Reviewing a company’s processes is often misperceived as a one-time change in methodology. Often done with the help of an external consultant, the leaders form a governance or the entire process is created and then forwarded to the department concerned.
It is then that resistance to change arises from your people, which will have a huge impact on the implementation of your processes, your productivity and at the same time your profitability.
What is the success factor that has a major impact and has been forgotten in this situation?
The collective effort!
With the collaboration of your Process Governance Committee, composed by the leaders of your organization, you will develop a list of your existing processes. Once you have established your strategy, prioritized, decided of who is accountable for each of them, will come the time where the leaders will have to review and create the missing processes.
Collective effort is, in my opinion, THE most important success factor of all. As a leader, you will be accountable for your department’s processes, as well as growing your people and motivating them along the way. It is as a team that everything must take place in order to avoid major challenges in managing change. To invite people to join the process, the behaviors to be adopted throughout the process must be determined with and by them. Workshops on the “irritants” and dream processes will provide the most material for your new processes.
From these suggestions, don’t hesitate to bring out elements that can be corrected quickly, commonly called “Quick Win”. Ask them for solutions and correct the situation quickly. These quick wins will allow your people to quickly surf to victories that will motivate them for future processes.
Have 1:1s with some of the employees, form committees to create procedures, checklists and have them review your mappings! You will see who the employees are that are focused on continuous improvement, the unknown leaders. You’ll discover treasures in your more introverted employees who have kept all the information to themselves until now.
Also, appoint technical experts to monitor the implementation of the process so that it is effectively implemented. You can also improve communication through workshops that encourage employees to communicate their suggestions. Imagine the teamwork that will result!
Training will also be provided, as your expertise will be shared with them throughout the creation and implementation of the processes. “Delegate to elevate! “You will also establish a climate favorable to the transfer of knowledge by sharing them during the committees.
Your people are working daily and some for a long time with processes that you have previously designed. You were looking for experts, well, you found them! You are probably not the best candidate to design your processes either because remember that for years you have had an umbrella view of your business while detailed knowledge of the chain is needed. Do workshops with all the employees that could be affected by these processes, they have a much more accurate view of the situation than you do!
In addition to fostering the famous “Kiss theory”, the sense of contribution, intrapreneurship and engagement will reach unexpected heights with these practices.
Once traction is engaged, you will see excitement, a rare commodity when it comes to implementing new processes!
We are no longer the external consultant who simply helps produce the processes, we are the consultant who supports the creation, implementation and especially the management of possible resistance, in addition to improving team spirit and the sense of belonging!
THE SUCCESS OF THE PROCESSES LIES IN THE COLLECTIVE EFFORT!
Photo Geralt
