Raise Your Hand If You
Don’t Like Change
By David Saxby
Who doesn’t like change? I ask this question
at the beginning of almost every employee training session I do at
utilities, and I request a show a hands. Often, almost every hand goes up.
Why don’t people like change? Change means they have to take a new approach
to what they are accustomed to doing. They have to leave their comfort zone
and step out into the unknown, the new and the different. For many people,
change also causes fear.
What does this have to do with utility companies? That’s simple. Every
utility is faced with change. So what steps is your utility taking to help
its employees deal with change? Following are some ideas that I think you
will find useful.
Ask staff members what they think. Let’s assume your utility has
reorganized, introduced new billing software, changed how it assigns work
orders or made changes to any of the processes your company has as part of
its daily operations. What do your employees really think about that? Are
things going well?
I recently worked with a utility where management had made a number of
changes to the operations in its departments. Unfortunately, some of the
changes weren’t working as intended. In fact, they were actually costing the
company more money and were having a negative impact on employee morale and
customer service. The problems continued because employees were afraid to
speak up. They felt they might be fired for saying anything about the
changes that was less than positive.
I strongly recommend you do employee surveys to understand what is working
well and where modifications are needed. Allow employees to respond
anonymously so you receive candid feedback. Share the results of the survey
with the entire company, even if comments were not positive. Communicate
with the whole company what actions will be taken as a result of the survey.
Employees will continue to provide feedback when they realize the company is
listening and willing to implement fixes.
Keep the whole company in the loop. Is information shared at your
management sessions immediately and accurately communicated to all
departments within the company? Employees often tell me during training
sessions that they are not kept in the loop. They don’t feel that they know
what is going on in the company.
Do you make use of technology to ensure every employee is in the
communication loop? For example, do you have a company intranet for
dissemination of information? If you do, are the right people responsible
for posting the information? How often is the intranet updated? Can all
employees access the intranet? E-mail can be another communication tool, if
used correctly. The problem is that many employees feel like they are
e-mailed to death. E-mail should be used for internal communication only
when necessary, so create a standard for what is important. That way,
employees will know they should read an e-mail from management immediately.
If big changes are happening at your company, you need to start
communicating now. Don’t wait until you’re sure of all the details before
sharing what you know. Don’t let the rumor mill create its own version of
what’s happening. Reach out to your employees and communicate!
Tell employees why change is happening. When change is on the
horizon, don’t just say what is going to happen. Also explain why the change
is necessary. You will find that your employees are more flexible and
accepting when they understand the reasoning behind the change. No one likes
having something forced on them.
Who does the change impact? It is absolutely critical that management
consult with departments that will be significantly affected by a pending
change. You would think this is a no-brainer, but it isn’t. I heard of a
utility company that made the decision to purchase the customers of another
utility. Management decided the transaction could be completed in 60 days.
It was unfortunate that they hadn’t even talked with billing, IT, customer
service, accounting and outside plant personnel. When these people learned
what was happening and what was expected of them, they were angry that
management had not asked for their input. Management had to delay the
acquisition, once it understood what needed to be done to make it a success.
There was no way the purchase could be completed in the original timeframe.
We are so busy! The speed at which companies operate continually
accelerates. Workloads increase and the time people have to get things done
shrinks. While this is happening, many companies make the mistake of not
taking the time to listen to their most important asset – their employees.
Utilities simply must go out of their way to hear what their employees have
to say, especially when the faster pace is the result of change. Quality
work will fly out the window if employees can’t speak their mind. Use
open-ended questions such as “how will this impact your department?” “what
do you think of this change?” and “how can we improve the process?” The
tough part is not passing judgment when you don’t agree with the feedback.
Just listen and ask questions to clarify the response.
Creating change within any company can be a difficult task and utilities are
no exception. Deep down inside, most people resist change because they don’t
like it and fear it. Every employee has a perception of what will happen as
a result of any change the company is considering. When employees aren’t in
agreement with the change, walls go up and company morale goes south. That’s
why effective communication is so critical. Explain the change and why it is
needed, ask people for their input and keep them in the loop. It also
wouldn’t hurt to bring in outside professionals who can build bridges
between departments and who are skilled at identifying the bumps that can be
removed from the change process.
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David Saxby is president of Measure-X, a Phoenix,
Ariz.-based measurement, training and recognition company that specializes in
customer service and sales skill training for utility companies. He can be
reached at 888-644-5499 or via e-mail at
david@measure-x.com. Visit the Measure-X Web site at
www.measure-x.com.
