The Future of Change Management - Four New Themes

​Last week, ACMP (association of change management professionals) organised its annual conference in Europe. As usual, a great opportunity to meet like-minded experts and exchange experiences and thoughts. It was also a great opportunity to reflect on the future of change management, what's new, where are we heading, etc. Here are four trends and key themes I distilled from the presentations and discussions.

Passion & Purpose
A new 'thing' is heading towards us and our managers explain the journey with financials of the past and lofty EBITA contributions. Is this exciting? Is this relevant?

When we lead people through change, let's do this with passion. We can tap into our values and create a purpose with meaning; an exciting ambition that goes way beyond our normal achievements. This is what drives people! And, instead of numbers, let's get these stories out - make that north star tangible, stretched and real.

Each Business Plan is a Change Plan

And while we are talking about a meaningful purpose, we will also ensure that people are heading down the same path, with the same story and the same goal in mind. This alignment is important to utilise resources efficiently and to reach our ambitions together.

Autonomy
"These are the new processes and here is how we are going to ensure that you are following them!" Command and control as a leadership style is usually not ideal to create commitment and engagement.

We want speed, flexibility and innovation. This means we need to delegate decision making to where things are happening. Autonomy is also supported by creating communities, allowing peers to connect directly in their own language.

Let's get out of the parenting mode

By the way, purpose and autonomy are two of the three key ingredients for intrinsic motivation; in my eyes, a vital platform to drive people forward through the changes within and outside of organisations.

One Tribe at a Time
Typical change intervention target a large audience with classic communication and training activities; even change agents and KPIs are held on a broad level. These generic themes are simply not touching people's heart and don't highlight the relevance to each individual.

Experiences of military activities in the Middle East have shown that we can achieve a lot more with up-close, personal interventions. Take one group and engage them, guide them to the new place, listen to their situation, etc with deep connection. And, make the change real and exciting for them. Then move to the next group; step-by-step conquer the entire organisation.

Continuous Innovation & Improvement
Classic change approaches assume one change intervention at a time, followed by a stabilising phase. Reality today is that we are exposed to multiple interference and never have the luxury to breathe after a change project. Change is the new norm.

This is because the markets and environments in which organisations are embedded are evolving with a faster pace. We need to be ahead of the curve - all the time. So, instead of guiding people through one change project, we need to provide them with structures, capabilities and mindsets that provoke and strengthen continuous innovation and continuous improvements - for themselves and within their teams.

What trends do you see? How can we apply these trends and drive excellence in our organisations? Share your thoughts and experiences!