1. Change Readiness for Transition
8/9/2012
Change Readiness for Transition
A look at:
your readiness for change,
the congregation’s readiness, and
some basic steps to keep in mind
Talking Points
Suggested reading for reflection: Exodus 13:17-22
The God of creation is constantly working; therefore change is a normal part of life. Life itself is a journey, with many endings and beginnings. Our task is to help the community listen to the Spirit and bring about the change that God is calling forth, leading them along the journey in ways that are respectful of where they are as well. When leadership has a better understanding they are better able to help the congregation, a part of the Body of Christ, through the transition. The first step is to be aware of one’s own response to change.
Leaders will have a greater understanding of their own readiness for change through the Change Readiness Assessment survey. Using personal examples , they will reflect on how they 1) experience change themselves, and 2) have or have not managed a change well. The survey may be administered via paper or a web-based resource such as SurveyMonkey. The SurveyMonkey vehicle allows people to see their own score as well as the average “score” of the group. If done in advance, distribute just the questionnaire and scoring instructions, using the final two pages for a handout at the meeting. Or the survey can be handed out at the meeting, taken there and discussed.
Copyright © 2012 Episcopal Church Foundation. All rights reserved.

2. You and Change – The Survey
8/9/2012
You and Change – The Survey
Reflecting upon your own:
• Resourcefulness
• Adaptability
• Sense of optimism
• Sense of confidence
• Sense of adventure
• Tolerance for ambiguity
• Passion/drive
Talking Points
Change always requires some risk, and congregations (like any living systems) will resist change to some extent even if the change is a longed-for one. As a leader, it helps if you are flexible, optimistic, balance a sense of adventure with a healthy regard for risk assessment, have confidence in your own ability, and can tolerate the necessary ambiguity of the “wilderness” time when the change is not fully integrated into the routine.
Either ask them to look at their scores if they completed the survey in advance or distribute the Change-Readiness Assessment found in the Supplemental Materials. As needed, give participants time to complete and score the survey.
As a leader, take a moment to reflect on your own readiness for change. Take a look at these descriptions.
Distribute the narrative description of the scores (pages 4-5 of the Change -Readiness Assessment).

3. 8/9/2012
Working with the Data
• Is this an accurate picture of you? Why or why not?
•When have you successfully led a change effort? What did you do? What was the outcome?
What challenges do you see in the scores?
Talking Points
Looking at your scores, do you agree or disagree? How accurately does it capture how you view your readiness for change?
When have you successfully led a change effort? How did your change readiness traits feed into that success? What did you do? What was the outcome? Note that the optimal score for all categories falls between 22 and 26 – all these traits are needed in handling change, but one can have too much of a good thing as well as too little!
Facilitate a discussion and some sharing of times when their style worked well for them. This may be done in pairs or in small groups especially if people are reluctant to talk in the larger group – you can then ask the pairs/small groups to share a general sense of what they have learned.
Ask if people are willing to share the areas where they fall outside of the optimal range. Capture these on a flip chart for the whole group, then pose the following question.
What challenges do you see in the scores of the whole group in terms of leading during this transition?

4. Looking at Congregational Readiness
8/9/2012
Looking at Congregational Readiness
Some of the factors which might give you, as leaders, some insights into the congregation’s readiness for change:
• History of dealing with change
• Leadership commitment
• Existence of feedback system
• Number of other changes occurring
Talking Points
If there is time you might take the conversation to a discussion of the congregation’s readiness. It is usually helpful to reflect on the culture of the congregation.
Considering the congregation as a whole, what challenges does change pose? Does it have a history of tolerating or even embracing change? Are elected and informal leaders committed to preparing the congregation to accept new ordained leadership? Is there a well-understood way for people to voice their concerns – and feel as though they have been heard? Is this the only change occurring or is it one of many?
Note: You will probably not have time to facilitate all of this conversation. The purpose is more to have the leadership understand the dynamics that are in place so that, when they encounter them, they will be better prepared to address them.