Change is one inevitable thing in the world and it makes no exceptions to the business world. To face the changes and to surviving in the changing business world, the concept of change management has been developed. When business organizations changing their policies, procedures, and technologies, they have the responsibility of guiding and supporting them to adapt to the changes. There are many approaches for change management in business organizations, but the change management approach that has been built using Kotter’s 8 step change model is considered as one of the most accepted change management approaches.
01. Create a sense of urgency
The change management process becomes the most important thing if the entire organization is requesting for a change. If you are willing to see an effective change within the organization, you have to create a need. This helps to change and grow within the entire organization. Once the need for the change has become an urgency in the organizational employees, you should take an initiative to guide the organization towards the change.
02. Build a team
Once you take the initiative on driving the organization towards the change, you have to create a team of a skilled and ambitious set of employees who can face the change, survive the change and bring the best of the organizational outcome throughout the changing process. Responsibilities should be delegated among the team members and they should be encouraged and motivated to achieve their best throughout the changing process.
03. Create a strategic vision and initiative plan
Once the most skilled team is set, you should create a vision and should plan the strategic goals you are planning to achieve. These vision and initiatives give a clear path to the changing process eliminating unnecessary activities that may distract the whole changing process. Vision and strategic plans will work as a guiding light and the entire changing plan will be based on reaching the strategic vision and initiative.
04. Communicate the vision
Communication is the most important tool for the development of any organization. When implementing a new process, the vision and the strategic plan should be communicated to employees of all levels. That will make sure the understanding of the employees about the change and they will be empowered to contribute towards goal attainment. Each employees’ place in achieving the vision should be discussed with them and motivate them to provide their best and also to be innovative for a better outcome.
05. Remove obstacles
Once the vision and the plan to achieve the vision are decided, the organization should check about the barriers that stop the organization from achieving the desired outcome. Those barriers should be instantly eliminated without harming the organizations. These barriers can be human or non-human. The organization should work tactically to remove the barriers and clear its path to achieving the expected change.
06. Celebrate quick wins
Quick wins can often happen in the changing process. Once the team moves a step forward, admire it and celebrate the quick win. This will work as a major motivation factor for employees and they will get the feeling of participating in a winning process. This helps employees to engage more because a bunch of short term targets can be achieved easier than one long term target.
07. assemble the change
Celebrating quick wins is not enough as the organization should initiate the change process. At every step, the improvement of the changing procedure should be measured. The errors should be rectified without carrying it to the next step. Continuous progress in the changing process should be implemented through innovation.
08. Integrate the change
Once the change management process is implemented, the organization should make sure the change can stick with the organization’s culture. The change should blend with the organization culture and the employees should be adapted to the change and should be comfortable with the new ways of doing things.
Using these 8 steps of the change management process, any organization can change their ways and adopt new policies, procedures, and technologies with the aim of organizational growth.