay Inspired