Understanding the Patter: When Talent Abandons Ship

The bow of the wooden beast rose sharply heavenward, and the vessel’s angular stern disappeared beneath the salty swells.  From the groaning gunwales of the triple-masted beauty, the patter of tiny feet on the overly swabbed decks was audible.  Yes, the rats were abandoning ship, opting uncertainty on the open seas to certain death onboard the mortally wounded lady of the sea, her keel splintered by an uncharted reef.

So, too, the patter of panicked feet (albeit landlubber, shoed feet) symbolizes corporate giants in times of economic challenge and impending layoffs.  The risk of losing employees is a real one, well documented in research and known to all executives.  It’s reality, and its trajectory can spell success or doom for many an organization.

But unlike the nautical idiom, the corporate patter of abandoning employees is not the patter of rats.  Quite the opposite.  It’s most likely the best and the brightest, those who have foreseen the demise of the organization long before its public acknowledgement by senior executives.  They’ve sensed the impending battle, and refusing to play the pawn to frightened and ever self-protecting leaders, they’ve found other opportunities.

In the past several years, I’ve heard numerous leaders extoll the virtue of a tight economy.  “We’re lucky there are no jobs out there,” they’ve self-assuredly proclaimed.  “Only fools would look elsewhere in this economy.”

And for many workers, particularly those who have languished in positions for years, without much effort or attention to building their careers beyond their own cubicle wall, this may indeed be true.  For those with ambition, drive, and talent, however, they’d be fools not to look elsewhere.  Foolishness would lie in sensing the sinking of one’s ship and NOT abandoning ship.

Just as the Viking captain needed oarsmen to propel the ship forward, so too do corporations need acquiescent laborers.  But oarsmen themselves would be no good to a ship’s captain.  Beyond that, leaders are needed to rally the troops, to inspire and motivate, and to set the vision and direction of the ship.  If the smartest amongst the crew jump overboard, the oarsmen plod ahead until they hit solid ground, regardless of where that may be.

The patter of feet you hear….it’s the best and brightest you have.  If all you have left are oarsmen, what will you do then?

Communicating Change: Start with the “What”

Fear.  It’s the number one change emotion, according to most leading change management gurus.  In fact, experts like John Kotter have based a plenitude of books and countless articles on this premise.  And anyone who’s been through major change (personally or professionally) can attest to its truth.  It’s paralyzing.  It evokes nasty reactions in many of us.  And few of us can either predict or fully explain the emotion at the time it hits.

Fear of change is borne out of many causes:

• What will the “new world” look like?
• What does the change mean to me personally?
• Do I have the right skill set to survive the change?
• Do I understand the need for change? Is there an obvious burning platform?
• How much will I have to sacrifice to make this change succeed?

The problem isn’t so much that fear exists.  Rather, the real issue, and the reason change fails in more than 70% of cases, is how fear is handled.  It’s the reaction to fear, not the existence of it that spells either success or failure in times of change.

Leaders are typically responsible for maneuvering their followers through the unknown swampy area of change.  Yet, too often, it is their desire to soft-sell the change and protect the “fragile” emotions of employees where they do more damage than good.  They tap dance around the issues.  They soothe rather than explain.  Then they harden and bristle at the mere approach of resistance.  In the end, relationships are ruined.  Trust is broken.  The status quo sinks any chance of successful change.  And it typically all comes down to communication….not whether or not changes are communicated, but how those messages are crafted and delivered.

Start with the “What”

When you have a tough message to deliver, never start off by “setting the stage” or telling the “why.”  As a leader, first thing out of your mouth should be a short and sweet explanation of what the change will be.  Be explicit.  Don’t pussyfoot around the issue.  Just say it.

One of the most natural tendency of any leader is to be that of protector.  When it comes to communicating change, however, respect your employees enough to give it to them straight.  Nine times out of ten, the announcement isn’t unexpected.  Employees see far more than many leaders would like to believe.  Not only do they expect your message, but a surprising number of individuals already understand the “why.”

Save the “Why”

Only after you’ve announced what the change will be, including the impacts to groups and individuals in the organization, should you move on to explaining the “why.”  In fact, allowing the reasons for the changes to come out of a question and answer period can be one of the most effective communication (and trust building) methods.  Whatever you do, however, do NOT rely on leader talking points to explain major changes.

