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Taking Charge of Change

January 1, 1999

by Shari Caudron

in





The Seven Principles of Successful Change


  1. Accept your worth and acknowledge others’ worth. Accepting and acknowledging worth is the foundation of successful change.

  2. Generate trust. When there is trust between two or more people, change is more readily accepted. Being trusted and trusting others allows you and others to be positive, productive individuals. Trust is the centerpiece of successful change.

  3. Learn by empathy. Those who continuously learn about themselves, others, work and life have a greater capacity for change. By observing others, broadening interests and understanding different perspectives, you can gain an instinctive understanding of change. Connect to change by daily learning.

  4. Embrace change. Change is inevitable and appears to be increasing at exponential rates. You can either resist change or accept it.

  5. Unleash the synergy. Team synergy is the result of two or more people valuing and trusting each other. When two or more people produce ideas, they ultimately make improvements that are significantly greater than would have been possible separately.

  6. Discover champions, depend on masters and find a sage. Effective change will be steered by more than a leader. The environment of change will eliminate autocratic supervision. Instead, it will seek champions, masters and sages to foster change.

  7. Liberate decision-making. Change resulting from one person’s decisions rarely works. Share decision-making with those around you. Empower them. Collective ownership in decisions promotes change.


*From "The Eagle & the Monk: Seven Principles of Successful Change" by William A. Jenkins and Richard W. Oliver (United Publishers Group, 1998)

In the past, change was contiguous. But now, a multitude of changes are happening simultaneously. If you think you’re playing it safe by taking on only as much change as your comfort level permits, remember what Will Rogers once said: "Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there."

In his book, "Managing at the Speed of Change: How Resilient Managers Succeed and Prosper Where Others Fail" (Villard Books, 1993), Daryl R. Conner, president and CEO of ODR Inc., Atlanta, illustrates the current state of change using a child’s riddle. "On day one," he writes, "a large lake contains only a single small lily pad. Each day the number of lily pads doubles, until on the 30th day the lake is totally choked with vegetation. On what day was the lake half full? The answer, of course, is the 29th day. It took 29 days for the first half of the lake to fill with lily pads, but only 24 additional hours for the lake to become overwhelmed."


Welcome to day 29. Anyone who’s been in finance for any amount of time is already too familiar with the constant change that threatens to choke out creativity and cut off innovation and productivity. It’s not just that business is changing, but rather that the nature of change itself is changing. How can we possibly lead our organizations when we feel like we’re drowning; when we’re all desperately trying to hold on to the lily pads we already know? Is there any hope?


The answer is "yes ... but." Finance professionals can learn to manage and embrace change, but it takes effort. It starts by thoroughly understanding the nature of change, why change is so difficult, and how change should be managed. In fact, every successful corporate executive in the near future will be both a student and master of change dynamics.

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Average: 10 (1 vote)

Ever been in a situation

On December 16th, 2011 installment loan (not verified) said:

Ever been in a situation where the environment changed without your permission? Your initial reaction is usually to push back against the change. However you reacted to the above story, wouldn’t you like to be better prepared for changes you didn’t anticipate? Would you like to have a better way to manage the complexity of your life, and understand why it can be so difficult to get yourself through a difficult personal change?

reply

On November 15th, 2011 a bfmag.com reader (not verified) said:

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