Ten Tips on Talking to staff about organisational change, by Rachel Green

1. Don’t bully them into optimism
Telling staff that they have to “move on” that “they must get on board”, and so on is not conducive to helping people cope with change. Most people do not go from hearing shock news straight to optimism and enthusiasm, not even when the news is good.

2. Acknowledge different feelings
Know for yourself the different emotions that are normal for people when being confronted with change. Acknowledge these feelings. Accept these feelings. Verbalise the feelings, e.g. “Some of you may feel you’ve heard it all before, some of you may feel anxious, others may be encouraged”. When you own the feelings of your staff you are more likely to help them adjust to the changes. If you’re not aware of the emotions that may surface, you might like to check out the book by Barger N.J. & Kirby L.K. The Challenge of Change in Organisations, Daines-Black Publishing.

3. Avoid labelling staff resistant
Once you’ve categorised your staff as “resistant to change” you may make it harder for them and yourself. Instead go beyond the label of resistance and find out what are the underlying emotions. Then help your people acknowledge, release and move through these feelings.

4. Listen to your staff
Listen to complaints about the change, hear out feelings associated with the change and genuinely be willing to understand their perspectives. Simply knowing that someone has heard them, even if they’re not agreed with, can help people adapt to change and move through the negative reactions more quickly.

5. Don’t put negative thoughts into people’s minds
If you start telling people negative things that won’t happen, when they hadn’t considered the possiblity anyway, you may be adding fuel to the fire. For example, I heard a senior manager tell his staff that, “If you ever have concerns, it's your responsibility to bring it to us, ask until you get a satisfactory answer. You won’t be penalised for that”. Oh, thought the staff - who hadn’t thought they would be penalised for anything - "what could we be penalised for?"

6. Avoid the cliches and rhetoric
Please talk “everyday” language and not bureaucratic speak. Phrases such as “Grow our business”, “The bottom line”, “In the best interests of all concerned” are overdone. They are so well worn that people switch off to what you’re saying.

7. Don’t join a positive and a negative with a “but” or “however”
The words “but”, “however” and “although” can all negate what has been said in the preceeding sentence. If you say something like, “The company is completely committed to maintaining our stores in country areas but there will be some sites where ...”, it is hard to believe that the company is totally committed to maintaining country stores.

8. Credit your staff with brains!
Your staff aren’t stupid and can see through glib statements that you may make. This is especially so if they have been through numerous changes already. If this is their fourth restructure, their third name change, the fifth amalgamation, the fourth budget cut - why would you not acknowledge this. Expect their cynicism and don’t try to cover over what is happening with what appear to be false promises.

9. Deliver bad news kindly
If people are having their jobs restructured, if there is downsizing, if they are going to have to justify their jobs, introduce the topic kindly. People's faith in you may be smashed if you don't. Once faith, trust and loyalty are gone do not expect to get productive, postive work from your employees. I know of people who have been told brutally by mangement, "Your jobs are gone. You can prepare a 15 minute presentation to say why they should be kept if you want." This is appalling management. Expect an angry unco-operative workforce.

10. Understand emotions
Of all the dimensions on the Genos Emotional Intelligence instruments, the third one, the ability to understand the emotions of others, was found to be the most important dimension for successful leaders. How good are you at understanding and validating the emotions of your staff? You need to be good at it, especially during times of change. If you don't yet have the skills, get them. Managing people is no longer just about technical skills. It is no longer just about facts and figures. Managing people successfully means managing emotions successfully.

Further information

We offer customised workshops for private groups on change.

Do you know how emotionally intelligent you are? The more successful managers are emotionally intelligent. Have your EI assessed now. Contact us or visit the coaching section on our website.

There are other tips on management skills, change and related topics in the TIPS section on the website, e.g. Tips and stories on coping with change from Rachel's Reflections readers.

Past issues of Rachel’s Reflections include ones on change, e.g.
Newsletter number 98: Reactions to change and what to do about them.
Newsletter number 109: Boosting people - giving feedback that motivates.

Not sure about you're emotional intelligence? We have a full day seminar for you to advance your skills in this area so people management becomes much easier. Enrol now.

May you manage other people well.
Best wishes,
Rachel Green
Award-winning communication specialist and emotional intelligence coach.
PO Box 344, Kelmscott, Western Australia 6991.
Phone: +61 8 9390 1188. Fax +61 8 9390 1199
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