The less people know, the worse it is. This is the basic rule of communication when introducing changes. No matter what the changes are you want to make, you have to be prepared for resistance from employees. It’s not that they are trying to make your job harder; resistance to change is just natural. You have to think about the planned changes from the employees’ point of view and prepare arguments for the typical objections to changes, such as:
- “We don’t have time for change right now.”
- “The way we do things works fine; we don’t need to change.”
- “We don’t know if the change will work. It’s safer to keep things the way they are.”
- “We don’t understand what the upcoming change will involve.”
To get started, prepare a brief and concise story that will motivate your people to help you change. In two or three lines, describe the benefits in terms of staff changes and add a call to action. Then communicate this message through different channels including personal meetings. Make a plan to address 10 specific people who will have a major impact on whether your change will succeed or fail.
It is important that the information about the upcoming change be clear and easy to understand. Make sure employees understand why the change is being made, how they can benefit from this change and what needs to be done for the change to be successful. Emphasize the broader impact of the changes not only on the everyday work of employees, but on the overall operation of the company.
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