Change – have you ever wondered why it doesn’t happen?

19th May 2011

Do you just talk a good game, or do you actually make things happen?
Often when I start working with business owners they profess to wanting to change all sorts of things, but when it comes down to it, how much do they really want it? Is it really just words? They will tell me that they have tried to change things before, but in the end nothing meaningful is ever achieved. The temptation is for them to blame this on the ineptitude, inability or unwillingness of their team to take the steps and actions that that they have been told to take. But shouldn’t they be looking a little closer to home?

Change can start with small seemingly unimportant steps, but it is not necessarily the action itself, but how it is implemented, and the determination behind it to make it permanent and meaningful. For example I have a client who was constantly tripping over things in the workshop, because the production team was untidy and careless. They had been told countless times to pick things up, put them in the bin, or hang them up, but to little avail. However, you only needed to walk into office to see why this was not working. There were heaps of paper everywhere, people on top of each other, no obvious filing system, rubbish on the floor etc etc. So what message was that sending out? It’s OK for the boss to live in a mess, but not for the rest of us? Apart from the fact mess makes for inefficiency, mistakes, and reduced productivity (always looking for things, and therefore wasting time) it sends all the wrong signals when trying to make changes.

I’m pleased to report that this particular client “got it” and the office is now organised, and the production line for the most part tidier and far more productive. So now the team can actually see that the boss means what he says, that it applies to all, and we are starting to see changes for the better that are going to stick.

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