Imposed changes in today’s municipal , not-for-profit and educational environments include delivering select services with fewer financial resources, loss of human capital, rapidly changing technologies and increasingly vocal constituents. Although many local governments and educational institutions continue to respond with traditional approaches in this new environment others are seeking new strategies to use in navigating this changing landscape.
In order to successfully serve stakeholders municipalities, not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions are seeking leaders who bring robust approaches to management systems, performance systems, and constructive culture change. Their strategies for increasing sustainability include identifying challenges that impede flexibility, consolidating resources to reduce costs, improving processes and structures to enable more effective and profitable service delivery while building the strengths of their people to adapt to and thrive in a climate of change. These strategies rely on communication, cooperation and collaboration. However the sponsors of these efforts to assess, consolidate, improve, and deliver can encounter many barriers. This article will focus on a methodology for effectively creating and implementing a system wide Change Initiative while avoiding common barriers.
Systems Model Approach
Approaching an organization from a point of view of a whole inter-related system including the technical and social aspects reveals three fundamental areas of focus that help ensure an effectively run an organization. Those areas of focus when applied become systems for management, organizational performance with a focus on the organizational culture. This focus on the organization’s people leads to the creation of a constructive culture where people can contribute their knowledge and skills using behaviors compatible with the desired organizational culture. The graphic below provides a basic explanation of each.
When introducing a new system, changing an existing one, or changing current practices leadership needs to ensure that each of the systems are appropriately addressed to ensure effective organizational adoption or adaptation. If leadership attempts to implement or “push” new practices and technologies they encounter innumerable and sometimes immutable barriers – the greatest coming from the people who make the organizational culture.
In order to minimize these common barriers, the authors recommend a system based model called the A2D4 Self Designing Organizational Approach.* This approach guides the organization through a series of steps using the organization’s personnel, those closest to the process, to design and implement a plan, evaluate outcomes, and adapt to newly arising demands. Below is an overview of the six phases of the A2D4 Self Designing Organizational Approach:
A2D4 Self Designing Organizational Approach Phases
| Name | Definition |
| AGREE on your task |
Identify and understand the relevant desired change with those who have overall responsibility and control within the system and with key stakeholders, those with a major investment in the success of the system. Gain clarity on what is needed or wanted and what the organizational system is willing to do to support the effort. |
| ANALYZE your system |
Analyze the current state of the organization. Determine the baseline of the organization and the breadth of the change process. Identify those things that will assist the process (assisters) and those things that get in the way of progress (barriers). Benchmark the best in class and new technologies and practices. Conduct a gap analysis and create a requirements definition for the change initiative. |
| DESIGN the system |
Create a vision, mission, strategy and transition plan. A vision is the view of the organization’s future. The mission is a statement of business and purpose, the fundamental reason for the system’s existence. The strategy is the approach the unit will employ to get where it wants to go. A project management methodology and transition plan will create a “Road Map” to the stated goals and objectives for all the organization during the change process. |
| DEVELOP your plan and prepare for the activity |
Develop an implementation plan that includes formation of support structures and materials requisite for the change. During this time you can develop a detailed plan that the organization will use to implement the “Road Map” which includes development of tasks and sub-tasks. Develop orientation and training materials needed for the transition at this phase. This training package includes a buy in strategy, and a program for the anticipated knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviors that will be required. |
| DO | After all the planning, readying the organization, and preparing for the rollout, execution of the implementation plan commences. Leadership and membership orientation begins. |
| DIGEST the experience and improve |
Monitoring your processes and systems is critical to ensure performance optimization. Additionally, this will assist in continued process improvement through acquiring new knowledge and skills that will develop the abilities of the system’s practitioners. |
To overcome the common barriers in each of these phases the key employees, sponsors, stakeholders, and end users who are going to be affected by the new process need to be involved in the adoption or adaptation process.
There are key tasks to focus on in each of the stages. Below are the tasks using the socio-technical systems model.
| PHASE | FUNDAMENTAL SYSTEMS | ||
| Performance | People | Management | |
| AGREE on your task |
To ensure effective results, understand clearly the sponsor’s, stakeholders, and end users needs. | Develop knowledge about key sponsor(s), stakeholders, and end users. Identify their key concerns and passions, their personal and professional agendas. Develop knowledge about the “territory”. Build relationships |
Identify and understand relevant desired change with the sponsor. The sponsor(s) and key stakeholders have mental models that reflect the outcome they desire. Determine measures of success. Educate yourself about the organization, its structure and culture. |
| ANALYZE your system |
Study your systems and identify the patterns within the whole organization. Gain knowledge about the existing ways of doing business. Determine requirements of your system |
Considerations include identifying cultural barriers and assisters. | Determine the best area(s) to change. Identify goals and objectives. These should focus on the performance of the system and its people. |
| DESIGN the system |
Determine the difference between the two states (gap analysis). Create a design for how the solution will be implemented in the organization. Develop a transition plan. |
Document where you are, where you want to go, how to get there, what you need to get there, and what success will look like. | Identify where you fit compared to where the organization wants to go. Create an image of what the end result will be. |
| DEVELOP | Develop educational materials. Determine the sequences of implementation steps. Train leaders to assist employees in success. Set up systems of accountability. |
Identify key resources and the anticipated knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviors that will be required. | Identify minimal critical specifications and requirements. Prepare expectations around roles and responsibilities. Create leadership buy in. |
| DO | Implement the plan. Determine the sub-steps. |
Guide, coach, skill train. | Reinforce roles and responsibilities. Ensure leadership support. |
| DIGEST | Develop a vehicle for ongoing monitoring of process to correct the system. | Improve with new knowledge, skills, and abilities. | Process is set up to ensure working systems are going in the same direction. |
This A2D4Methodology with its emphasis on addressing the impacts of change on basic systems can lead to the creation and effective implementation of a Change Initiative. Potential barriers are identified and common barriers encountered with the change initiative’s adoption or adaptation can be minimized. Quantifable results can be measured and fed back into the ongoing review process promoting sustainability throughout the organization.
To further assist in ensuring sustainability it is important to identify the outcomes of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors you want for those in the organization. These also are quantified and built into the ongoing quality improvement process developed in the Digest phase and evaluated at strategic intervals.
Leaders efforts to assess, consolidate, improve and deliver necessitates an approach that allows its people to successfully perform. Sustaining this change requires leaders to bring robust approaches to management systems, performance systems and culture change. The A2D4 model presented here leads a system in a process of sustaining change while simultaneously promoting buy-in from the stakeholders and service delivers.
For further information and help from BDG, please complete the form below.