Not too long ago I wrote about the joy of being a change agent. I firmly believe that it’s the community manager’s role to push the boundaries. Some friends pushed back and suggested that it wasn’t advisable. But I think that the attitude of wanting to get things done is part of the leadership aspect.
I have one of these pins. They gave them out at a library conference. I kept mine on a bulletin board in my office. It suited me!
Community means relationships and that’s as much with coworkers as it is with customers. Over the years I have learned some easy ways to initiate change.
1. If you can make a difference – do it! People will appreciate your initiative.
2. Don’t just complain about an issue, offer solution(s). You’ll be amazed at how quickly things will be resolved if you do some homework and offer the solution. (As a bonus your ideas will either be used or kick off the discussion).
3. Plant seeds of your ideas and grow them. If you have an idea, do some research and present it. Sometimes the adoption of an idea depends on the amount of change & how well you can sell your idea. After working with two library boards I realized quickly that it sometimes took many months to convince my stakeholders of the importance of the idea. This was a valuable time that allowed me to consider it from many angles and create a more complete project. It was always sweet to see it come to life.
How do you effect change at your organization? I’d love to hear your tips & tricks.
Think an important factor to consider is the level of change you want to implement.
Most change managers fail because they can’t stimulate other people to go with the changes they want to implement.
People are creatures of habit so any change (good or bad) is frightening. The trick is to make changes while nobody notices them, because convincing with arguments will be much harder… especially when the level of change is high.
It should be, like you wrote, well argumented, transparant and as unnoticeable as possible :)
Just keep beating down the door and providing an avalanche of examples, case studies and hard data to back you up. Also just start the process…you’ll be surprised at how many people on the back of your initiative.
What an excellent blog. Confirmation of things that I have been implementing and also facing right now.
Yes, making the change without it being noticed works very well.
I can’t remember off the top of my head how I initiate change. I think it is something I just do naturally.
What I have found is that people who are driven to succeed welcome the change, ideas and progress.
People who hate change or like things as they are, seriously get upset with me and often put hurdles in my path and try to make it very difficult, even to the point of slander and doing everything they can to not make it happen.
Here are some things I’ve learned in driving change at my company. (We’re trying to encourage the online sharing of best practices among employees, franchisees and suppliers, using discussions and wikis.)
– Understand the root issues of gaining acceptance and adoption of your idea. For my project, it involves addressing the individual behavioral change and company culture, far more than the technology tool.
– Adoption of a new idea can take time, and you should ask for feedback from your audience to shape/refine the idea. E.g. Our current solution evolved from internal blogs launched in 2005. We still have blogging capabilities, but we no longer use the word blog since “discussions” have a more favorable perception.
– Clearly outline the benefits. Address the idea from a “What’s in it for me?” perspective.
– Identify people who will champion the idea. One person or one team can evangelize only so far in a large multinational company. By finding others who are passionate about the idea, you’ll reach more people. In addition, people may be more receptive to ideas from colleagues they know from existing relationships.
– Act as a coach. Partner with teams to help them implement the idea, and provide regular follow-up and encouragement.
– Celebrate small wins. As your idea gains momentum, share examples of its success to help people and teams better understand it.
– Understand that your idea may not win over everyone. Focus your efforts on the “champions” and the teams who are willing to listen. As the idea gains momentum over time, the ‘laggards’ either adopt it or risk falling behind.
– Show your enthusiasm!
Connie:
Another great post. As a Community Manager and communication/marketing strategist, one of my biggest challenges is balancing efforts to super-serve the community with the need to collaborate and work with colleagues. I definitely agree with your view on pushing boundaries. I’m willing to do that, even if it ruffles some feathers. But there’s a way to push boundaries of innovation without plucking those feathers as well.