Leading Change? Here’s a step you shouldn’t miss

Right now, you’re probably leading some new initiative or change process. In fact, you’re likely doing this so often these days, it feels like part of your job description, huh?

You’re possibly getting pretty good at it by this stage, but there’s an obvious, but often overlooked, principle that’s worth bearing in mind:

There will be forces that support change to happen – and forces that oppose it.

For change to go well, you need to identify both the driving and resisting forces to that change. Once you’ve done this, then you need to take action on both.

As a leader, you might be gung-ho and able to list a million reasons why people should adopt a new initiative. But that doesn’t mean others will jump on board. 

And, if you don’t acknowledge and address the opposing forces at the beginning of a change process, things are likely to come unstuck later, when it matters.

Here’s a simple tool from a pioneer in the field of social science, Kurt Lewin, to help you identify the forces that could be both supporting and resisting change. It’s called a Force Field Analysis. As opposed to just pushing more power towards the things that can create change, Lewin reckoned that weakening a resisting force is actually the most effective way to make progress.

As the mother of teenagers, I tend to agree.

The Force Field Analysis Model in a nutshell:

As mentioned, any new change in an organisation or team has forces supporting it happening – and forces opposing it. If you’re knee-deep in change currently, or about to kick something new off, grab a piece of paper and try this exercise. Both types of forces can be illustrated in a T bar table, listing ‘supporting’ on one side and ‘resisting’ on the other, like in this diagram. From there, you can see things clearly to make a plan. 

And while you can absolutely do this exercise solo as a leader, it’s ideal to run this session with a few of you. The more diverse the group you gather, the better. Try to get a good representation of the people who will be affected by the change that’s coming or in motion. 

Step 1: Hang a long sheet of paper on the wall or create a template on a web-conference white board showing a T frame.

Step 2: At the top, write the focus of analysis or the proposed change. 

Step 3: Collectively list all the internal and external forces that will drive or support change. Internal forces might be outdated machinery or a need to address poor H&S results. External drivers could be an increasingly volatile environment, cost pressures due to a tough economy or changing demographics for instance. Go for volume – get as many factors listed as you can think of.

Here are some questions as thought starters:

• What business benefit will the change deliver?
• Who supports the change? Who is against it? Why?
• What resources do we have to make the change work?
• What costs and risks are involved?
• What business processes will be affected?

Step 4: When you've identified all the supporting forces that are driving change, add them to the left-hand side of your Force Field Analysis.

Step 5: Next, brainstorm all the forces you can think of which resist or are unfavourable to change. Internal factors might be fear of the unknown, current policies, or organisational structures. Examples of external factors might be current commitments to customers or partner organisations. List all of them on the right-hand side of your Force Field Analysis diagram.

Step 6: Next, rank the forces according to the degree of influence each one has on the plan. Pay special attention to the resisting forces.

Step 7: Discuss for understanding and pick the most important resisting factors to address or mitigate and a shortlist of supporting factors that can be strengthened.

Step 8: Finally, brainstorm strategies for weakening the resistance. Think about which supportive forces you can strengthen and which opposing or resisting forces you can overcome, in order to make the change more successful. For example, you could increase training and communication around a particular fear (like fear of new technology).

Leading change has its share of headaches, but change is nearly always harder for your people than it is for you as the leader. 

If you want to increase the chances of your change being successful, identify what could get in the way at the start and then tackle upfront how to overcome or weaken those obstacles.