Monthly Archives : January 2018

Did you start the new year with initiatives and goals that aren’t working out just one month later?

There’s a good chance that the concept of change was the stumbling block that led to your workplace’s sluggish start. And though you may have been excited about new initiatives, you weren’t quite sure how to alter your individual work priorities to meet these goals.

Both of these scenarios present examples in which expert change management could have made a tremendous difference in how everyone responded to your company’s new benchmarks. On paper, everything may have looked perfect. But paper often strays far from reality; goals usually require much more finesse and attention than we think they do.

And think about this – even workplace design changes can create some difficulty. Something as simple as a transition from an open office to cubicles may be the impetus behind a wave of disorientation or discouragement.

Properly managing that change requires a lot more than a good idea and an action plan. Multiple factors are involved: communication, employee panels, accounting and more. Orchestrating all these various moving parts is what separates good change management from bad.

To get some insight into how you can build an effective change strategy, we read through some material from industry experts Work Design and Robert Half.

“By design, change management programs focus on the aspects of a transition that typically encounter the most resistance:  a move across town, a shift from a mostly-closed to mostly-open work environment, a departure from assigned seating,” they wrote in a Nov. 2017 article. “Each project is different, but employees undergoing change often share similar apprehensions. “

Don’t Try and Please Everyone…

If there’s one thing that organizations across the country have learned at one time or another, it’s that there’s always a naysayer who loves to spend his time badmouthing the company’s new direction.

As Work Design points out, adding panel extenders to your office may cause that chronic complainer to say the panels make things too quiet and not quite enough. It’s true; here’s an excerpt from Work Design’s own experience with various companies:

“What stumps us is when the same folks who complain about noise lament both its presence and its absence. ‘When people talk, it’s too loud! When people work, it’s too quiet! The sound masking is too loud AND it doesn’t mask my colleague yelling about his gout,’” they wrote.

Trying to fashion a change plan that caters to every individual’s needs will most likely be a watered-down initiative with too many details and nuances.

By all means, take your team’s input and insight into account when you’re conducting panels on proposed changes. But, don’t make the error of turning a solid goal or change into an appeasement tool.

But Don’t Ignore Everyone

If you take the last suggestion to the extreme, you’ll leave out most employee input and lose sight of what’s needed in the workplace.

While it may seem like holding panels and asking for input could bog down the process, the information you glean will prove invaluable, staffing firm Robert Half says.

This process is even more crucial when the changes you’re making are negative ones like layoffs.

“Upper management can become insular and secretive about changes, especially those related to layoffs or restructuring. Springing major changes on employees at the last minute can lead to anger, resentment, strikes and even violence.”

While we know that involving employees isn’t a cure-all, it does give you a significant advantage as you seek to implement change.

“Involve employees as soon as goals are set. Ask their opinions and get their input on how the business runs today and what they believe should be changed,” Robert Half wrote.

One suggestion for providing employees a voice is to set up an anonymous online platform through which they can voice their concerns and support. Robert Half noted that consulting from McKinsey & Company used a confidential online portal to create needed in-house changes.

Whether your New Year’s Eve was an event to remember or a night to forget, you’re here in the New Year and your employees are heading into the workplace with resolutions in the back of their minds.

Some of those resolutions may be work-related and some may not. Either way, the new year is an excellent time to rethink how you’re motivating your workplace.

You might have found great success in what you’re already doing and 2018 is a chance to maintain the momentum. However, if there’s been a noticeable lack of chutzpah in the office, it might be time to evaluate if your techniques are actually working.

If you think it’s time for a change, then we have some excellent insight into effective motivation techniques.

Break the Big Goals Down into Small Ones

The new year is a time to cast a new vision for revenue goals. We often put those goals in terms of an entire year or quarter. But experts say breaking your goals down into smaller increments of time can boost your team’s belief in achieving the goal.

In an article on Inc.com, e-commerce expert Nicolas Gremion told the site that simple steps are the best way to reaching that complex goal you’ve been wanting to hit.

“You want lofty ambitions, but set up smaller goals along the way to keep people in it. Rather than make a billion this year, focus on getting 100 new customers this week-something that will get you to that billion,” Gremion said. “Then reward the team for achieving the goal with an afternoon off, a party, etc. They will see that your goals are realistic and everyone benefits from working hard.”

Focus on Knowing Your Employees

One way to sap an employee’s motivation is to place her in a position she doesn’t want that requires skills that she isn’t excited about.

What results is someone who gets burned out quickly, feels purposeless and produces results a lot slower than she would if her job put her in the sweet spot between skill and challenge.

Heather McGough, one of the team members at Lean Startup Company, told Inc. you should see noticeable results as you fine tune your understanding of each person in your workplace.

She suggests a holistic approach to knowing your employees: Respect their ideas and their boundaries.

“Ask what they do and don’t like working on, share the big picture company goals, and respond to their questions. Discern their goals and then invest in their professional growth,” McGough said.

She went on to note that you can spur motivation by doing quick check-ins with your team in which you “listen to their ideas”.

Her last bit of advice? Avoid a negative competition environment.

“Don’t ever pit their goals/timelines against each other,” she said.

Big Goals Start with Individual Goals

If an organization’s big goal is like the destination of a year-long road trip, then it stands to reason that reaching said goal can’t happen unless all the vital components of your car’s engine are working as they should be.

This is why it’s good to check all your fluid levels and your tires before departing. Even the smallest inefficiencies can have big impacts when spread out over one year.

How does this look in your workplace? Forbes contributor Lisa Quast says it’s a matter of creating individual development plans. Work with each member of your team to understand how they want to perform this year and what they want to do to get there.

“Provide them with coaching and mentoring and help them increase their skills and their sense of competence and accomplishment,” Quast wrote.

Your Cubicles Will Play a Role in Motivation and Morale

Our research of noise, distractions and privacy indicates that humans – whether old-school or Millennial – function best when their minds have a safe space to think and be creative. Our panel extenders provide your workplace with a cost-effective, easy-to-install way to upgrade your workplace with minimal – if any – work interruption.

Contact us today to learn more about how our panel extenders work and what a typical installation looks like in terms of complexity, time and cost.