People don’t remember your actions as much as they remember how you treat them. Foundational change leadership excellence is about how you lead people vs how you manage the details and processes. In today’s business climate, the combination of societal and generational dynamics has brought a new meaning to this quote.
People remember when you invest in them.
Policies, safe work practices, expectations, missions etc. set the foundation for how people are treated. The concept of investing in people conveys that leaders care enough to develop people into better versions of themselves. Once you as the employee are invested in and developed to grow, guess what happens? You begin to contribute at a much higher level.
The collaborative potential for you and your organization is immense.
This shift in perspective also brings up two important points when leading organizational change: 1) the shift to two-way collaboration and 2) opening the door wide to personalization. Organizations struggle with the shift from normalizing behaviors and policies for everyone, to customizing and personalizing development deliveries for the individual. The toolbox of the expert change leader needs to contain enough tools to work across what’s common, along with a few specialized tools that work in the personalized space – typically in the people area.
FAQ
How can change leadership consultants facilitate employee engagement during change?
Employee engagement starts with connecting the organizational WHY to the individual WHY. That requirement goes all the way to the front lines.
My company doesn’t have a good way to develop people. How can I start?
Start by getting to know your team. Understand them as people first. As you find out about their skills and passions, ask them how they might want to use that at work. Also ask what are the skills and experiences they feel they need to expand on their career.
How can I be the example of the collaboration I want to see in my team?
The more you pull your team into opportunities where they can give input, the more they will realize the behaviors you want to see in them. Reinforce their initiative even though it may not initially return the desired response.
Personal development sounds great but how do I find the time?
Start by getting to know your team. What you start any meeting with signals the priority so start with a development topic. Another good practice is to have 1 – 2 meetings per year where the conversation is solely dedicated to their development.
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