Leading and Managing Change
To be successful in the future, lawyers must be
positioned to quickly adapt their practices to our fast-changing
society. Strong leadership, a compelling reason for change, a clear
vision of how to achieve change, and team involvement are all factors
that lead to successfully implementing change.
by Libby Hartman
When talking with my clients about ensuring that their business
strategies are successfully implemented, I generally begin by discussing
their business case for change. Only true visionaries change without the
presence of real pain; almost always there are significant "pain points"
that drive people and organizations to change. How many of us give up
our cheeseburgers and fries, smoking, and Krispy Kreme donuts prior to
having a health problem? So I inquire, "What is the 'burning platform'?
What is the compelling reason you are asking your people to work, think,
and interact differently?"
Burning platforms include such things as "Our firm will no longer be
able to serve the indigent community if we don't reduce costs," or "Our
market share is being eroded by the new law firm down the street," and
so on.
The Case for Change
Why should Wisconsin lawyers begin adapting how and what they
practice? You already have the case for change - it was presented at the
State Bar's Seize the Future conference; through the conference insights
written by Gary A. Munneke from the ABA's conference on the same topic;
in the Wisconsin Public Trust and Confidence Report; by a colleague who
fired her lawyer because she didn't have email; and by consumers who
surf the Web for their own legal information. There is a business case
for the legal profession to adapt the way it does business.
So with all the information available on the need to change, why do
Wisconsin lawyers generally resist change?
Resistance to Change: Why and What It Looks Like
There are practical and emotional reasons why people do not like
change.
The emotional reasons for not wanting to change. What is change? At
its most basic level, change is a disruption of the status quo. Human
beings are extremely control-oriented. We feel the most competent,
confident, and comfortable when our expectations of control, stability,
and predictability are being met. Change means these expectations are
disrupted. Change shakes the 4 Cs: competence, confidence, control, and
comfort at their core.
Try to imagine waking in the morning and everything is different than
it was the day before. The clothing in your closet is a different style,
fabric, and color than you are used to. Things in the kitchen have been
moved around. Your spouse announces that he or she wants to change how
you as a couple interact within the relationship. On this morning you
now drive on the opposite side of the road, with the steering wheel on
the right side of the car. Your favorite coffee shop no longer serves
the same kind of coffee. The streets have been changed to "one way."
If you could imagine yourself in this obviously very dramatic
depiction of change, it isn't hard to see how you would show up to work
feeling completely out of control, confidence shaken, very
uncomfortable, and with a sense of diminished competence. While many of
the scenarios above are not likely to happen, how our world has changed
in the last two to five years brings the same disruption of "the way we
have always done things." So, we resist. We like the comfort that comes
with familiarity and don't easily recognize the benefit of doing things
differently.
The practical aspects of change. For many Wisconsin lawyers, there is
no clear roadmap about what needs to change in their specific situation.
People keep talking about technology and how it is impacting the legal
profession. What does this mean? What do I need to do? Not only is it
difficult to understand what needs to be done to adapt, it is very
time-consuming to implement. Lack of time is a key practical
contribution to resisting change. Change takes time away from your
practice, family, and free time. From a practical perspective, why would
anyone take time away from other critical things to jump into what isn't
clear?
Other practical barriers to change include: poor experiences with
other change initiatives, colleagues and staff who also will resist
change, financial implications, lack of belief that change is really
necessary, difficulty seeing and articulating the benefits of change,
and lack of resources and support to manage added workload and tasks
resulting from managing the change initiative.
It would be simpler if we could deal with the emotional reasons for
resisting change and then address the practical barriers to change and
get on with changing. But being human, we of course intertwine the two,
which is messy and puts us behind the curve on a change imperative. All
of this is to say - resistance to change is normal!
How Does One Overcome Resistance to Change?
Many lawyers believe they are immune to any of
the changes going on in the profession and have many justifiable reasons
for not moving on many personal and professional opportunities. The
first step to overcoming the barriers to change is to recognize if you
are a "resistor" to change.
It is useful to look at Figure
1, the resistance curve. This model has been adopted from Elizabeth
Kubler-Ross's work on the cycle of grief. Look at the key indicators of
each of the four quadrants. Then also look at "what you hear" for each
quadrant. Have you thought or said these things? For just five minutes,
try to stop the "yes, but ..." going on in your head. Take a deep breath
and let me take you through an exercise.
Let yourself relax. Tell yourself, "This is not a call to action. I
do not have to do anything. This is just a call for awareness."
