Since 2020, change has been coming at us hard and fast. From navigating the move from the office to remote work and (for some) back again to rushing to master skills in emerging AI technology: the past six years have seen more plot twists than the Mission Impossible franchise. And just like Tom Cruise’s career, workplace change shows no signs of stopping.
The accelerated pace of change in the workplace has serious implications for how we communicate change. The frameworks we used in the past to shepherd audiences along a linear journey to the Promised Land of Acceptance feel quaint in that they imply that change has a beginning and an end. This approach ignores the reality we find ourselves in today, which is colored by waves of successive change that collide and overlap. Ignoring this reality drives change fatigue at work, which in turn can lead to lower performance, higher burnout, and reduced wellbeing.
This begs the question: How can leaders and communications experts create clarity, drive meaning, and inspire action when the change never stops?
The answer is found in an 5 Step approach to change communication that works across the Internal Communications and HR functions, helping leaders leverage self-awareness and employees to cultivate greater levels of resiliency. By leveraging the capabilities found in these two parts of the organization, we create a new paradigm for communicating change in the workplace that respects the reality we work in today.
When things change, it’s human to desire certainty. Indeed, ambiguity is one of the most uncomfortable parts of change. As a leader, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking it’s your role to provide certainty. Yet for changes that happen outside your circle of control you can‘t. What you can - and should - provide, though, is clarity. This is why the first step in effective change management communication is to gather the facts.
Here are the questions to start with:
- What specifically is changing?
- Who is impacted and how?
- What will happen and when?
- Why is the change necessary and what will the positive long-term impact be?
- What is still unclear and is there an ETA for answers?
Consider, too, whether any of the above might also change as the situation progresses. This will help you manage expectations with your team and preserve their trust as you lead through change.
Just because you have clarity over a change doesn’t mean you’re emotionally at peace with it. As a leader, you are allowed to have an emotional response to the change. But it’s not your team’s job to validate that response - and proceeding in that direction will likely have a negative impact on your team.
Taking a beat to gain awareness of your own emotional response to the change will help you be more present for your team and more effective as a leader during organizational change communication.
Here’s what this looks like:
- What do you personally think about the change?
- Which emotions are those thoughts triggering?
- What do you personally need (e.g to feel heard, for someone to validate your own anger/sadness) and who might you turn to?
Our thoughts and emotions guide our actions which in turn creates our reality. The goal here is to be intentional about the thoughts and feelings you’re bringing to the situation so that you can create the best result for the team and support the employee experience during change.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking a leadership title means you have to have it all figured out. Yet in times of crisis and change, you probably don’t have all the answers. And acting as if you do is the quickest way to erode trust at a time when you need it most. That’s because folks can feel the difference between honesty and performance.
Knowing the distinction between clarity vs certainty in leadership is paramount. The role of a leader during times of crisis and change is to provide clarity, which shows folks where the unknowns are. Here is what you want to cover:
- Context: What’s happening around us? What led us here?
- Direction: What are we aiming for, even if the path isn’t final?
- Honesty: What’s known, what’s unknown, and what’s still unfolding.
Providing this information does a couple things:
Intellectually we understand that crisis means uncertainty - even if we wish it weren’t so. Being honest about what is unclear from the get-go manages expectations and supports trust during change management communication.
While no one welcomes a crisis, clarity gives folks the chance to make decisions that could help mitigate the crisis for the company and for them personally.
This is a big one. When you deliver certainty, you signal that you have everything figured out. Providing clarity invites others to step up in new ways and have an impact - essentially inviting others to play a role in leading through change.
For the best employee experience, consult with your HR Business Partner on the company-wide key messages and align with other leads in your department to ensure the messaging is consistent.
Creating clarity is a strong foundation. It’s time to build the house.
After the initial communication of the change, it’s important to realize that change is a process that comes with an emotional journey. As leaders and communications experts, we usually learn about the change earliest in the organization. By the time communication to the org starts, leaders are already further along in the emotional journey of change. The folks we‘re communicating to, though, are just starting their journey; it’s important that we don’t rush them along.
It’s easier to guide people through change if they’ve developed internal resilience and personal stability. The programs and products in your L&D and corporate benefits portfolios organizations can be great tools for building resilience during change. For example:
- Counseling sessions to develop higher levels of self-awareness
- Financial wellbeing courses that help your team budget and save.
- Coaching to help team members identify their long-term goals and create a plan for acquiring the skills needed to achieve them (whether that’s in your organization or not)
- Opportunities to build their networks - both internal and external.
These kinds of programs help employees create the emotional, financial, and professional stability that makes large changes feel less existential, supporting resilience during ongoing change communication.
As leaders and communications experts, our role is to help others connect the dots here. Change isn’t going away; cultivating resilience and stability is a form of self-care, ensuring we‘re better equipped to meet change when it comes. The more we support and encourage individuals to lean into this, the better we‘re able to respond to change on the organizational level and seize the opportunities each one brings.
