About the Programme

Edmund Burke, the great Irish statesman once said “change is a most powerful law of nature, and one which we all must obey.” The reality is, there will always be change, and so there will always be a need for an intelligent response rather than fearful resistance.

Particularly in the present climate, the successful management of change is of enormous importance to everyone involved. Underestimating the effects of change on our colleagues and teams can have drastic results. It is vital that managers and team leaders who are responsible for implementing and managing change understand the process fully and are equipped to deal with it.

Change management can destroy an organisation if it is not handled properly. Managing change is far more than ensuring that all the proper processes are in place. In fact, the most important part of change management involves communicating with our people, and ensuring that they are engaged, positive, listened to, supported and on board. We need to have a greater awareness of our colleagues and our teams, we need to make sure that we create an environment of honesty and trust where people feel they can voice their concerns and be heard.

So how do we successfully navigate our people from ‘What was’ to ‘What will be’?

Managing change is about growing a culture of change within our organisations, dissolving resistance and cultivating a positive attitude to this inevitable phenomenon. In a culture of change, ways of doing business are constantly under review with the aim of keeping the best, improving what can be improved and letting go the useless. We need to be able to break down fruitless resistance and encouraging a culture of change and adaptability within our teams.

This programme provides both managers and staff with the understanding and skills that they need in order to provide support, direction and focus to people affected by change. Participants will be equipped to manage people in periods of change in a way that dispels rumour, fosters a willing response, builds trust and engages people in the process.

It is simple. When we resist change we become victims of it, dragged kicking and screaming against our will. When we accept change and respond to it we become leaders of it, guided and inspired by vision.

Who is this programme for?

For management and staff who are responsible for implementing or managing change - e.g. mergers, restructuring, redundancy, de-centralisation, etc. Also for senior managers who like to think ahead and want to start building a culture of change into their organisations today.

Duration

2 Days (9:00 am – 5:00 pm)

Content Outline

• What is the nature of change?
• How to cultivate a reasonable response to change?
• Resistance and its costly and debilitating effects
• The need for objectivity and detachment
• Understanding the part fear plays in periods of change
• What is the real reference point for change?
• Is all change necessarily good?
• Alleviating negativity and dispelling rumour. How?
• Communication that creates trust between all parties
• Three response types to change and their effects
• The need for awareness of the effects of change on people
• How to create a culture of change in your organisation
• How to manage the pace and rate of change
• Fostering a willing and fearless response to change
• Practical directions and exercises for ongoing development

The Benefits

Having completed this programme participants will:

• Appreciate and understand the inevitability of change
• Know the appropriate responses to change
• Have a confident and fearless outlook on the future
• Understand how to support and manage staff affected by change
• Have practical guidelines for creating a culture of change within your organisation or team.