Managing Change

Every IT manager has a common mandate. We're agents of change. It's our 
responsibility to inflict change on those around us. How we go about doing so will 
determine our success.

Technology changes lives. This is a self evident truth. Yet we know very little about 
the Change process. Why do people resist change? Why don't our clients welcome 
us with open arms when we install new systems or procedures, sales commission 
schemes or policies?

We KNOW these systems will change their lives for the better. Even the client 
knows the system will make them more productive and yet they still resist change. 
Why? The reasons we resist are many, and Virginia Satir's Change Process Model 
can help us understand the process. Understanding a process is the first step 
towards mastering it.

She divides the Change process into six stages; Status Quo, Foreign Element, 
Denial/rejection, Chaos, Integration and The New Status Quo.

'Status Quo' is the easiest to understand. It represents the current situation before 
any change occurs. People in this stage of the process are living their lives as they 
did yesterday. They know that when they do 'x' they will get 'y'. In short, they know 
what to expect.

The 'Foreign Element' begins the next stage. Anything that changes the 'Status Quo' 
is a 'Foreign Element'. Naturally, some have more impact than others. Learning to 
use a word processor does not compare to changing careers or getting married. The 
immediate response to a 'Foreign Element' is 'Denial/Rejection'. Remember our 
politicians refusing to accept the current recession? We want to believe things will 
remain the same.

The next phase is the reason we dislike Change, 'Chaos'. The 'Foreign Element' has 
destroyed the 'Status Quo', nothing will ever be the same again. Yesterday, when we 
did 'x', we got 'y'. We knew how to do our job and were comfortable in that 
knowledge.

Today the rules have changed. When we do 'x' we don't know what to expect. This 
is the crux of change. We do not like uncertainty. We do not like feeling 
incompetent.

'Integration' begins when we start to understand what the 'Foreign Element' means 
to us. We learn new rules and see opportunities for improvement. We regain our 
sense of competence.

Finally we reach the 'New Status Quo'. We have learnt how to live with the new 
system or situation and have regained all of our competence. We are comfortable 
again... We wait for the next 'Foreign Element'.

We can apply this model and understanding to the simple task of giving a typist a 
Word Processor. The 'Status Quo' is a competent typist who is very good at what he 
does. He types at 100 words per minute and is proud of his hard earned skills.

The 'Foreign Element' is us arriving with a word processor. 'Don't worry!' we say, 
'You'll LOVE this computer once you learn how to use it!'

The 'Denial/rejection' is obvious. He does not want the new equipment. Until we 
make it clear that he has no choice in the matter. 'No Choice' is the most commonly 
used change management technique... It is also the least effective.

The 'Chaos' is easy to see. He loses files and productivity zooms towards near zero. 
He finds the situation confusing and frustrating. He thinks of quitting. He was a 
model employee until we dumped this machine on him. Pushing change in this 
manner has the effect of forcing the best employees to go elsewhere.

'Integration' arrives when he begins to learn how to use the new tool. Form letters 
and mail merge capabilities raise his effective typing speed from 100 to 1000 words 
per minute. The potential of the 'Foreign Element' is beginning to seep in.

Finally, he has reached a 'New Status Quo' and is quite content until you arrive with 
the next release.

We are constantly inflicting 'Foreign Elements' on people. If we understand the 
Change process we can make change easier for our clients. By doing so we will be 
making it easier for us to bring about any change.

One common form of resistance is Politics. Politics is nothing more than adverse 
reactions to change. If we want to use new technology with minimal Chaos (you 
cannot totally avoid it, but you can reduce the impact) then we must become masters 
of the Change process.

© 1994, Peter de Jager
www.technobility.com