Business Need - Manage Change
Change always looks great on paper. The value is clear, the timelines work, stakeholder needs are met. The announcement is brilliant; everyone buys in and believes in the change.
But change doesn't happen on paper, nor does it unfold in an orderly or predictable way. It will be messy, inelegant, chaotic. People will stumble as they find their way through the unknown. The key is to keep moving forward.
That's the challenge for change agents, especially when confronted by resistance. How do you keep things moving as the volume and intensity of concerns and complaints drag on the process and threaten its success?
Most leaders see resistance as an opponent to their success; thus they must root it out and defeat it. As a result, they fight force with force, and employees—whose commitment is already shaky—tune out or look for a safe place to ride out the storm.
At Ridge, we believe that resistance is only resistance if the leader thinks of it as resistance. If instead it is welcomed as a source of intelligence about the plan for change, another possibility opens up: rather than fight it, you can learn from it.
That's where Ridge can help. Ridge teaches leaders throughout your organization to manage all aspects of change-based communication. Leveraging skills across our product lines, we've helped change leaders from the C Suite on down to:
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Involve people up front—listening to needs, gathering ideas, and building relationships that will be required for successful implementation.
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Plan a communication strategy that anticipates many potential obstacles and addresses various stakeholder needs and concerns.
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Establish clear agreements about what is to be done.
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Use core communication skills to keep their balance and continue to move forward even in the turbulence of change.
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Explore problems and obstacles that arise and resolve them collaboratively, building confidence, competence, and commitment in the process.
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Handle conflicts that inevitably arise during change.
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Keep calm in the midst of chaos so that they can think clearly and act wisely during highly stressful encounters.
Creating and managing effective change takes patience and commitment. Ridge is ready to help you on your path to change. Based on your specific needs, we can create the integrated classes to help you achieve the results you seek.
CASE STUDY ON MANAGING CHANGE
A Fortune 500 manufacturer enhances its reputation as "employer-of-choice."
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