December 2000 Hot Topic
Mastering Change…Is your organization a Master at Change?

    Mind-Clearing Example - Imagine the theater company that had no skills in moving from one production to another. Each time a play closes, the Director starts all over again in thinking about what must be done to transition to a new play. Imagine there being no institutional memory in the theater company of how they made their last transition - what they did first, how they did it, who was best in transition work, etc.

    Organizations must learn change…and build and institutionalize the organizational machinery needed to make successful change happen …just as a theater company does.

Organizational Change Mastery: An Operational Definition

    Defining change mastery for an organization may seem like a complex and theoretical exercise. But let's use our theater metaphor one more time and do some common sense translation to a business organization. We will say that, by definition, a successful theater company has mastered change. What "change competencies" do we expect that theatre company to have? We expect the company to be competent in:

• Identifying the time when their current successful play might need to change
• Identifying a new play that can follow their current play and add to the company's string of successes
• Resourcing the production of the new play (i.e., finding the dollars needed to bankroll the new play)
• Signing up the cast and crew for performance of the new play
• Signing up the cast and crew to begin preparation for the new play before the current one ends
• Opening the new play with it "better than 95% ready for Broadway"
• Shutting down the old play to focus all resources on the new one
• Refining the new play until it reaches and stays "at least 99% ready for Broadway"

    We believe that business organizations have mastered change when they can successfully and consistently perform on each of the eight dimensions of competence listed below.

1. Identifying the time for change
   An organization that has mastered change will stay tuned to the business environment and its own internal business situation and will consistently identify the "right time to begin a change" as well as the "target time for the completion" of change.
   
   
2. Identifying the Vision for Organizational Change
   An organization that has mastered change will develop a Vision that will be a detailed, valid business model that can be achieved with a high degree of confidence because of the organization's track record of change.
   
   
3. Planning and Resourcing the Vision
   An organization that has mastered change will ensure that the financial, time, and human resources needed for the change will be made available for change success.
   
   
4. Enlisting the Organization to Go For the Vision
   An organization that has mastered change will sign up all managers and the majority of workers for the Vision, using the Case for Change as the basis for motivation and the needed sense of urgency.
   
   
5. Enlisting the Organization for completing Change Work and Continuing Old Work
   An organization that has mastered change will sign up all managers and workers to get the needed transition work done on target, on time, and on budget.
   
   
6. Changing Over to the Vision with High Performance and Competence
   An organization that has mastered change will Change Over to the new way of operating called for by the Vision for Organizational Change with most of the performance bugs all worked through.
   
   
7. Stopping Old Work
   An organization that has mastered change will stop doing work the old way and shut down those parts of the operation that are no longer in sync with the Vision.
   
   
8. Refining New Work to the Needed Level
   An organization that has mastered change will rapidly work to refine their changed operations to reach the targeted and needed level of performance.

    Theater companies must master change because "it is the nature of their business." They know that "no play lasts forever." Doesn't it also make sense for today's business organizations to strive for change mastery since it seems to be the nature of business today?

Dutch Holland, CEO of HDI, has worked as a management consultant for 30 years, helping organizations and leaders manage and implement change successfully. And if you enjoyed this short article on change, you'll love his new book, Change is the Rule (Dearborn Trade, Chicago, 2000). Check your local bookstores or read a review at amazon.com! Contact Dutch at 713-877-8130.

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