Talking Points = Corporate Spin

Corporate Spin = Distrust

Distrust = Disengagement

Disengagement = Failed Change Efforts

When communicating change, leaders must be able to talk from the hip.  If you have leaders unable to provide answers without scripts, address this enormous leadership issue before embarking on your change effort.

But that’s a topic for another article altogether……

Don’t Fear Change: Plan for It

Holiday presents are wrapped.  Decorations have adorned the building for months, it seems.  The snow is lightly falling out the leaded coffee house window.  It’s quite a magical and idyllic, almost surreal working environment.  It’s always been one of my favorite times of the year, not just because of the gifts, food, and family gatherings.  It’s the anticipation of things to come, of promises and goals and a renewal of passion toward the things that matter most.

This year, the holidays take on even greater significance for me personally and professionally.  A new chapter is about to begin.  2012 holds much promise of success, passion, and accomplishment.  It’s the exciting side of change.

Change is painful.

Change sucks.

I resist change.

The stereotypical responses to change in our lives go on and on.  Most people inherently prefer a predictable routine, a comfort zone within which they know their responsibilities and their skill sets.  They don’t seek out stretch assignments.  They opt for the “safe route,” avoiding risks for fear of the “what if.”

It’s not just an individual trait, however.  More and more, the stalwarts of American business similarly resist the necessity to change.  More over, the leadership of many corporations beats back at the winds of change out of fear.

What if I don’t have a place in the new world?

What if my people get upset about the change?

What if I/we fail?

Well, guess what?  Fear is the #1 change emotion. Everyone’s afraid of failing, of having to adapt, of moving outside their comfort zone.  But the reality is, your risk of failing and the likelihood of your comfort zone (as an individual or an organization) becoming irrelevant (or worse yet, antiquated) is typically heightened with greater resistance to change.

The solution, therefore, is a deliberate and steady embrace of continuous change.  Individuals’ and organizations’ ability to both accept and seek out change while it is still mere adaptation, instead of full re-tooling.

1. Purposefully contemplate – Making changes doesn’t usually come automatically.  And if it does, the process of change itself can produce erratic and unintended consequences.  So, take time to actively ponder the direction you want and need to move, both personally and professionally.  Reflect on what’s worked and where you’ve encountered difficulties.  Do this before the calendar changes on the setting year.
2. Incorporate passion – It’s one thing to understand trends in your industry (or life in general).  It’s another to have to devote time and energy on developing skills for which you have any inherent interest.  A better strategy is to understand current and future needs, and to figure out where our interests and passions overlap.  Sometimes the intersection is limited, and other times, there is quite a lot of common ground.  Regardless, make sure you have a real desire and passion for incorporating changes.
3. Set action steps – Without first a goal and then a well-defined path for reaching it, we are doomed to failure.  Once you have clarified your vision forward, plot a course, complete with individual steps and sub-goals for accomplishing it.
4. Actively engage – Within the action planning process, make sure to determine deadlines for reaching your goals. But also set check-steps to ensure you are actively moving along the path.  Often the hardest part of accomplishing goals is getting started.  Don’t let yourself be sabotaged by an inability to commence action.
5. Plan for reevaluation – Both after you accomplish your goal, and periodically during the journey toward it, make sure you have planned explicit opportunities to check your progress.  But be open to making adaptations along the way.  The future is difficult to predict with exactness.  Goals can be tweaked without losing sight of the benefits or end results.

As a young adult, I was blessed to have the opportunity to spend more than a decade serving in the military.  Within that environment, change was even more of a constant than anywhere else I have worked or lived.  Missions changed.  Tours of duty constantly started and ended.  Personnel rotated to new bases and commands with dizzying frequency.  But in the end, the pace of change proved the best training ground one could imagine for understanding and embracing continuous personal and professional adaptation.  As technology progresses, other industries and society in general have similarly needed to incorporate change into their ways of doing things.

Embrace change.  Plan for it.  And make it part of your core practices.  It’s sink or swim time.  Don’t let yourself disappear beneath the waves of change!