Applying Change Management: Motivation, Vision, and Culture

Introduction: Motivation as the Foundation of Change

Motivation is a key concept in change management, primarily because if managers want employees to embrace a change in the workplace, the right incentives are required to inspire workers to "buy in" to the change (Heath & Heath, 2010; Symbolic Framework, n.d.). As Wells (2012) points out, one of the best motivators is a leader who is willing to engage in self-leadership — that is, a leader who demonstrates to his workers how to embrace change by embracing it himself. Other types of motivation exist, however: Grenny et al. (2013) identify intrinsic and extrinsic motivators as pivotal in moving employees, noting that knowledge, praise, and self-empowerment are all examples. In short, to get employees to drop resistance to change, managers must find the right ways to motivate. This paper provides synopses of three key sections from each of these three books, synthesizes the information, and offers a perspective from a manager's point of view on how best to practically apply the lessons.

Personal Motivation, Ability, and Social Support

Grenny et al. (2013) focus on personal motivation, personal ability, and social motivation in chapters 4 through 6 of Influencer. They show that when it comes to change, people hesitate because it is something foreign to them: it is new, unknown, uncertain, and often unpleasant. Yet doing the right thing typically requires hard work and discipline. To make the grade, one has to study; to win the race, one has to train; to get rid of the Guinea worm, one has to avoid doing the one thing that brings relief (Grenny et al., 2013). Personal motivation is key to bringing about change: people have to become personally driven to do the thing they do not want to do — otherwise there will never be a committed "buy in" among groups.

When people cannot do what they need to do, that is when a manager — or influencer — must help them accomplish what they cannot achieve on their own. Support systems are vital in change management environments, and every victory, no matter how small, has to be celebrated so as to boost morale and increase the sense among followers that the thing they thought they could not do is actually possible and within their ability. Managers can provide support for motivation, as the Symbolic Framework (n.d.) points out: "Managers who strive for quality understand they must involve employees, build on what organizational members share, and teach new members how to behave" (p. 11).

Emotional and social intelligence is required of the leader, because there will be social and emotional challenges along the way. These challenges can be overcome by enlisting the right people to provide motivation and social support. These individuals function like infantry support for the change manager: they share the same vision and values, and they are respected and valued among their peers, who are more willing to embrace change when they see their social peers doing so.

Vision, Leadership, and Worker Engagement

This is the essence of what Wells (2012) demonstrates as well. Wells (2012) begins by arguing that the best way to effect change is to lead from within — to be the change one wants to see happen. Talk is cheap; what matters to people is action. A leader who demonstrates his own willingness to embody change is far more likely to succeed in getting others to follow. At the same time, a leader has to keep his eyes open to reality: sequestering a leader in a boardroom and filling his head with data will not produce the kinds of broad changes an organization needs. The reason is that change takes place outside the boardroom, in the workplace, among the workers themselves.

To know what needs to change, the leader has to engage with the workplace and with workers. But that is not all. He also has to have a vision of the type of change that is needed and what the workplace could and should look like. Change without vision is meaningless, and workers will sense that. The leader has to possess and be able to communicate that vision, and he has to be able to include workers in the process.

This is the essence of organizational change according to the Symbolic Framework (n.d.). Engaging with the workplace means gathering feedback and making workers feel that they and their input are valued. That is one of the best ways to prevent resistance to change from arising in the first place: give workers the respect they deserve upfront, hear what they have to say, and invite them into the decision-making process. At the same time, all parties must be willing to accept hard truths and criticism in order to make changes for the better — and that, Wells (2012) emphasizes, is a point leaders must always remember.

References

Grenny, J., Patterson, K., Maxfield, D., McMillan, R., & Switzler, A. (2013). Influencer: The New Science of Leading Change. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Heath, C. & Heath, D. (2010). Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. New York, NY: Broadway Books.

Symbolic Framework. (n.d.). PowerPoint presentation. Digital file.

Wells, D. (2012). 16 Stones: Raising the Level of Your Leadership. Franklin, TN: New Vantage Books.