Consider - do you resist change? Do you like to have the same dinner
for the holidays? Do you put your clothes on in the same order every
day? Do you think the music of your time is much higher quality/more
interesting/cooler than music of other times? Have you changed the way
you style your hair recently (or ever)? Do you still drop your bills off
at the utility company rather than using the mail? Do all the new
phone/TV/calendaring gadgets/services seem ridiculous to you?
Are you anxious about changes happening around you? Do you feel that
you are in the dark? Do you feel overwhelmed and clueless about this
whole topic?
If you have some inclination that change is very difficult for you
and that there may be things you need to do to overcome resistance to
change, you have made great progress. That is the hardest part.
Instituting Change: Guidance for Leaders
It can be very difficult leading in times of great change, especially
if the profession/industry/peer group in which you are involved is
ambivalent at best, and hostile at worst, regarding the recent pressures
and trends. The following is a model for managing a change initiative.
It provides eight factors for success that leaders need to consider when
trying to implement any dramatic change within their domains.
While there is no set formula to follow to ensure successfully
implementing change, you can improve your chances of success by using a
fairly simple equation. The Successful Change
Equation in Figure
2 is a way for leaders to think about and manage the key components
of their initiative.
There must be:
1) A reason to change. Change for change's sake is most times not a
positive motive. A leader must be able to articulate why the change is
needed.
2) A clear vision as to what is going to change.
3) Clear steps for how the change will occur.
4) A belief that the change actually is achievable.
All four of these things need to be greater than the perceived cost
of changing. In other words, "Will I get more out of this than I give?"
The other critical piece in the equation is the ongoing involvement of
the stakeholders of the change. Stakeholders are any individuals or
groups that the change will impact. This includes employees, management,
clients, vendors, and so on.
To assist with these major components of the Successful Change
Equation, use the Change Factors for Success (CFS) in
Figure
3. These eight factors comprise a framework for managing a change
initiative. (Figure 2 shows how each of the CFSs fit into the Equation
for Success.) Each of the eight factors should be evaluated and
considered as either a barrier or enabler to a successful change. If
deemed to be a barrier, then leadership needs to identify tasks and
activities to turn that success factor into an enabler. If deemed an
enabler, then leadership needs to leverage this strength during the
change. Both of these efforts will increase the success of the project.
Managed well, the CFSs represent a path to implementation success,
greater realized value, and increased adaptive capabilities. This is
what managing change is all about.
Change Factors for Success
1) Powerful Business Case. Having a powerful business case for the change is critical to
success. This business case provides the rationale and communicates what
is the "burning platform." The business case demonstrates that the cost
of not changing is greater than the cost of changing. The business case
is what helps those affected by the change to understand why this is
being done to them. Understanding the reasons for the change helps to
overcome denial and resistance and creates energy for action.
Barrier or Enabler? Is there a good business case for changing? If
yes, then communicate it! If not, then build one! This might be a cost
benefit analysis, data regarding the increasing number of clients you
are losing each month, a benchmarking study about what the most
successful people in the legal profession are doing, and so on.
2) Vision Clarity. John F. Kennedy said, "Vision
illuminates the way and keeps everyone focused on the destination." A
clear vision of what the change will look like presents a compelling
picture, a destination of where you are going. The vision defines any
new technology, people, and process requirements for the future and
specifies expected changes in behavior.
Barrier or Enabler? If there is not a clear vision, people end up
working toward different goals. This contributes to confusion, lost
time, reworking of tasks, frustration, and so on. Communicating a clear
vision means everyone could have blindfolds on and still end up at the
same destination.
3) Change Leadership and Accountability. Any change
initiative must have a clear leader who has the ultimate responsibility
and accountability for the success or failure of the project. This means
a visible and consistent demonstration of commitment to the initiative.
The leadership team should include executive sponsors and "change
agents" who will be those people executing the actual change at the
tactical level.
Barrier or Enabler? Clearly, having no leader for the change is a
barrier. More often, however, the barrier that truly inhibits success is
having a clear leader who is ineffectual in exercising leadership to
advance the initiative. This person is either too busy or not available
to put in the time and energy that such dramatic change requires. Other
doomed initiatives have leaders who do not command the respect of those
within the organization or simply do not have a change management plan
and are unable to successfully manage to completion.
