10 points I always keep in mind when I have to implement change Peter Kesch, MBA Peter Kesch, MBA1

Who am I? Name:Peter Kesch Age:50 Profession:Management Consultant Experience:20 years consulting / management experience - merger / acquisitions - change management - interim management - IT strategy / system implementations - startups Peter Kesch, MBA2

What this presentation is about This presentation is about my 10 favorite points which I always keep in mind when implementing change. Every time I lean back and think about the right change strategy I review these points. See it as a loose collection which helps me get the job done Peter Kesch, MBA3

What this presentation is NOT about This presentation is not a “how-to” for change management. There are lots of articles about change management and how to apply changes. If you are looking for a guideline…. Use Google Peter Kesch, MBA4

1. Don’t be afraid of change Peter Kesch, MBA5 Image courtesy of imagerymajestic / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Why are people afraid of change? “about 20% of the people are against any change” Robert F. Kennedy Loss of their job Loss of control Fear of the unknown future Bad communication Peter Kesch, MBA6

Does it make sense to be afraid? Main reasons for implementing change: Develop new opportunities Things go wrong Ask yourself the following questions: Do you not want to support exploring new opportunities? Do you not want to help improving things? Peter Kesch, MBA7

Don’t be afraid of change! The world around us is changing faster and faster. This is a fact, support the change! Manage the change, otherwise the change will manage you! Keep in mind that people are afraid of changes (even if they do not say so) – Develop a good communication strategy – Make transparent why things have to be changed Peter Kesch, MBA8

2. Make sure you have a well defined target Peter Kesch, MBA9 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Understand the big picture first! Does the company has a well defined strategy? – Mission – Vision… Do the employees know about the strategy? Opportunistic vs. long term changes How will the change support the strategy? Peter Kesch, MBA10

Make sure a proper strategy is defined AND communicated! Don’t overdo it, keep it stupid and simple Make sure the strategy is communicated – Repeat communicating the strategy Communicate how changes will support the strategy Provide feedback how successful initiatives have supported the strategy Don’t be afraid to communicate failures Peter Kesch, MBA11

3. Understand why things go wrong Peter Kesch, MBA12 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Why? Before you decide to change things understand why it is not running as expected Have a look at the motivation of individuals; are they in line with the strategy? Analyze the inputs and outputs of the problematic area Optimization and change is a company thing, not a department thing Peter Kesch, MBA13

At the end of the day (almost) everything is about people! Are the right people in the right place? Do they have the right knowledge to manage things? – If yes, why went things wrong? Do NOT replace people too early in a change process! – Preserve the know-how Peter Kesch, MBA14

Guidance and education is in most cases the better choice! Invest in your company know-how Education is expensive and takes time… – “what if we educate them and they leave?” – “what if we don’t …. and they stay?” Peter Kesch, MBA15

Have a look at the environment people work in Is the environment they are working in well defined? – Do they have the right targets – Is the motivation system well defined – Do they have enough time to work on the problematic areas? Spend enough time to analyze the root of the cause! Peter Kesch, MBA16

4. Which initiatives will lead to the target? Peter Kesch, MBA17 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Never decide too early in a change process People are heavily involved in daily operation Change initiatives are quite often a result of daily operational issues and not aligned with the “big picture” Proposed changes are by nature driven by individual targets Peter Kesch, MBA18

Carefully select the initiatives which will lead to the target Always keep the big picture in mind Develop alternatives and rate them Think about the expected risks of each initiative Quite often small changes show more positive impact than big, high risk improvements Involve the people in the decision making process (decision making or communication) Peter Kesch, MBA19

Define all aspects of a change initiative KAIZEN 7M: PeopleMensch MachineMaschine MaterialMaterial MethodologyMethode EnvironmentMilieu ManagementManagement MeasurementMessbarkeit Peter Kesch, MBA20

5. When is the right time to start implementing changes? Peter Kesch, MBA21 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Timing matters It is never too late to implement change Carefully select the right time – Keep in mind utilization peaks and workload – Minimize disruption – Change needs time, make sure people have enough time Peter Kesch, MBA22

6. How are you measuring today and how do you want to measure tomorrow Peter Kesch, MBA23 Image courtesy of adamr / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Key Performance Indicators Financial figures are the ultimate measurement! But … managing a company according financial figures only is like driving your car by looking in the rear view mirror only! Peter Kesch, MBA24

Define operational KPI’s Some KPI’s are obvious, use them Others are not obvious, work with assumptions – Assume the impact of a change for KPI’s – Measure regularly Break down the high level KPI’s to individual KPI’s Peter Kesch, MBA25

Define operational KPI’s A Balanced Scorecard can be helpful to structure your KPI’s. Use the BSC perspectives: – Financial perspective – Customer perspective – Internal business processes – Learning and growth Use your KPI’s, make them part of the daily management system! Peter Kesch, MBA26

7. Make people part of the change process Peter Kesch, MBA27 Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Do not underestimate this point! People are the key to success They will only support the change if they know – Why a change is implemented – What the expected results are – What impact the change will bring for them Peter Kesch, MBA28

As a manager responsible for implementing change you are a sales guy Define a clear communication plan Describe things in a way they can be understood by everyone Explain why Describe the expected results Sell the change Make people buy it Peter Kesch, MBA29

Work with people throughout the complete change process Communication is NOT a one time activity Repeat the communication Report progress Celebrate success (also the small ones) Discuss openly about failure Think about a special change incentive system Peter Kesch, MBA30

8. Don’t be afraid to change people Peter Kesch, MBA31 Image courtesy of ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

FUD Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt If you have people in your change team who do not support the change they will create FUD They might not deliberately stand in the way of change but they could disrupt the team Peter Kesch, MBA32

Change people if necessary Always think about what is most important: – Keeping someone in your team or – Implementing the change successfully Replacing people does not necessarily mean loosing them – Think about alternative, more appropriate position where you can use the knowledge – Managing knowledge always also means managing people Peter Kesch, MBA33

9. Execute and implement change Peter Kesch, MBA34 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Implement the change Daily operation vs. change management – First change team meeting: full management attention – Second change team meeting: only part of management – Third change team meeting: no management participation – ….. – 8 th change team meeting = management shows up, brings in new ideas and proposes changes This will NOT work! Peter Kesch, MBA35

Change management is a management task! Either management gets involved directly or delegates responsibility with full power of execution Always show continuity Walk the talk otherwise you will disappoint your people If you cant combine change management with your daily operation get external help Peter Kesch, MBA36

Use your KPI’s Measure the success of the change Review assumptions and check if the impact of a change shows the expected results Adapt the change – Don’t be afraid to correct assumptions Peter Kesch, MBA37

10. Changes implemented… what now? Peter Kesch, MBA38 Image courtesy of stockimages / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Time to lean back and rest? Yes and no! Implementing change can be quite stressful – Give your people time to recover But: show continuity – Make change management part of your company culture – Allow your people to bring in new ideas – Utilize the know-how of your people and make them part of the change culture Peter Kesch, MBA39

Peter Kesch, MBA40

Thank you for your attention! Peter Kesch Mobil: Peter Kesch, MBA41