“We Are the Agents of Our Future”
“The objective is not to get people to support change but to give them responsibility for engendering change, some control over their destiny.” Garry Hamel- Strategy and Revolutions
A key element in launching any major change initiative is to establish an understanding with employees that “we are the agents of our future.” By acting rather than being acted on, organizational members can shape the contours of change to provide greater advantage, both individually and collectively.
Leadership communications can deliver this message both directly and indirectly. Challenging employees at all levels to take responsibility for determining how the work will get done, given changes in objectives, structures, or systems, is a direct invitation to take charge of change. Reminding employees that sitting back and
waiting to see what will happen next is, conversely, a recipe for losing ground.
Helping employees understand the reasons for change can strengthen their willingness to assume responsibilities for managing transitions. But without sufficient levels of “business literacy,” people are at a disadvantage in grasping the business case for change, let alone seeing how change might best take shape at operational levels. To ask them to assume key roles in implementing transition plans, leaders need first to communicate enough background information to provide context for further action.
Taken from : The Leader As Communicator
