Rethinking Change Management

Unsuccessful organisational change initiatives are all too common, leaving companies struggling with wasted resources, disengaged employees, and stagnant performance. The business world of today demands continual adaptation to shifting market conditions, emerging technologies, and evolving customer demands. Yet many companies falter when it comes to effectively implementing change.

The Failure of Traditional Approaches

Numerous studies have highlighted the shortcomings of traditional change management approaches. A McKinsey study found that nearly 70% of change programmes fail to achieve their intended goals, while a report by Towers Watson revealed that only 25% of change initiatives are successful over the long term.

The number one rigidity of conventional change management methodologies is their ignorance of psychology and group dynamics. These approaches often rely on predetermined, linear processes that neglect the complex human factors at play in organisational transformations. They tend to focus primarily on the technical aspects of change while overlooking the critical psychological and social dimensions that ultimately determine whether employees will embrace or resist the change.

Unearthing Core Assumptions and Beliefs

At the heart of any organisational change effort lies a deeper need to unearth and reflect on the shared assumptions and beliefs that underpin the company’s culture, decisions, policies, processes and behaviours. Too often, change initiatives address surface-level issues while failing to examine and shift the foundational mindsets driving workplace norms.

Organisational beliefs manifest in the sayings and narratives perpetuated within a company. Assumptions about what is valued, how work should happen, and what defines success frequently go unquestioned. They pass from one generation of employees to the next through stories, traditions and ways of operating that become deeply entrenched over time.

Effective change management requires surfacing these core assumptions and belief systems into the light. By making them explicit, an organisation can critically analyse whether long-held perspectives still serve them or have become constraints to progress and transformation.

Techniques like ethnographic studies, assumption mapping, and reflective discussion groups can help peel back the layers of an organisation’s psyche. Skilled facilitators (i.e. organisaional psychotherapists) create safe spaces for employees to openly voice beliefs without judgment and challenge long-accepted premises through study, inquiry, and debate.

As outdated or counterproductive assumptions are identified, people get to directly address them. This may involve myth-busting, introducing new narratives aligned with the desired cultural shift, or ceremonially rejecting beliefs proven misguided. Simultaneously, the process elevates beneficial assumptions worthy of preserving into guiding principles for the future state.

The journey of personal growth requires holding up a mirror to oneself. So too must organizations engage in self-study and reflection to evolve their deepest operating assumptions. By unearthing core beliefs and subjecting them to scrutiny, companies increase self-awareness and readiness for the mindset transformations that substantive change demands.

The Surprise Arrival of Organisational Psychotherapy

To effectively address these psychological and social aspects of change, organisations are beginning to turn to the field of Organisational Psychotherapy. This emerging discipline applies principles from psychology, counselling, and individual and group therapies to help organisations navigate the human complexities of changing shared assumptions and beliefs.

Organisational Psychotherapists invite the creation of safe spaces in which the emotional undercurrents, interpersonal dynamics, and cultural factors in organisation can emerge. These are factors that can either facilitate or impede successful change. They employ techniques such as group counselling, team upskilling, and cultural awareness to address resistance, build trust, and foster a more change-ready mindset within the organisation.

The Human-Centric Approach

Effective change management might choose to prioritise the human dimension by accounting for psychology and group dynamics. Employees’ attitudes towards change are a critical determinant of its success or failure. Organisations that actively engage employees, foster open communication, and cultivate a culture of continuous learning are more likely to achieve successful transformations.

By adopting a human-centric approach that acknowledges the psychological and social factors at play, organisations can address the emotional barriers to change, build trust and buy-in, and empower their people to become agents of change themselves. This not only increases the likelihood of successful change initiatives but also fosters a more adaptable and resilient organisational culture.

Conclusion: Embracing a Continuous Journey

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, organisational change is not a destination but a continuous journey. By rethinking traditional change management approaches and embracing more flexible, adaptive, and human-centric methodologies that account for psychology and group dynamics – including the application of Organisational Psychotherapy – organisations can enhance their ability to navigate uncertainty, seize emerging opportunities, and cultivate a culture of continuous learning and improvement.

The path forward may be challenging, but the rewards of successful organisational transformation – increased competitiveness, innovation, and long-term sustainability – make the journey well worth the effort.

Afterword – ABC

While this blog post has focused on rethinking change management through flexible, adaptive and human-centric approaches, it’s important to note that new approaches are emerging predicated on these alternative imperatives. One framework that offers value to large organisations is ABC: Agile for Big Companies.

ABC provides guidelines tailored specifically for enterprise-level change initiatives. It rejects traditional top-down, command and control change management approaches in favour of a more modern, human-centric approach. ABC allows big companies to maintain structure and governance while still injecting more flexibility into their change programs, and increasing the chances of successful change.

At its core, ABC emphasises continuous stakeholder involvement, iterative change, and frequent inspection and adaptation cycles. It invites clarity in roles, artifacts and practices to facilitate organisational change in a disciplined yet nimble manner.

While no panacea, ABC offers a middle ground between rigid, plan-driven methods and purely adaptive approaches. For large, complex organisations undergoing transformations, leveraging the structure of ABC alongside human-centric techniques can increase the odds of successful and sustainable change.

No single approach fits all situations. But by taking an open, tailored approach that accounts for the realities of their size, culture and market dynamics, big companies can chart an effective course through the ever-shifting landscape of organisational change.