Gallup recently published an article, 8 Behaviors of the World’s Best Managers, to highlight how others are successfully facilitating change within their teams.
Expand each header below to learn about these best practices.
When your team members understand WHY change is needed, they will become more willing to accept the change. They need to understand how their work fits into the big picture.
Take time to communicate the reason why change is needed to stay competitive and grow the business.
As the leader, you do not need to have all the answers.
Change requires innovative thinking, so why not solicit input from all team members?
Get the whole team and individuals involved to increase the level of ownership.
Mistakes will happen during change. It’s practically a guarantee!
Create a climate of trust, safety, and transparency that includes open and honest communication about mistakes.
Use these times to promote a whole-team approach to problem solving and collaboration.
Help to reduce stress and resistance and minimize fear of the unknown.
Give your employees ample opportunity to talk about change both from a rational and emotional perspective.
Values can drive how we feel about coming to work everyday.
Get to know your employees and discover what they value.
What’s important to them? What’s fun? What’s not?
With the uncertainty of change, look for ways to celebrate even small successes.
Ask team members to share stories where the clinic is making a difference. Maybe it’s related to making a difference in a pet owners’ life, or providing exceptional care to a pet.
Take time to celebrate the difference the team is making.
Life happens and your employee’s personal life can greatly influence their professional life.
Be intentional about seeing your team members as whole people and support them from an emotional, mental, and physical standpoint.
Schedule one-on-one meetings to check in. When employees sense that their manager cares, engagement at work increases.
Opportunities for on-the-job development almost always happen with change.
Pay attention to employees who are interested in taking on more responsibility and challenges.
Look for ways to delegate responsibility for new initiatives that result from change.
Directing, Motivating, and Shaping
Each of these best practices fall into three categories: providing direction, motivating, and shaping the path. Dan and Chip Heath, authors of Switch, talk about the importance of these three strategies when facilitating change. You can take a closer look at that in the next Practice Session, Elephant, Rider, and a Pathway.
| Directing | Motivating | Shaping |
Be open to new ideas from your team members. Admit and accept mistakes. Always be on the lookout for new stars rising up. | Communicate and connect with team members frequently. Discover what motivates people beyond money. Care about your employees both professionally and personally. | Always communicate the reason why. Talk about why your team and the individuals on it matter. Celebrate excellence. |
Take a moment to review the list of best practices. Identify three best practices you would like to improve upon.
What feelings or thoughts might prevent you from engaging in these best practices?
For example, being open to new ideas from team members might feel threatening. It can make some leaders feel inadequate if they don’t have all the answers. They may think, “My team will think less of me if I can’t come up with ideas on my own.”
There’s a danger in this because you could be limiting the impact others can make. Instead, how might you reframe your thoughts? “How can we come together to own this problem and brainstorm some solutions?”
What specific steps do you need to take to make this happen and who do you need to be involved?
Share your ideas with others to get their input as well. Where do you have additional opportunity?
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