ORDER

"The ultimate success of any person or organization is directly related to the ability of that entity to anticipate, respond and adapt to the demands of the environment in real time…consistently."

The Fickleness of CHANGE

An initial disturbance in an organism results in a mobilization of energy to restore the balance, and recurrent upsets lead to actions to anticipate the disturbance. This basic principle in an organization is the tendency towards self-preservation of the character of the system. DESIGNING ORGANIZATIONS FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE David Hanna

There is a need for balance…yet the bond of what "is" refuses to yield and all the energy of the organization may be directed towards stability…maintenance of the original character and shape--so much so--that it may oppose all the forces against it…to defeat the intended change…even when radical change may be necessary for the survival of the system!

INSTRUCTIONS

The following pages describe categories within the change-ability index.

Each area is rated from "1" being the lowest score and "5" being the highest rating.

When you score the category think about how widespread your agreement is with the principles described on the page. If you are confident that the desired principles are widespread score the category a "5". If you see deep-seated problems score a "1".

After you have rated your group or company ask a colleague or an outsider to rate your company also and compare the scores.

The underwriters of change are critical to the success of any change initiative. They sponsor the impetus for change and "pay the bills" for change. The higher the rank of the underwriter, the better the chance your organization can weather the climate of change.

Give yourself a "5" if the underwriter is the CEO or Chairman, as low as "1" if change is sponsored by staff or line employees.

These are the people who lead the group or organization day-to-day. They set the pace for workflow, provide direction and consultation, as well as design the strategic intention.

Give yourself a "5" if the leaders are highly ranked in the organization and own the change initiative, lower if the leaders are not "well connected" and as low as "1" if the leaders are staff or line employees.

Are people clear that the future MUST look different than the present and does this opinion comes from the top or is it widespread? Has everyone bought into the group’s strategic plan for the future success of the org?

Give yourself a "5" if the entire organization from bottom to top is clear about what their strategic roles are; lower if people are unclear about the strategic intention, "1" if there isn’t any strategic intention.

Is the change effort owned from the top down? Are people convinced of the need for change? Is everyone prepared to do their part to create the change needed with as little of resistance as possible? Is there a strong desire to change and improve performance?

Give yourself a "5" if everyone is motivated to do what it takes, lower if there are only pockets of ownership and "1" if resistance to the change effort is widespread.

Are measurements widespread in the organization? Is the organization involved in a "quality" management program and are people trained in process metrics? Are their supporting structures such as compensation aligned with the measurement programs?

Give yourself a "5" if metrics are everywhere, lower if metrics are used but not tied to rewards and "1" if you don’t know what we’re talking about.

Are there other ongoing programs which would support major change, quality, or reengineering and is the company clear on how this "new" change initiative "fits" into the groups strategy and direction?

Give yourself a "5" if the other ongoing programs are a part of strategic intention and can be linked with this change initiative, lower if ongoing programs are isolated and each program is a "fad of the month."

Major change requires the redesign of processes and cross-functional teams. If people are turf conscious and are unwilling to cooperate between functions, change is slowed and even prevented.

Give yourself a "5" if you are already aligned into cross-functional teams and work across processes now, lower if there are functional "silos" and power centers established which intend to fight for their perks!

Sometimes experience is the best teacher. If your organization has had experience with change efforts before and has successfully found ways to implement change over time, then the chances of this change effort succeeding is high.

Give yourself a "5" if you’ve already undergone successful change and a 1 if this is your first time!

The ability to make effective decisions is crucial to successful change efforts. Does your organizations make decisions efficiently taking into consideration the utility of present decisions with regard to future 2nd, 3rd and 4th orders of consequences?

Give yourself a "5" if decisions are effective and conflict free, lower if decisions are slow and create widespread conflict and resistance.

The sense of urgency is the lever that change rests upon. Without a strong pervasive sense of urgency people won’t have the inertia to push through the difficult parts of the change process.

Give yourself a "5" if there is a prevailing sense of urgency and people feel the need to change. Score lower if urgency is not widespread or if most people are casual about the need to change very much.

Creating a sense that change is inevitable often provides motive force for continuing the change effort when things get really tough. If change is inevitable, then people push through obstacles that keep change from taking root in the culture and improving performance.