4) Change-specific Communication. Communication is
critical to many components of any change initiative. The primary goal
of communication is to build stakeholder commitment to the change or
future state vision, and to the organization's strategies. This CSF
should outline the strategy, content, and delivery method for all
communications targeted at key stakeholders. Generally, the
communication plan is integrated with the business's overall
communication approach. Communications are key to ensuring that all
stakeholders understand the direction of the initiative, have
expectations clearly articulated, and provide updates to all team
members to create efficiencies and teamwork.
Barrier or Enabler? When it comes to communications, barriers and
enablers need to be assessed from an infrastructure, cultural, and
competency standpoint. For example, a fully enabled organization as it
relates to communications has an integrated technology and telephony
system that allows communications to occur rapidly and effectively to
the entire organization. A large organization that doesn't have the
ability to leave voicemails to all personnel has a technological barrier
to effective communications. From a cultural standpoint, I consider
communicating on an "as needed" basis to be a barrier to successful
change. People will make up information where information is lacking.
This is highly dangerous to a successful implementation when buy-in and
support are so key. Communicating openly and often is a critical
activity of any change initiative. Having someone with communications
experience and skill is very important to drafting effective
communications. A lack of this competency is a barrier that must be
addressed prior to initiating the change effort.
5) Change Capability. When embarking upon a change,
leaders need to consider their employees' capacity for change. This is
most significant for an organization that has undergone rapid change
over a short time. I talk about a "threshold of dysfunction" to explain
change capability. When a situation occurs in which a person is using up
more energy dealing with life's multiple challenges than he or she has
in reserve, we begin to see dysfunctional behavior. The extreme of this
concept is commonly referred to as "going postal." Most often, exceeding
one's change capacity means resistance to more change, tardiness,
attitude problems, and the like.
Barrier or Enabler? Too much change, change with no change management
activities, or a history of failed change efforts are barriers to
another initiative. An enabler would be a group of people who love new
things and thrive on change.
6) Integrated Planning and Teams. A change effort
needs to be well organized, with people in the right roles for their
skill sets. It is important to have a "team" structure to the project,
because most people still will need to do their old job as well as the
new.
Barrier or Enabler? Enablers in this CFS would be high performance
project teams; project management infrastructure and tools; and
integrating the people, process, and technology components that the
change will affect.
7) Stakeholder Commitment. Building stakeholder
commitment is completely critical to any change effort. Stakeholder
commitment builds individual and collective commitment to turn the
vision into reality. It also assures that appropriate resources are
available throughout the project and it mobilizes these resources at the
right time. Commitment is critical if you want the stakeholders to be
engaged with the change once it occurs, for example, using the new email
system. Stakeholder commitment also is important during the process of
changing. Without stakeholder input and buy-in, the change initiative
can be delayed, undermined by resistors, built on bad information or
data, and so on.
Barrier or Enabler? It is important to understand how the people
affected by the change feel about it. If a lot of resistance is
anticipated, then much has to be done to get stakeholders to understand
the business case and vision for the effort. In the case of layoffs, for
example, few people will feel commitment to losing their jobs; however,
they can be committed to identifying what they need from the
organization to help make this painful process go a little more
smoothly, that is, severance pay, job search assistance, and resume
writing skill building. Also, having a well-respected person on your
side is a strong enabler and should be leveraged.
8) Aligned Performance and Culture. This CSF is
about ensuring that the "Organizational Performance Levers" (OPLs) are
aligned with the change that is taking place. These levers include:
organization design, performance management, training and development,
culture, staffing and deployment, leadership effectiveness, and
communication. When putting in a new technology, for example, having no
training causes a misalignment. Your training and development must
account for this new technology.
Barrier or Enabler? A barrier occurs if the change effort requires
many other organizational changes that have not been planned for or are
too far in the future. This puts the effort at risk for not being
sustainable long-term.
Conclusion
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 Libby Hartman is a manager with Cap Gemini Ernst
& Young. She consults in project and organizational change
management, organization design and structure, leadership effectiveness,
learning and development, communication, and performance and pay
alignment. She was a panelist for the State Bar's Seize the Future
conference in December 2000.
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The information/technology
age has left few people, organizations, and industries untouched; the
legal profession is no exception. Change is difficult, and radical
change can be excruciating. The first step is understanding your own
resistance (fear of the unknown, loss of income, change in work methods,
increased expectations). Only after we understand what
is difficult about change for us as individuals can we start addressing
what needs to change in our work life. Leaders are critical to making
this smooth for their law firms, colleagues, and employees. Tell those
affected why the change is necessary, tell them what it is going to look
like, tell them how they will get there, and tell them who needs to do
what.
