Attributes of a Change Leader
A recent change study shows that 75% of change initiatives fail, the research was conducted by McKinsey & Co. the key contributors to such scenarios includes low morale, low trust in leadership, low expectations, low productivity, and lack of confidence in the future. Organizations compete for change managers who can successfully introduce and implement change in the firm. Success comes with some psychological lift and other benefits to the organization and the employees. We are going to look at four attributed that make a change leader effective:
Listen to your front-line people: They are persons who link the organization to the customers. Spending time with other managers and third parties is fruitless, the talk will focus only on ideal cases which will never be the case (Dallas, 2015). The knowledge the front-line people have concerning the consumers enable effective correction of an error in the product. Competition is enhanced when the consumer needs are considered.
Know the politics of the organization: Every change has winners and losers, therefore, all are politically driven. Winner pride in the influence they have over the company’s operations. Losers on the other side will try and fight back. A good leader should have this knowledge and device ways to deal with those who will oppose change. They should control their egos and accommodate diverse ideas from its subjects. A good leader is characterized by great ideas with much following.
Know the organizational priorities: The boundaries of the organization need respect. Any change should not undermine the main objectives of the company (Dallas, 2015). A good leader should create and align his tactics to benefit all. He should consider the feelings of all in all the matters concerning the change. Ignoring this section will lead the company to jeopardy.
Ability to persevere: During a transformation process errors are unavoidable. The ability of a transformation leader to deal with this errors and corrects then is the most important attribute. The error comes from the leader himself or from the other employees (Dallas, 2015). A good leader should not blame anyone for the error but take full responsibility on the same. The leader should be ready to face the hardest challenge before a breakthrough. Therefore, any challenge should not discourage them but encourage and strengthen them.
References
Dallas, H. J. (2015, October 5). 4 must-have skills for leaders to manage change. Retrieved from FORTUNE: http://fortune.com/2015/10/22/change-leaders-managers/