Give yourself a "5" if change is thought to be inevitable to most people. Score lower if very few people in the organization see change as necessary.

Change takes a long time. If change is to create permanent competitive advantage then the change effort must span leadership at all levels. If the company intends for change to be permanent and beneficial then it must provide for the change champions to lead.

Give yourself a "5" if people know they won’t get promoted unless they champion the change effort and seek to promote the tenets of the change. If not, lower.

Is benchmarking part of the everyday management scenario? Does your company have an established or ongoing list of "best practices." Are people in the organization aware of competitive practices and seeking to upgrade processes to stay ahead of the game?

Give yourself a "5" if benchmarking is integrated into your decision systems, lower if the company is behind with respect to implementing state-of-the-art processes.

Is your company inner-directed or outer-directed? Do you know your customers and remember them? Are customers needs at the forefront of process improvement?

Give yourself a "5" if your company is customer focused and led, lower if the company’s values place the customer behind company policies and a "1" if process owners don’t know who their customer are?

What gets rewarded gets done! (Michael LeBoeuf) Are people rewarded for risk and innovation? Are people rewarded for working together on teams? Or are managers rewarded for making budget and keeping things under control?

Give yourself a "5" if team rewards are present and your company rewards innovation and risk-taking, lower if your company rewards continuity and quiet.

Is the organization flexible and cross-functional or does the organization chart change every week with a lot of turnover? On the other hand, has the organization’s hierarchy ever changed or is "that’s the way we’ve always done it" posted on the restroom BB?

You get a "5" if your company is cross-functional and flexible, lower if everyone fights change by just waiting for it to run its course and letting it die on the vine.

How do people feel about working here? Do people dread coming to work? Are the work rules rigid and over time people have become rigid and cynical in the way they deal with each other? Is there a lot of team spirit and fun at work. Do people put out extra effort and trust each other?

Score "5" if there is high trust, high effort and fun, a "1" if there is mistrust, low-spirit and minimum effort.

A sign of good communication is everyone knows what’s going on. It is frequent, goes to all levels, is easily understood, and two-way…in real time!

Score your company "5" if that’s the way it is at your place, lower if there is communication, but it seems to be one-way only and top-down and a "1" if nobody reads, listens or cares what anybody else has to say because they’re just here to do their job and go home.

Do you have a flat hierarchy or is there layer after layer of management and many levels between the customer and the top? Are there many employee grade levels and a lot of difference in pay and rank among employees?

Score a "5" if there are 3 or less levels between the customer and the COO, lower if there are many more levels of rank in between with power to block or slow down the change initiative.

How are ideas handled in your company? Is there a lot of red tape to get things done? Are people able to make mistakes and take chances or do you have to "go through channels" to get things changed? Are there multiple sign-offs required and spending limits?

Score a "5" if people help you implement ideas, lower if you’re constantly having to fight somebody to get things changed and a "1" if it is faster to do it yourself.

Are the people in your company open-minded? Do they allow different opinions to be discussed without shooting the messenger? Do they examine the facts and make decisions with respect to merit?

Score a "5" if people can be influenced with the right amount of information, lower if people have their minds made up about things and a "1" if getting rid of them would be easier than trying to change their minds.

Do you have enough time to complete the required change and meet the transformational objectives? Are you planning to change your organization really fast or do you understand that major change can require 3-10 years or more?

Score a "5" if time frame is not a constraint and as low as a "1" if the time frame is narrow and doesn’t account for deep cultural transformation.

Last but most important according to John Cotter, celebrated author of LEADING CHANGE, HBR Press, 1996. If people are not worried about change, if they think that someone else will have to change and that they are not required to change--big problems ahead!

Score a "5" if people are "committed" to changing no matter what! Score a "1" if most people think everything is just fine the way we do it now.

Scoring Table: Fill in Scores & Total

Your Change readiness can be viewed in the context of the total score you gave your company from 23-115.

92-115 = high Change--ability potential with minimum damage to existing structure, people and systems.

64-91 = Change-ability moderate--success unlikely unless widespread training and preparation for change is implemented prior to the initiation of the change effort.

<63 = DO NOT PASS GO - Non-destructive change impossible! FIX THE SYSTEM BEFORE CHANGING!

Contact for more information: LEADWISE, LLC