Managing Change in the Workplace: A 12‐step Program for Success

Citation

Bangaruswamy, M. (2002), "Managing Change in the Workplace: A 12‐step Program for Success", International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 23 No. 1, pp. 98-100. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijm.2002.23.1.98.1

Managing Change in the Workplace: A 12‐step Program for Success, in the form of a narrative, takes the reader through the process of introducing change in an organization. Introducing change is anything but easy and this book brings out the nuances in an entertaining way.

Santa Claus is the leader who needs to introduce the change. He is in trouble. Things have been working fine for years, in his workshop in the North Pole, but it has started to go haywire. It starts with complaint letters from children. He has difficulty in satisfying his customer base. The setting is Santa’s workshop in the North Pole and the narrative takes the reader through various aspects of introducing change.

The authors highlight the fact that the issue is not change itself but how it is introduced. The people aspect is critical. Introducing change is not just about changes in systems and processes. It is about people believing in change and wanting it to happen. After the initial shock in discovering that his customers are unhappy, Santa realizes that change is required. However, he keeps running into trouble with the way change is introduced. Through this delightful, entertaining narrative, the authors take us through the process by which he finally succeeds in introducing change.

Santa receives help from various quarters. The biggest help comes from a secret admirer who has left messages in a stocking. From time to time, he delves into the stocking and each message is meaningful in the given context. It gives him a direction to deal with the current problem. He believes that Ms Claus has written these notes though she denies it. Ms Claus, whose baking team has coped with change, helps Santa in his quest to implement the change. She helps him decipher some of the messages and she cheers him when he is feeling down.

Santa finds that unless he carries his team of elves with him, it is not easy to implement change. He has to face a strike, he has to deal with issues when the team leaders get into conflict and expect him to resolve it. As his experience with introducing change increases, he realizes that he has to make his team responsible for the results. He has to intervene only when absolutely necessary.

Each chapter has a focus. These are termed the 12 Cs of Christmas. They are customer, challenge, commitment, conceptualization, communication, change, culture, caretaking, conflict, coping, concentration and celebration (and continuation).

On the first C, Santa and the Elves learn that the customer must be their focus. It is important to know their characteristics, their needs, their wants and dreams. On the second C, they learn about challenge. After recognizing the existence of a challenge, one has to take it head on. On the third C, they learn that commitment is essential to convert vision into reality. People need to feel some emotional stake in the vision. The fourth C is conceptualization. This deals with developing a vision and how to get there. The fifth C is about communication. Communication is two‐way and everyone must contribute in this area. It must include the positive and negative. It focuses on what to communicate, to whom to communicate and the fact that communication must move up and down the hierarchy. On the sixth C, Santa and the Elves learn about change. They learn how to anticipate changes and manage them. Nothing is set in concrete. Beliefs, values, plans, vision, techniques, etc. are all subject to change.

The seventh C is about culture. Santa learns that implementing change involves going beyond changing processes, techniques and tools. It involves dealing with culture, which is a double‐edged sword. It means dealing with people’s values, thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and perception. It involves altering these to enable the implementation of change. The eighth C is caretaking. It is about defining roles to facilitate the change process. This builds accountability and ownership. The roles are champions, agents and recipients of the change. The ninth C deals with conflict. Conflict is inevitable but it can provide a catalyst for furthering change. The tenth C is about coping. The discussion is about how to deal with conflict. It also emphasizes the point that training is an important investment for coping with change. The eleventh C is about concentration. It is about not losing focus in the face of various problems. It is about continuity, remembering the priorities and focusing on the vision. The twelfth C is about celebration and continuing. It is essential to take the time out to appreciate the progress made before we continue the journey.

Typical business problems like time‐to‐market and product development cycle have been addressed in the book. Business changes due to the World Wide Web find a subtle mention. Santa has been portrayed as a leader who recognizes and wants to implement change but is uncertain on how to proceed.

Each chapter ends with a checklist. It serves as a summary and also as an aid to the reader who wants to initiate and implement change. The details required for implementing change have been mentioned in a precise manner. The book is practical and realistic. It also has a human touch. The various incidents portray the characters as people who can have off‐days and who are fallible. In one of the scenes, the usually unflappable, cheerful Ms Claus is in a foul mood due to a problem in the bakery and Santa has to comfort her. This sends the message that a good leader does not have to be practically perfect all the time. In another case, the elves are tired as they have chewed more than they can handle. It drives home the message that it is important to set objectives which are realistic. There are times when Santa does not have an answer and the Chief Elf chips in. All this makes the narrative interesting and down‐to‐earth, while reinforcing the message that leadership is shared. It also drives home the point that it is important to consult people who are affected by the change and that ownership is essential in the change process and the smooth running of the organization.

I like the pace of this book. It covers a complex subject in an interesting, lively, entertaining manner and this kept me glued to the book. The use of humor and cartoons that convey subtle messages enhanced the interest. The risk that this style carries is that people may read it as a narrative and forget the learning points that emerge from within the gripping story. However, the authors have used some techniques that may overcome this issue. The checklists at the end of each chapter serve as a reminder for those who get caught in the interesting story of Santa’s journey and miss the message behind the story. Important learning points and material that are “food for thought” have been highlighted within a box. All this gets the attention of the reader. The book is realistic in terms of the struggles that any leader and business face. It humanizes the various characters. It has covered powerful learning points in a precise manner.

The only blemish in the book is a typographical error in Appendix B. The fifth C, communication has been missed out and instead, commitment appears twice.

I will recommend this book to any leader who is going to introduce change or is in the process of introducing change. The learning points from this book can be implemented in different contexts.