Restructuring and change projects are less accepted if the purpose is only profit generation without sharing the fruits of collective efforts. If efforts have to be made, they should improve life and general well being.
Delivery of the message is a crucial moment for the leader as his credibility and honesty are at stake. He, she needs to choose words and actions carefully, be able to move people’s hearts and minds, making the message stick and engage people into long term action which happens when people also become stakeholders of their own future.
To make things happen, leaders have to engage into operational transformation quickly and mobilize their organisational skills which does not go without perseverance, and rigor.
This phase of action is called alignment as the whole organization has to get involved in order to meet the defined goals.
Leaders need to make sure that the mission is perfectly executed from the top of the pyramid down to the shopfloor. Very often ,the small agents that have an important role in the transformation process as they have the contact with the final customer and can make an impact on the concrete delivery of strategic goals.
To align the whole organization, companies have to be sure that their middle managers have the necessary leadership skills to communicate the vision and empower the people who report to them. Transforming executers into autonomous and proactive agents is a difficult but rewarding task in which intermediate managers can take a chance to develop their emotional intelligence.
The most successful change is the one that has been implemented by the people themselves because they see change not only like a constraint but as an opportunity.
To encourage that vision, a leader needs to be close to his direct reports and sensitive to their needs and aspirations and help them to find a personal reason for participating actively to the change process.
It is important to give feed back and support topeople who struggle to learn and adapt. Learning new things is often frustrating as it means doing things poorly in the beginning and sometimes loosing confidence in one’s skills.
Recognition of the efforts made and celebration of small wins can shape people up and give them the energy and motivation to go on trying.
In order to understand what sort of compliments and encouragements have the power to encourage his/her direct reports, a leader needs to know them well and care about them sincerely. To become a resonant leader is a long term process which starts with knowing oneself and getting to know others, but it is too late to start when the crisis is there. Empathy must start long before the leader needs the entire support of his/her followers.
The article is inspired by the book: It starts with one ! (Changing individuals changes organizations), authors: J. Stewart Black, Hal B Gregerson, professors at Insead:
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