Is your organisation due to go through a change and you are concerned about your employees feeling unsettled or leaving?
Whether it be an office move, a structural change, or a senior manager moving on, the existing employees should be at the forefront of the plan in place.
Change can be stressful, especially in the workplace. In order to perform at our best in anything, we need to feel safe in what we are doing. If we don’t feel safe or we feel threatened the natural reaction is fight or flight. Neither of which are good for mental wellbeing… or for business.
There are steps that you can take in order to mitigate against stress.
Ensure the change is as smooth as possible
There is no avoiding the change that is about to happen, but you can try to avoid mishaps along the way. Your employees may not want to move office, or to have a new manager under the new structure. These are questions and potential blockers that must be considered.
The first and most vital step to be taken is the creation of a detailed project plan from start to finish. The plan must consider emotional challenges. This will ensure that as an organisation, you are prepared for anything that could come your way.
Communicate and consult as much and as early as possible
As soon as you have the plan in place, your employees must be told about the upcoming change. This gives time for the news to settle in and be processed. More often than not, with enough warning and information, they can reason with change and accept the effect it will have.
If your staff feel they don’t know what is going on or why the change is happening, they will feel undervalued and disengaged. Which is why communication is key throughout the whole process.
As much information as possible should be shared with the workforce and as much time given to individuals to ask all the questions they need. Various methods of communication can be used, as each type poses certain benefits: one on one meetings, emails and team briefings.
Throughout this process, it is vital everyone feels their views are being genuinely heard.
Stay honest
Throughout the process, treat your staff with respect. The foundation to this is openness and honesty. Leave everyone feeling a part of the change and clear as to the reasons. Every time you choose to keep something from them, you risk reducing trust and therefore engagement.
Don’t forget about engagement
During a time of significant change, it would be very easy to let employee engagement take a backseat in your priorities. But you need to make sure this is not the case. Keeping your employees engaged has huge positive impact on your businesses productivity and finances. During a period of change it should be focused on more than usual.
There are so many ways to keep your employees engaged. As part of your project plan there should be initiatives that are focused on the first six areas of engagement.
Get your employees involved
Of course, with some change the staff cannot be involved in the decision making. However, changes such as an office move and to some extent a structural change, the employees can be involved in parts.
If you are moving offices, why not consult your employees with any ideas they may have for the new office? After all, they are the ones who would know best!
Ensuring your employees feel that they are part of the change and that they have some say in what happens, will be crucial in making them feel valued and accepting pastures new!
Is your organisation due to go through a change? Give us a quick call on 0161 883 1149 to talk through your needs.
