In the last lesson, I talked about some of my experience with trying to get a change initiative underway. In this lesson. We're going to explore this further by looking at change from the other side, that is through the eyes of the employee. While executives thrive on change, it's because that's what they're paid to do these days. Meanwhile, employees aboard let's walk through the process of transition from their perspective. for employees, the news of a change initiative will often set off a sequence of emotions.

JOHN Fisher's model of personal change the transition curve is an instructive representation of this process. Bear in mind that the employees do not have the responsibility to manage change. All an organization can do is ask them to do their best change management responsibilities. lies with the managers and the executives. It's up to them to guide and coach their staff through the transition process to enable the change to take root and flourish. The common emotional sequence looks something like this.

Upon hearing the news, the most common first reaction to change is one of anxiety, where the employee questions their own ability to cope. As they learn more of the vision, perhaps they feel happy or excited by the new direction. But as they have an opportunity to think about it and process it some more, they begin internalizing how the change will impact them, and some experience fear as they may feel their job position is threatened. Others may deny that the change will have any impact at all. Remember the story I shared in our last session about the strategic fatigue we were confronted with at the fishing company, which was only shaken once it was made very clear that the company needed to become profitable or face the possibility of closure. At this stage, you can expect People to reach a point of inflection.

Those not up for the challenge may feel disillusioned and leave to find other opportunities. Others may feel guilt or depression. As the change seems to be for the worse and not the better. This may lead them to dig in their heels and resist change defending their ways of the past, giving rise to hostility. However, this can be broken with a sustained approach and a clear vision. Assuming that this is well map, those who remain will come to gradually accept the change and see the merits of its purpose.

This enables the individual to move forward and make a positive contribution to the change initiative and sustain it. So unfortunately, as a leader of change, we still need to be able to anticipate and deal with all of these ranges of emotional reactions that employees experience as we progress through the early stages of the change initiative. Change Management by its nature is a very personal endeavor. The CFO needs to make his or her points in ways that are emotionally engaging to employees. The desired result is to conjure up the facilitating emotions that include faith trust, optimism, urgency, passion, excitement, hope and enthusiasm. We can also undermine the change initiatives if our messaging elicits emotions of anger, pessimism, arrogance, cynicism, panic, exhaustion, insecurity or anxiety.

How you do this is entirely up to you. But instead of just talking about plants and the details of change, instead weave into it an emotional message. You'll need to understand the position of your employees and how your message is being received. You stories metaphors, analogies, and imagery that fit the picture of what change looks like in your mind. State your message in plain simple Language, reinforce the message over and over again, say with enthusiasm, passion to show that you believe wholeheartedly in the direction. And most importantly, be sure to speak with actions as well as words.

In the words of Albert Schweitzer example is not the main thing that influences others. It's the only thing. JOHN Kotter and Dan Cohen in the heart of change to a really nice job articulating change management from the perspective of the employee. it's counterintuitive for a CFO perhaps to think in this way as the CFO is used to providing insightful analysis that enables problem solving thinking that leads to the change, but from the employees perspective, this flow is not nearly as powerful as one of See, feel, then change. Seeing a problem enables the employee to visualize it, make it as concrete and tangible as possible. So real is this problem.

If the employee can touch it, look at it, taste it, and dispel any possibility of disbelief that the problem really exists. Seeing is much different than analyzing the dramatic visualization of the problem allows the employee to feel it. And by that I mean emotionally. Here we need to keep in mind conjuring up emotions that facilitate change, as opposed to those that undermine it. Feeling is much different than thinking. Only then will the employees experience a change of heart, which will transform their behavior enabling change to take root.

In the resource section of this course I have a link to a video called overcoming resistance to change. Isn't it obvious? This is a great video summarizing the employees perspective of change management, which can be summarized by the graphic displayed here. Remember what each of the following represent the particle, the crutches, the mermaids and the crocodiles. When you consider change from the perspective of your employees. The point is to Put yourself in the shoes of the employee, and understand that the positives of undertaking the change outweigh the costs and or risks of pursuing the change, while at the same time ensure that they pressure points that they are currently experiencing and hoping to leave behind are not at the expense of other aspects of their job that they currently enjoy.

Thinking about change from all four perspectives addresses all the employees hopes and concerns directly and helps them cope with the initial anxiety that comes along with change. And you don't need to guess at what is contained in each of these four quadrants. Consult with your employees. It saves you from making any wrong assumptions. You can use workshops or surveys to uncover what is in each of these quadrants. consulting doesn't mean that you're handing over control of the change initiative to your employees.

But it will give you lots of good ideas for dealing with change that you will not been able to come up with on your own otherwise. So let's leave it at this for our lesson on change from the Employees perspective. And until next time, don't stop to get to the top and get to the top. Don't stop.