OUR CHANGE SERIES: How to effectively communicate change in the workplace

In our latest set of articles, we are looking at how to manage change in the workplace.

In this article, we consider how to effectively communicate change. To do this, we must first understand what workplace change is.

Workplace change occurs when a business changes key components of its strategy or operations. This can be anything from changes to company culture, the technologies employees use to undertake their work, altering the structure or size of the business, or changing any major initiatives, activities and goals that will affect the workforce.

All of this has one thing in common: people.

People are at the heart of all organisations – without them there wouldn’t be one. It’s therefore important that when change occurs, it is managed carefully and with thought to the people who will be impacted. Acknowledging the role their behaviours have on the successful implementation of any change will be fundamental when developing a programme that will successfully implement change.

When it comes to change management, our role is to ensure that the strategic programme has an effective communication plan as its keystone. Our role, as change managers, is to figure out how to communicate any change taking place within an organisation and prepare those who will be impacted.

How do they do this?

When our change consultants start a project, they begin with an assessment. These vary in depth but the aim is to gather an understanding of what the organisational change is and how it will impact each level, from senior leadership to lower ranks. Our change consultants also consider whether these groups have gone through any changes in the past and what has or hasn’t worked before. From this, we look to understand what the potential barriers to this change are and develop an effective communications plan to bridge this gap.

When developing the tactics for the communications plan, it’s important to consider these through a lens of empathy. By seeing things from each employee’s perspective and getting into their shoes, so to speak, this helps to fully understand what works for individuals, not just the company as a whole.

At a base level, this can mean spotlighting the way employees consume communications. For example, some people will read action plans, others will prefer visuals and diagrams. By understanding the way different people consume different formats, it allows our change consultants to approach them in the most effective way.

When it comes to developing the right communication format(s), a variety of different messages, tools and channels should be deployed. Let’s take the example of a change programme whereby the organisation is changing the layout of the workspace from assigned to unassigned seating. There can be a variety of different forms of information shared – from images of the new layout, to visuals of the new desks and in-person demonstrations, to examples of how the new booking system will work, to videos showing the benefits of shared desks and collaboration spaces. By providing all the information that may be of interest or concern, in a variety of formats, the communication strategy will be a success as it will speak to each employee in the way that they, personally, care about.

Individual communication needs are complex, particularly in large organisations. Understanding and catering for them – with an approach based on a solid understanding of the change in hand and the different needs of individuals within an organisation – effective communication can be achieved and the change programme can be successfully rolled out.

Recommendations should always put the people at the heart of the programme. This will not only mitigate resistance to change, but ultimately create a positive experience during the change period by bringing people along on the journey and making them feel supported.

80%* of complex change projects fail without an effective change management plan in place. Preparation is key to effectively communicate and equip everyone with the right tools at the right time, to ensure that the change is not only implemented, but sustained after the project has finished.

When undertaking change, organisations should consider bringing in an external change consultant to help manage it. Senior leaders may think it will be more cost and time effective to manage it internally, but this risks creating more issues than it solves. By having someone from the outside coming in, assessing how the organisation is run, what the culture is and how people behave, recommendations can be provided from a fresh and experienced perspective.

Of course, change can be perceived as negative. However, the keystone to any change management strategy is the people involved and the way we communicate with them. Understanding them and communicating to them in a way that they will respond positively will determine the outcome of a change management project.

– Is your organisation embarking on a period of change? Do you want support in managing this change? Contact us at info@moveplangroup.com
– For further information about our change management programmes, visit our services page.

* PROSCI data