6. Plan for and Create Short Term Wins: Plan for high visi-
bility improvements; Make those improvements; Recognize
and reward those involved with the improvements. Creating
short-term wins is different from hoping for short-term wins.
The latter is passive, the former active. Look for ways to obtain
clear performance improvements, establish goals in the plan-
ning system, achieve the objectives and reward the people
involved with recognition, promotions, or other incentives.
Long-term major change takes time and managers may com-
plain about being forced to produce short-term wins. Such
pressure can be a useful element in a change effort because
once it becomes clear that change will take a long time, ur-
gency levels drop, this is a precursor to failure. Commitments
to produce short-term wins help keep the urgency level up
and force detailed analytical thinking that can clarify or revise
the vision.
7. Consolidate Improvements and Continue Making Chang-
es: Use the increased or new credibility to influence further
change in systems, structures and policies that do not fit the
vision; Hire, promote and develop those who can implement
the vision; Keep refreshing the process with new projects,
themes and change agents.
8. Institutionalize New Approaches: Find and articulate the
connection between the new behaviors and success; Devel-
op the means to ensure leadership development and seam-
less succession. Change sticks when it becomes “the way we
do things around here”. Two important factors in institution-
alizing change in culture are: demonstrate how the new ap-
proaches, behaviors and attitudes improve performance; be
watchful of the organization’s next generation of leadership
and staff and ensure all succession candidates live the vision.
A regular tough decision for a board of directors or CEO is: Do
they promote a more qualified candidate or a less seasoned
candidate who better personifies the transformation vision.
Common Errors:
1.Not establishing a great enough sense of urgency.
a. It is easy to underestimate how hard it is to drive people
out of their comfort zones.
b. Leadership can lack patience. “Lets get on with it!”
c. Some leaders may become paralyzed by the downside
possibilities e.g. senior employees being defensive, drop
in morale, event will spin out of control, short term busi-
ness results will be jeopardized, sinking stock prices and
that they will be blamed for creating a crisis.
2. Phase 1 usually goes nowhere until enough real leaders are
placed into the correct positions to facilitate change. Man-
agement’s mandate is to minimize risk and keep the current
system running and operating. Change, by definition, re-
quires creating a new system, which in turn always demands
leadership.
3. Failing efforts often lack a clear vision. Visions will doubt-
less change after the first 3 or 5, even 12 months once the co-
alition has had a chance to refine the plan. This is where some
get anxious that the process is not moving fast enough and
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