The change you’re leading right now is important. So is the next one. And the one after that. You see, every change you make and how you make it contributes to your organisation’s culture.
Manage this change well and you have change success. Manage multiple changes well and you’re on your way to building a culture of innovation.
On the other hand, manage multiple changes poorly and you not only have change failure, you risk creating a culture of distrust.
Which culture would you prefer?
Let’s dive into our Managing Change: The Outcome Matrix to explore what happens when single or multiple changes are managed well or poorly.
Change success: build a culture of innovation
When you manage a single change well (the light green quadrant at the top right), you not only succeed with that change – you also build trust with your people and create momentum for future initiatives. This contributes to a culture of innovation (darker green quadrant at the bottom right).
Outcomes of managing multiple changes well include:
- Solutions that work from day one, with high user adoption.
- Minimal disruptions, smooth transitions and lasting change.
- Realised benefits and strong return on investment.
- Teams that feel valued, confident and ready for the next challenge.
With each successful change, trust, capability and resilience grow. Your people are more likely to back future initiatives, making your organisation more agile, adaptable and innovative. This is how you build an innovation culture.
Change fatigue becomes a thing of the past. Rather than being seen as an added burden, change becomes a natural part of daily work and collaboration, bringing intrinsic rewards for everyone involved.
Your culture will be known for:
- Delivering high-quality outcomes.
- Keeping promises and achieving goals.
- Creating engaged and capable teams that embrace change as a positive force.
- Forming a collaborative, adaptable and innovative work environment.
Change failure: the path to a culture of distrust
When change isn’t managed well (the light orange quadrant at the top left), things tend to unravel quickly. If your change fails, it can damage your culture and hinder future initiatives. This contributes to a culture of distrust (the darker orange quadrant on the bottom left).
Outcomes of managing multiple changes poorly include:
- Solutions that aren’t fit for purpose and have no buy-in.
- Disruptions to operations and a decline in team morale.
- Repeated training, rework, delays, and cost blowouts.
- A growing sense of disengagement and frustration across the board.
When this happens, people start to question the value of every new initiative. Change feels like something to survive rather than embrace. As morale drops and productivity suffers, trust in leadership erodes. You’re now operating in a culture of distrust.
Your culture will be known for:
- Failing to achieve plans and goals.
- Creating a negative environment that stifles innovation and collaboration.
- Eroding trust in leadership and cynicism about new initiatives.
- Increasing turnover and disengagement among your people.
Take it one change at a time
Let’s be realistic. You’re only in charge of this change, not every change in your organisation. Your organisation may already be in or heading into orange ‘Culture of Distrust’ territory. You’re not responsible for the entire culture.
So, what can you do?
Ensure the change you’re leading is managed well. Be the poster child – the shining example that everyone points to for how change should be done.
It might just be the turning point your culture needs.
Making one successful change at a time, will help your organisation to innovate and evolve as second nature, creating a culture of innovation.
Is your change on track to build an innovation culture?
*************************
Sign up to our newsletter to receive more insights, freebies and news to support you in the success of your change.
Because how you make change matters. It matters to your people, it matters to your customers, and it matters to your bottom line.
And it matters to us.
©2024 CHANGEEFFECT PTY LTD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.