These tips and insights come from over a decade of working on change projects at Arizona State University and with universities around the world. I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to walk alongside and learn from leaders and teams as they navigated complex and often challenging transformation projects.
A special thank you to Liz Lerman for her valuable feedback and contributions to this material.
In the beginning...
Be clear about the higher purpose
....not just the goals for the project.
Start with WHY.
People want to be part of something significant. What will be different if you are successful? What impact might you have?
Remind people about the higher purpose, frequently.
Identify the core design team
This is usually not the formal leadership team.
Identify faculty, staff and students (where possible) who think differently, who can champion change, and who are willing to take chances.
Look beyond your ‘go-to’ people!
Design the process with intention
A well designed process provides structure, confidence and a roadmap for participants.
Resist the urge to move quickly without a thoughtful process.
Identify and involve process experts.
They don’t have to be subject matter experts.
The process can offer a space to practice new behaviors & skills
Note. Be patient with those who don’t understand or respect a process-driven approach to change. Many change their minds during and after the experience.
The process itself can create conditions for change along with solutions for change.
• How ideas are developed, refined and negotiated
• How people work together
• How decisions are made
• How conflict is managed
• How ideas are communicated to the external community
Define what success looks like
Start with a plan...if only for the first few steps.
People need to know where they are going and how to start the process to get on board.
Continue to talk about what success looks like as the plan evolves.
Use an outside-in approach
Note. How to do this? What are you reading that informs your thinking? Who are people you can engage who think differently from you? What can you learn from advances and innovations in other fields?
Look broadly and look outside for understanding and inspiration.
What are trends and external best practices? What are innovators doing? Who can inform from outside the institution?
Resist the urge to adopt ideas from popular or powerful internal voices alone.
Identify what you know and don’t know
Note. Sometimes you won’t know what you don’t know until you are well into the process. That’s ok. Start with what you know.
What data is available that informs the needs, gaps and ideal solutions?
How can it be shared with stakeholders and participants to support the process?
What do you not have data and information for? How will you address that?
As the process gets underway...
Be prepared for discomfort
Note. Challenge your team to name a behavior that makes them uncomfortable as the process gets underway. Ask for ideas to deal with it.
Prepare to let go of what makes you and your team feel safe and comfortable.
Know as much as you can about
• yourself
• others
• where you are now and
• where you want to be
Be ok with not always knowing the thing to do
Note. Its ok to lose some sleep over this. But get help quickly so your lack of sleep doesn’t get in the way!
Find confidence in knowing you can learn what you need to know.
What is challenging about the situation?
Are there parallels from previous experiences that can be useful?
Who can you consult?
Teams need agency, hope, & responsibility
Not just at the beginning of the effort but on an ongoing basis.
Leaders need to create the necessary conditions...
• Agency – the capacity to act independently and make choices
• Hope – the expectation of desired outcomes
• Responsibility – the ability to act and be held accountable
Done right, inclusion is a catalyst for powerful change
Note. You are not likely to get radically new ideas from those who created the system or those who have an incentive to maintain it.
Define inclusion for the process. Then be serious about it.
• Who needs to be at the table?
• Whose perspectives and insights will shape new ideas?
• Which individuals/ groups are
• typically neglected? How will you bring them in?
• If you invite atypical participants to the process, how will you ensure that their voices are really heard?
• How will you allow yourself and the process to be influenced by those you have included?
Transparency is a crucial yet underutilized tool
The uncertainties and anxiety typical of change efforts often lead to doubts, speculation, misinformation and confusion.
Transparency goes a long way towards getting buy-in.
Be consistent throughout the process.
Communicate, communicate, communicate
With structure and clarity. Use multiple modalities, throughout the project.
Get inputs regularly on what people are hearing, what they know, what they need.
When you think you are doing enough, get creative and do more.
Engage a wide range of people
Note. Always be on the look out for early adopters and early champions of change.
Identify people who really care. Support their efforts.
AND..
