Avoiding Us vs. Them Syndrome During Organizational Change

Whether it is digital transformation, introducing new protocols, organizational restructuring, or re-branding, organizational change is often met with both enthusiasm and resistance. As a result, opposing collective mindsets form, often creating an “us vs. them” mentality that causes change implementation to grind to a halt, throwing off timelines and stifling success.

While no change or policy will garner full support, it is possible to bring almost everyone along in the process and sustain a spirit of teamwork and cooperation. Below are some ways that your organization can avoid creating an “us vs. them” mentality during a transition.

Develop a Clear Vision and Plan for Executing Change

At the core of any new implementation should be the reason for change.

Be prepared to answer these questions:

• Why do you feel there needs to be an organizational change?
• What numbers, research, or relevant examples demonstrate the potential success of the change?
• What organizational issues will the change address?
• What specific goals are you trying to achieve through change?
• What are organizational strengths that should be preserved and how will they be leveraged here?
• How will the change benefit the team – and the bottom line?
• Why must this be done now?

For more comprehensive buy-in at all levels of your organization, define your reasons and goals for the change with no ambiguity.

Communicate the New Policy or Plan Effectively

Lead with the “why”.  Your audience needs to believe it’s meaningful and compelling to not just comply with requests but internalize the change.  A great approach to this is through storytelling, such as an impact to customer or patient or an event in your family or an employee’s family. Your roadmap for implementing change into your organization must also be clear. Leaving out details or failing to answer questions before they are asked creates confusion, which leads to dissension.

When communicating during an organizational change, ensure people at each level understand what is happening and what their unique role is to make the change effort successful. Co-executives should understand the changes and be on board with the plan and goals. Develop a communication plan for every department, outlining how their specific role, workflow and daily duties will be impacted.

Communication can include organization-wide and departmental meetings, emails, webinars, additional training, and documentation, guides or handbooks that establish the new standardized policies and procedures where needed.

Establish a Reasonable Timeline for Implementing Organizational Change

Changes that affect your entire organization require time for comprehension, acceptance and onboarding. Implement change successfully by creating a timeline that allows everyone to transition into the change together. This is especially true if the change includes learning new technology.

This timeline includes completion goals, deadlines and benchmarks for success. Each person in your company should be able to monitor and assess the success of the change over time. Employees are less likely to resist incremental change; however, it does need to still occur with agility.  This means concurrent work can be done instead of waiting for a phase-by-phase, or waterfall approach.  There’s a balance between pacing for realistic workload and successful completion, while moving quickly enough to limit further perpetuation of the issues the change is anticipated to resolve.

Address Issues as They Arise

Regardless of how well-conceived your plan is, prepare to address questions, concerns and complaints along the way. Meaningful engagement with those who question organizational change will determine how smoothly you execute the transition. Solicit feedback on recommendations to make the change successful, such as training, and encourage all members of your team to give honest opinions without fear of retribution. While decision making about the change occurring itself is often not negotiable, giving opportunities to influence the “how” is often beneficial. In addition, solicit questions to include in an FAQ. It’s important to have those not directly involved in the project provide the suggested questions so they reflect the perspective of the general audience.

Your willingness to provide answers to your team and invite them to be a part of the conversation will show that you respect and value their opinions and experience. Complaints or concerns from a cross section of the organization can provide fresh, insider insights that you could not gain anywhere else.  To demonstrate credibility and authenticity, be sure that messaging reflects your true culture and norms, along with realistic impact to and response from your audience.

Do Not Compromise Your Vision

Strong leaders never escape controversy because not everyone will be on board with your vision, regardless of what it is. Be prepared to let people walk – doing so gives others the freedom to decide whether they will stand by you, creating a more unified organization.

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