In every organization where we guide a transition to management, resistance arises. This is human nature and occurs in all organizations. One of our conditions for embarking on a transition is that resistance must be embraced by giving it a lot of attention. As part of the transition, we invite management to send their most stubborn and critical people to participate in the process. Why do we insist on this, you may ask? Our experience is that resistance is a sign of pain points that have been ignored for far too long. Starting where the pain is greatest helps to create and maintain support throughout the entire process.
"No pain, no gain" is a frequently used management term. It is also the motto of the conflict management platform that has a website with exactly that name. This story is about how to deal with such conflicts.
I'll get straight to the point: it's better not to "handle" conflicts, but simply to resolve them. Very often, that's all it takes.
When we start working with an organization, the following types of resistance often arise.
See if you recognize them?
- Nothing ever really changes here!
- There is no money to really solve even the simple problems!
- We do too much stupid work! (workarounds)
- No one is listening to us!
- All sorts of things are being thrown over the fence!
Such statements are a sign of an organization that lacks control over its IT. For some time now, users and support staff alike have probably felt that the actual IT policy has become a case of "trying to bail out a sinking ship." This was never the intention, but everyday practice shows that this is indeed the case.
When we start a project, we always begin with the users, precisely to identify those essential pain points. We interview dozens of users and ask them specifically about these pain points. What is wrong, and what is wrong with the way the organization has dealt with the problem? This provides very clear insights into the gaps in management, but also tells us exactly where we need to start in order to bring about real relief quickly.
The appeasement born out of necessity has often made many people critical. It is even worse when people stop talking about it altogether and resign themselves to the vicious circle of lack of control. How do you ensure that this inevitable resistance is overcome?
TransitieProfs' approach focuses on a new way of working, together with tackling applications and services. Above all, we will work with your organization to make decisions that may have been postponed for too long.
In order to truly embrace resistance, a number of interventions are essential:
Commitment to transition organization
Participants in the program must be assured that this is not just something else they will have to do alongside their regular work. Real space is being made for the transition, and people are being given time to do it.
Ownership with accompanying mandate
To give people the feeling that they are contributing and being listened to, we give support staff a new mandate to solve problems. This enables them to take ownership and demonstrate it. This also improves service and gives the support organization the new energy it needs.
First learn, then duplicate
The organization, and certainly the support department, need time to learn how to operate in a different way. TransitieProfs always starts with a proof of concept, in which all aspects of management are fine-tuned. This involves agreements and procedures, setting up the call system, agreements with suppliers, and governance (who does what). Once everything is in place, the lessons learned are put into practice again for a new application or service.
Communicate regularly about successes achieved
It is essential to communicate continuously about the transition. Be sure to clearly communicate what has been done to address resistance and pain points. How has resistance been dealt with? Let users themselves explain how issues have been addressed. Make it clear from the outset that investments are being made in innovation and that these are paying off!
Author: Martijn Stekelenburg
