February 2010

Navagating Change

 

 At Align, our goal is to help organizations and individuals achieve success. It’s important to you that we are experienced in developing and managing organizations and the performance of the individuals that work in them. When we tell you that we can help you with whatever your organization is going through, we want you to trust that to be true.

So this month we want to give you two perspectives on our own recent monumental changes.

 

Management Perspective


Since Align opened in 2004, its largest client for business services has been Wyoming Student Loan Corporation (WyoLoan). Due to financial and political changes beyond their control, WyoLoan has decided to stop making loans as of March 30, 2010. It is the right thing for them to do. Yet it left Align knowing that since WyoLoan requires less management service and its portfolio of student loans will dwindle, our business model had to change dramatically and quickly in order for our organization to survive.

The Align board made the painful decision to reduce the number of our staff and charged management with creating a reduction in force (RIF) plan and a new structure for the organization - a structure that will maximize our opportunities to find and develop additional clients while utilizing the talented staff we retained following the RIF. Fortunately, we have practiced “what ifs” and “pre-mortems” throughout our five-year history and, with a management team consisting of a broad array of talents and experience, we were able to construct the new business plan and organization chart in the required quick turnaround time of two weeks.

Plans on paper are simple compared to talking to people about the plans. First and foremost, there was genuine heartbreak for everyone at the organization: the management team members announcing the layoffs, those that were laid off and those that remain. Additionally, because we have a staff of highly-motivated, thoughtful employees it was difficult to announce plans that were made without their input. Finally, it is complicated to incorporate eight staff members that functioned as managers into non-management positions. We had no doubt that keeping their talent, intelligence and expertise is imperative to our long-term success. But it’s easier said than done for people to trust themselves and trust their employer when the world has turned 180 degrees in one sudden jerking motion.

What advice do we offer based on our recent experience?

  • Remember the old saying: “People don’t mind change as much as being changed.” Although it was highly efficient, relocating employees’ work spaces while they were out of the office felt, to them, punitive and was demoralizing. If rearrangement of work spaces is necessary, search for ways to enable folks to move themselves, organize the “stages” in which they can move to accommodate the downsizing. 
  • Expect turnover within the remaining employees, with their departure forcing you to find even more ways to save time by streamlining processes. 
  • Use the downsizing opportunity to audit all functions, job descriptions, tasks and equipment. You will be surprised to learn the number of positions that over time had become entrenched, yet were and are indeed, excessive, especially in a much leaner workplace. 
  • Be very direct. The most important thing: Thoroughly prepare for leading and managing the remaining workforce. Make sure everyone knows what is expected of them, what new job duties are required and give them assignments to work on immediately. 
  • Management must steel itself for second-guessing from the “survivors.” They have been impacted emotionally. Be prepared for how to handle passive-aggressive behavior.
  • Leadership should not indulge itself with siege mentality. You have to be visible and engaged in the workplace for the sake of rewriting expectations, processes, and assignments.


Staff perspective


Eleven of my co-workers were laid off and the job duties for all the rest of us changed - dramatically. I was demoted from the Business Systems Support manager to a business development consultant. It felt like everything that I had built up was gone. Everything that was familiar to me was gone. All the direct access I had to information was gone. How would I ever survive? How would the company survive, let alone thrive?!

Since that time, I’ve had hundreds of conversations with others about the changes and thousands of discussions in my head. Of course we all knew the company needed to change - but why did it have to affect each of us so personally? How would we ever get through this? What could possibly make it okay? What I have observed is that the road to healing is every bit as personal as the event itself - each staff member needs to feel personally recognized, valued, and reassured of his or her worth. Following are a few of the activities I have seen as essential to making this happen:

  • Communicate - over and over and over again. Staff needs to know the company’s new vision and they need clear direction. They need to know and understand all over again who the company is, where it’s going, and what they’re expected to do in order to get there.
  • Be available. During times of change, staff needs access to their management team more than ever. They feel insecure and have more questions than usual. 
  • Whenever and wherever possible, collaborate. The staff you kept should consist of your best critical thinkers and most loyal employees. Use their skills, knowledge and experience to build new processes. You’ll get the best product and at the same time you will build buy-in and loyalty for the new order.
  • Listen, listen, listen. Listen more than you talk. Find out what’s on people’s minds, acknowledge concerns, hear what staff thinks isn’t working and what their ideas are for fixing it.
  • Build your new team. Get to know each team member individually, let team members get to know you, and encourage members to get to know each other. With former friends and support systems removed, individuals need to re-establish their safe places. Building the team gives you a head-start on getting that synergy re-energized as well. 
  • Recognize people’s efforts - individually as well as in groups. This rebuilds self-confidence and loyalty, and strengthens commitment.
    I hope you and your staff never have to go through a layoff situation like the one we just experienced. If you do, you might expect some of the same reactions we saw here - anger, despair, heartbreak, and confusion. But with the right approach, much of that can be overcome, and your end result can be the stronger, leaner organization you need to succeed today.

 

It’s been just six weeks since our new business plan was unveiled. We have agreed that we will stick with the plan for at least 90 days; and that any changes to it will include input from more people in the organization.

As for what we will do next…stay tuned! In about six months, we’ll update you on Align’s overhaul - lessons learned, additional changes made and progress recognized.

 

Nonprofit Leadership Institute

 

Align’s Nonprofit Leadership Institute features a curriculum designed to build on your knowledge and take you to the next level of leadership. Our Institute is designed to build leadership and management skills for current and future generations of nonprofit leaders.

Each class session will cover one of the following topics:

  • Foundations of Leadership
  • Board Recruitment and Management
  • Effective Strategic Planning
  • Outcomes Management and Evaluation
  • Human Resources Management for Small Organizations
  • Reporting and Managing Finances
  • Fundraising

Join us for the session of “Foundations of Leadership” in Cheyenne on February 12, 2010 and in Casper on February 26, 2010.

You can earn Align’s Nonprofit Management Certificate after completing the Institute or take the classes individually, according to your needs.

Sign up now at
alignwslc.com or by calling 307-772-9122

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