Critical success factors for managing change

Multinational companies have adopted new structures through reengineering efforts designed to enhance operating efficiencies and to align their employee populations to help achieve a new 'customer-centric' focus. At the same time, increased competition across industry sectors has fueled an intense period of mergers and acquisitions, as corporations battle for share-of-voice, share-of-market and share-of-mind among consumers.

Employees increasingly are asking questions: Where is our industry going? Where is our company headed? What does it mean for me? And, what is expected of me?

While corporations can't predict the future, they can be ready for whatever it brings by using employee communications as a strategic tool to inform, educate, motivate and align their workers to meet new operating realities.

Multinational companies successfully navigating through a turbulent change process all share a common trait: they've learned how to turn the death of predictability into a strategic advantage by adopting 'critical success factors' for communicating with their employees.

These critical success factors include the following:

1. Focus on long-term results over short-term gains. Whether change is manifested as a reengineering effort, a merger of distinct cultures or a consolidation of existing units, companies must position and communicate change as an ongoing process before it begins.

2. Hold senior management accountable. Invest senior-management's time and energy in communicating the goals and progress of the change program. Demonstrate a true managerial commitment to change by using executives in the field to communicate key messages and themes, to listen to employees, and to incorporate their views, perceptions, issues and concerns into ongoing strategies.

3. Evaluate current communications channels and create new channels as appropriate. Leading companies have established cross-functional focus groups of employees and adopted informal survey mechanisms to study the effectiveness of existing channels and vehicles. They measure such attributes as timeliness of communication, reach and effectiveness of channels and vehicles, and the consistent manner in which messages are delivered.

And, they work to make certain that all external messages - what's reported through the news media, to financial analysts, to regulatory bodies - are consistent with messages being delivered to employees --a concept known as 'One voice, One look.'

4. Gather feedback. Build informal and formal feedback channels to elicit employee views and perceptions of the change effort. Assign responsibility for personal, timely responses to employee concerns. Demonstrate that employee input is valid.

5. Be sensitive to corporate culture/diversity issues. Companies must show that they understand their workforce by tailoring communications to meet the needs and expectations of key employee segments. 'One size' does not fit all.

6. Establish milestones. Seek opportunities to plan strategically and communicate positive results. Let people know that plans previously communicated are now taking root. Show employees the road ahead, and tell them when milestones are reached. And, create momentum throughout the organization by sharing success stories that will reinforce new behaviors at critical junctures.

7. Consider all audiences. Understand that front-line employees are a key conduit to customers, competitors and other important constituencies - particularly such employee groups as sales and marketing personnel, customer service representatives and technicians who comprise the first line of direct, day-to-day contact with the public. Are they appropriately armed with current, factual information? Are they communicating key messages in credible ways? Are they serving as effective ambassadors for the company?

8. Visit 'best practices' companies and benchmark. Develop a list of those organizations known for best practices - operational as well as in the area of employee communications - and visit them. Integrate their key learnings and practices into your planning and strategies for change. Modify winning approaches to suit your cultural needs.

9. Develop mechanisms to track performance, measure results. All employee communications should be undertaken for one purpose: to improve performance. Participation goals - how many employees receive and read a company newsletter or view a video - are secondary to the ultimate goal of educating, aligning and motivating employees to help support a change initiative. Clear business objectives must be used to establish employee communications objectives.

10. Employees must know change is here to stay. Inform employees that change has no end point. Foster their understanding of the company's strategic direction, the competitive environment and customer needs driving the change process. Involve employees through critical 'listening' techniques during planning and execution periods to ensure that the company develops credible messages that its workforce can own.

11. Have a plan for employee communications - and use it. Identify and appoint a cross-functional and, where appropriate, geographically diverse work team to help communicators plan, build and support the employee communications outreach. The plan must be specific, practical and measurable.

12. Gauge and understand employee issues. Companies in change must first understand their employees before they seek to communicate the new corporate agenda. Implement research as a 'listening tool' to better understand employees' deeply held beliefs relative to the company's vision, the change efforts and specific cultural issues. Use these key findings to develop communications strategies and key messages.

13. Reinforce key messages. During a change program, key messages must reinforce the business strategy. Management - particularly front-line managers who must be empowered as 'privileged carriers of information' - must be trained and conditioned to deliver these messages. Secondary channels and vehicles should be used to reinforce critical face-to-face communications on a continuing basis.

14. Remember the role of operating decisions in shaping employee communications. Time and again, great companies have learned that no employee communications effort can compensate for poor operating or questionable human resources policies and practices that hurt morale.

Before establishing a new communications effort, carefully evaluate operating policies to determine their effect on employee attitudes and behaviors. While many existing or planned practices may be key to a change effort, you may find that others can be modified or eliminated - resulting in greater acceptance of a change effort and a more positive, motivated workforce.