Gabor Varjasi
I like this quote from Maya Angelou, as it helped me many times to self-reflect when it was difficult for me at first to cope with new circumstances that I could not influence: “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
Brilliant advice, but how difficult is it to live accordingly when change has become almost the only constant substant in our life? From my point of view, our VUCA world is accelerated all its attributes since 2020.
I do think a lot over my career about why I like to work in companies that face their mid- and long-term strategies and are ready to take the right action to accomplish them. In contrast, some of my peers try to avoid these situations and are resistant to becoming change champions, even if they must sacrifice many important things that matter to them (e.g., learning opportunities).
Transformations come with huge costs and run so much risk for both individuals and corporations while the given process/culture/organizational structure is in the implementation phase. Naturally, even after fully embedding it, we need to deal with the aftermath of the new reality that we haven’t anticipated, besides all the benefits that change has brought us.
Well, the answer I’ve found so far is a growth mindset & genuine curiosity, combined with a healthy risk-taking attitude, which can be key to success while change happens around and with you. Unfortunately, not everybody has a sufficient level of curiosity or mentors around them to support the establishment of the right attitudes to actively participate in or lead the unavoidable transformation at work. I believe that without those leaders who helped me understand ‘why’ we need to change and what I can gain (e.g., experience, knowledge) personally by doing it properly, with full of my heart and mind, I could have never become who I am today.
Aspirations toward what we will achieve with the given change should be high but realistic.
For example, let’s think about how significant effort is put into changing company culture. Naturally, it can take five or ten years to implement the new culture and make it stick at all layers of the given organization. Meanwhile, typically CEOs won’t stay longer in their roles than six years. As an unexpected consequence, employees can feel that a culture initiative is only a phase to endure, and the new person will make another change. Activities and decisions may stop during this interim period which is the worst thing that could happen. Losing time and belief in the change could significantly impact the successful implementation.
Of course, the truth is that we have no other choice as a leader but to do everything and beyond to coach/manage/advise/lead by example; to get there, we have started the journey together regardless of any change in the leadership. It is important that big paradigm changes that are deeply impacting the values of the given organizations are not happening too frequently. Otherwise, most of the workforce would be in constant cognitive dissonance with themselves. They would ask themselves: where is the company I wanted to join desperately a few years ago? If the answer to this inner dispute is: I could not find it anymore, and the new one is in conflict with my value set and beliefs as of today. Then the only resolution for the individual left is: to vote with her/his feet. Maybe it is even worth it if they decide to stay and remain the not so constative part of the workforce, whom you can find in your engagement surveys under either the Passive or Detractor category in your NPS score.
Aspirations toward what we will achieve with the given change should be high but realistic. Otherwise, it could have a negative impact and create the perception in the eyes of the organization that the management is not that competent, therefore, less authentic. Engagement within all levels of the organization strengthened with transparent communication on successes and failures during the change process is essential.
Furthermore, sufficient investment in building future capabilities across the corporation to sustain the change is probably an evergreen focus area if we would like to make the planned transformation happen within a reasonable timeframe.
Attitude formation is important and happens throughout our life whether we are willing to notice it or not. Many times, we do not necessarily experience transformations in beliefs, but rather we are influenced by the social outcomes of adopting a change in our behaviour. That is compliance – an adaptation in our behaviour based on consequences – e.g., gaining rewards by doing something differently. How long this change exists? Well, probably only until we keep using the same policy to encourage us to do the given activity. I do not think we can have the hearts & minds of our colleagues during a major initiative implementation if we only count on this technique.
Sometimes employees change the way they act at work and even their private beliefs, but only while they are in the presence of the group they identify with. This is usually short-term as well, so this is not what we are looking for as leaders when we are working on the creation of resilient and agile teams.
Internalization of change concepts & strategies by most colleagues can lead to sustainable organizational transformation that delivers all expected results. The new attitude or behaviour that we reward as we are managing this process should be consistent with the individual’s value system, so it is straightening the bonding with the communities at work. Internal promotions, hiring decisions, leadership development actions, etc., all need to be consistent with this. This is a fragile ecosystem, after all, that requires constant monitoring & correction.
What can be the price as a leader or an organization if you want to support your colleagues to embrace the change better?
If you can create a company culture where most colleagues find the feeling of belonging in a community close to one’s beliefs and aims; meanwhile, we all feel valued + this is all underpinned by generating value together. Embracing this feeling that my contribution can move mountains and help high-performing teams achieve what seemed impossible before the change journey began can make me feel like I am part of something bigger than myself.
