Successfully Leading Organizational Change - A Sure-Fire, High-Energy Blended Approach

Are you faced with leading a significant organizational change and need options for successfully making it happen? If so, then take a moment and consider a blended approach that provides the structure and energy to dramatically change your business organization.

At this point in your career, you already know there is no single theoretical solution that addresses organizational change with practical ease. If that were the case, you would not have found your way to this article. Planning for effective organizational change is not as simple as clicking your heels together or jumping on a flying carpet. Planning for effective organizational change is more like Merlin mixing the right ingredients into a carefully concocted blend to create the desired result.

A blend of John Kotter's eight steps for Leading Change combined with the power and influence represented by Daniel Goleman's Emotional Intelligence (EI) will provide a deliberately powerful blend of structure, high energy, and dependable results. Let's look at each independently, then, blend the concepts together into a practical, effective approach for affecting successful organizational change.

The eight steps for leading organizational change put forward by Kotter are:

Create a sense of urgency by examine market and competitive realities. Use a Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis to target opportunities and targeted strategic plans.

Put together a guiding team by assembling a group with the power and influence to lead a change effort encouraging the team to work together and set the behavioral example.

Create Visions and Strategies providing direction to change initiatives combined with tactical strategies building a "road map" and "trip plan" to others in the organization.

Communicate to achieve buy-in using a multi-media approach, which indicated the new behaviors that will be expected and rewarded.

Empower others to act upon the Vision and Strategies by removing obstacles, changing systems and structures that undermine the vision. This is a time to encourage and reward prudent risk taking and unconventional approaches, ideas, activities, and actions.

Produce short-term wins that highlight the desired behaviors and performance, which will lead to the realization of the vision and organizational change.

Build momentum by leveraging the credibility of visible change to reinforce continued change and continue to reward the adoption of new behaviors. Hire and promote those that adopt and exemplify the desired change behaviors.

Nurture a new culture by promoting and rewarding alignment with the changed organization, focusing on the value of the connections between the new behaviors and organizational successes.

Now that you have the benefit of John Kotter's structured eight-step approach, let's look at the concepts behind Daniel Goleman's emotional intelligence. Once you understand the theoretical concepts, you will likely be able to identify someone you know as a master of these skills.

Emotional Intelligence (EI) refers to the ability to perceive and express emotion, assimilate emotion in thought, understand and reason with emotion, and regulate emotion in yourself and others (Mayer &Salovy, 1997). In business settings, we usually see or describe the characteristics and behaviors of EI leaders as inspirational, empathetic, charismatic, motivating, compelling, or enigmatic among others. This personal characteristic and ability is stronger in some business leaders than others. Perhaps now, you are thinking about specific business leaders you know who were stronger or weaker in the use of this leadership trait and ability. As an organizational change leader, EI traits, skills, and abilities combine harmoniously with John Kotter's eight steps for Leading Change. Both are vital to creating and maintaining effective organizational change.

Finally, we're ready to put it all together. Like a well-written Baroque Sonata, we have been through the allegro beginning, the deeper, ominous, theoretical middle, and are ready for the lively finale! As an organizational change leader, your role throughout the eight-step change process is to blend the traits, characteristics, and behaviors associated with EI to provide a sure-fire, high-energy approach to successfully choreographing organizational change. Your investment in the deft use of EI abilities will be the adhesive that binds the structure of the eight-step approach with the emotional intensity and enthusiasm of the EI approach.

Neither structure nor charisma alone will carry the day when it comes to making the high stakes organizational changes required to be innovative, remain competitive, or provide shareholder value. Let you passion, intensity, excitement, and enthusiasm for the changes show. Recognize, inspire, and reward others through your own sincere expressions and feelings. Evangelically deliver the vision and strategies along with a message of empowerment and action. Lead or participate in celebrating the early wins and their direct relationship to the desired change-related behaviors and outcomes. Exuberantly share the credit for a successful transformation with all the affected stakeholders with the joint charge of sharing the responsibility for sustaining and building upon a sure-fire, high-energy successful organizational change.

For additional leadership guidance please visit www.Leadershippinnacle.com

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