Employees are often reluctant to changes within the workplace, especially those with considerable service where they only see one way of doing a job and no variation will ever be good enough to the original method of operation.
However, to be a business that can survive in the challenging environment that we operate in today, changes have to be made to ensure that you operate as efficiently as possible whilst ensuring that any governing rules, regulations and relevant legislation is adhered to.
So how do you ensure that you maintain a positive culture in the workplace during situations where changes need to be implemented? This could be anything from introducing a new policy, restructuring a team resulting in part of the workforce being made redundant, a new manager introducing new processes, or a new case management system.
The challenge is real and there is one key focus here… to keep your employees on side. If you manage to do this with the majority then you have succeeded in your mission.
Here are a few top tips from Clover HR on ways that you can manage change in the workplace effectively:-
- Planning
Making a change for the sake of it is inefficient, costly and can have a huge negative impact on your business including your workforce. A change management plan needs to clearly identify the areas of the business that are to be affected and the impact on customers, suppliers, stakeholders, and employees. The proposed change should also align with business goals. Any challenges should be identified and it is also essential that you are aware of your legal duties, for example redundancy consultations, that may have to take place as part of the change process.
- Influencers
Get commitment from your key influencers before any changes are communicated so they can become advocates for the change. This will go a long way in helping with communications and instilling confidence during the change process.
- Communication and engagement
Define the proposed change from the outset to the impacted population and continue with these communications throughout the process. Consider how frequently updates are required depending on the speed of change and maybe even consider preparing a FAQ document.
When communicating the new change, talk about the current processes/structure etc that is changing and give them the credit that they deserve to avoid those that had worked on those initiatives not feeling like their efforts have been undervalued.
- Feedback is key so listen
There may be a lot of questions and concerns that are raised so it is important that key stakeholders actively listen and address the issues sufficiently either at the time or at a later stage.
There may be feedback that is considered and the proposal adjusted as a result. If this is the case, then communicate this back so that the impacted group can see that their feedback is being taken on board and will show that you trust your workforce.
- Offer training/support and review
Once the change has been implemented, offer training where necessary. Conduct regular “mood checks” to see how things are going and ensure that employees have been given a channel for support if required.
It is also essential that you monitor the change to ensure that it is achieving the initial objective.
Clover HR can support you and your business with managing workplace change, with a view to eliminating as many barriers as possible from the outset and making the process as stress free as possible whilst maintaining legal compliance.
Please contact Clover HR on 0121 516 0299 or email us at info@cloverhr.co.uk if you require any support.
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