A blast from the past: how change has changed since 2016
I’m still unsure why, but 2016 seems to be back in trend so here’s some throwback stats for y’all…
Waaaaay back in 2016, the average person faced just two planned changes a year, and nearly three-quarters (74%) were willing to get behind them.
Now people are dealing with up to 10 planned changes a year. And support for change has almost halved, sitting at 43%, with the biggest reasons for resisting including trust in leaders, fear of the unknown and not having enough information.
Time for a slightly uncomfortable opinion.
Resisting change isn’t a natural side effect of change. It’s not something we should shrug off and accept. It’s an outcome of how change is managed and the experience we create around it.
And comms has, is and will be one of the biggest levers of effective change.
For those of you in internal comms, fighting the good fight. Keep demanding the seat at the table, keep asking how this change fits together, keep being the guardian preventing people being overloaded.
And if you’re leading change. Don’t let all your hard work be undone by a last-minute demand for comms.
Involve comms early
Allow them to shape the ‘why’ behind the message and how it fits as part of the broader strategy and goals. You’ll thank them for it later.
Keep the updates coming
We’ve already seen that fear of the unknown is a big blocker so, even when there’s nothing new to say, just let people know. Silence does more harm.
Be visible
Nobody trusts a faceless inbox. Authenticity builds trust so be accessible and open to two-way comms.
Speak like a real person
Synergies, metamorphosise, pivot. Nobody talks like that – it just puts more distance between you and the audience – so don’t let them creep into your messaging.
Acknowledge the s@*%
Not everything goes right and that’s life. But people buy in to truth and honesty, not spin.
I think we all know change isn’t slowing down any time soon. Let’s hope the pace of change doesn’t continue otherwise we’ll be looking at 50+ changes in 2036 (😅😬😫) but we can all make it easier to navigate.
From anyone in comms, what’s the one thing you want change leaders to hear?
Sources: Harvard Business Review
