logosml.gif (908 bytes)

Step 4 : Implementing the Change

When considering how you will implement the change, it is vital to be clear on the purpose of the change team. They are responsible for introducing the change, and not for the change itself (although this is unlikely to be perceived clearly by the wider organisation!). Thus their responsibility includes any issues and decisions involved in the process for introducing the change e.g. the running of a transition period, the communication involved, or the other issues that will arise alongside the change. Any desired amendments to what is introduced (the change itself) should be passed back to the individual or group who are responsible for the change. This is likely to occur during the planning process for implementing the change, and the introduction itself, no matter how well the planning group has tried to anticipate the change.

page5.1.jpg (2941 bytes)

Two simple tools that can help introduce the change are :
- A timetable for change - either published to the wider organisation, or kept as a tracking document by the change team.

- A task list, with a member of the change team nominated as being responsible for ensuring that each task gets done, someone nominated to do the task itself, and a date by which the change needs to be completed. It can be useful to pull these together on one sheet of paper and regularly update this. This can be shared with the whole team so that each team member can see how their tasks fit with the broader picture.

Project Management Skills are also invaluable.  We have a guest article written by John Seal, a Project Management consultant which gives numerous ideas on Christian project management.

Handling Resistance

One of the largest pieces of work to be done in introducing change is to help those who will naturally want to resist the change to come to terms with it. One of the distinctive features of a Christian organisation should be that it handles resistance with a loving approach to members, and a clear separation of the people from the issue.

Brian Pearson, in an excellent Administry "How to" guide on change, wrote "It is both an unachievable aim, and an inappropriate one to eliminate resistance completely. There will always be a residue, even if it remains well concealed. Its presence (in moderation) is a valuable leaven which can be a productive agent in the overall process."

The change team needs to group its actions into two elements. There are some actions which can be handled with the whole organisation or in large groups, by clearly communicating how the change will NOT see people's worst fears realised. This will require the change team to prepare by talking with people sensitively in order to understand what their fears are.

The second group of actions is to identify those individuals who are likely to resist the change and to talk with them. Very often the process of empathetic listening and careful explanation can help to encourage those whose resistance is based on misunderstanding or personal fears. Where there is room for flexibility within the change, it should be accommodated. Indeed, the whole process of handling resistance to the change can make a significant contribution to the change itself, by forcing a critical appraisal of the change, and by allowing an organisation to vigorously debate the issues associated with it.
Pause for Thought : Who is likely to resist the change you would like to introduce.  How can you love them through it?  Helping people come to terms with change is not a quick process, and should start well before the change is introduced, and will need to continue for a while afterwards. It requires a good relationship, although this should not be the motive for such a relationship, else it may prove false.

blueruler.jpg (886 bytes)
This material is copyright to The Teal Trust, (www.teal.org.uk) � 2002, but may be reproduced with permission for non-profit use.