Engage people who are sitting on the fence or who believe the change is not their concern.
Get people to think about things they don’t believe are their responsibility. Invite their participation in ways they are willing to contribute.
Support individuals who are willing to take risks
Note. These people could become the leaders you need now and in the future. Use the process as training.
Allow them to lead visibly. Coach them.
Offer a safety net so they are not afraid to make mistakes.
Cynicism and skepticism are best addressed by getting people to act
Note. Identify and keep track of tasks that people find “least offensive” to do.
Get people to ‘do’.
...With thoughtfulness, patience and perspective.
Ask people to share their knowledge and ideas; get them to teach; to volunteer for tasks.
Professional identity matters
Note. Be prepared to have a lot of conversations (1-1s, small and large groups), sometimes contentious, always more than you think necessary.
....to individuals and groups.
Recognize and respect people’s identities. It is not singular.
Understanding and leveraging identity is key to interdisciplinary & inter-functional collaboration.
Acknowledge the sacrifice to identity if it is needed for change.
Hold space for grieving if needed.
Prototype and test new ideas
Test as many ideas as possible when advancing new efforts (if the context allows).
Learn quickly.
Reframe the problem or solution, if necessary.
Test refined ideas.
Hold space for check-ins and difficult conversations
Note. Step away from the hard parts frequently to gain perspective.
Things will not work exactly as planned. That’s part of any change process.
Dedicate time to check in with the team on what is working, what isn’t, and to make decisions on how to move forward.
Not creating this time and space can be very costly in the end.
Manage fear of failure
If you take risks, failure is a possibility.
Small failures are inevitable on route to big successes.
Anticipate personnel and organizational barriers to change. Consider them as you design the process.
Create spaces for people to talk about their fears.
Learn, capture, and share so failure, if it happens, can be meaningful.
Celebrate early wins
Look for and celebrate early wins, even if they are small.
Recognize those who have contributed and demonstrated the behaviors that are critical to long-term success.
Leverage early success to build momentum to move forward.
Tune in to how people are experiencing change
Note. The loudest voices are not the true measure of how everyone is feeling.
Engage both the head and the heart. Yours, as well as others’ in the process.
Acknowledge difficulties, provide support but don’t let the process get stuck.
Push ideas and drive the process forward.
A sense of community and belonging can go a long way as people navigate change
Enthusiastically support efforts to create and strengthen the community during the process and beyond.
Habits created during the change process can endure well into the future.
Other things to consider...
Successful and sustaining change requires system thinking
Be aware of the relationship between components of the system. Work on multiple levels at the same time.
• People
• Processes
• Policies
• Culture
• Structure
• Incentives
An innovation mindset is a powerful force for any institution
People sitting anywhere in the institution can develop new solutions, and given the space and support, can figure out how to execute.
Unleashing this capacity is key to sustaining success at any institution.
Be intentional about culture (1)
Note. Recruit partners and allies early in the process.
It means...
Being patient.
And the willingness to change course as needed and move forward, sometimes just one step at a time.
Be intentional about culture (2)
Note. This will take tremendous time and energy. It can seem never ending and exhausting. Keep at it. Culture change takes time.
Invest in an environment where people can share concerns, ask hard questions and disagree on ideas and direction.
Build rituals and traditions that reinforce what is most valuable and important to preserve for the long term.
Be intentional about culture (3)
Recruit & develop as many people as possible to commit to changes within their spheres of influence.
Invest in developing leaders who nurture the culture you need, wherever they sit within the institution.
Required: agility, humility, optimism & courage
Note. Leading real change is always a “character building” experience!
Embrace these qualities throughout the process, finding ways to integrate them into your journey.
Prioritize your well-being and engage in practices that help you stay centered.
Don’t forget to enjoy the process
It is a privilege to lead real change in any institution. It is an important responsibility too.
If your WHY is true and big enough, what you are trying to achieve should be exciting.
Channel the vision of the desired future, for yourself and others.
Find joy in the process of bringing people together to do something of significance.
