Deliver Rapid Results through Quick Wins & Motivation Levers

 JWI 555 Organizational Change & Culture, week6 summary, 5/18/13

What I learned this week about the importance of quick wins helps me grow as a leader. I understand that supporting a long vision by generating a series of quick short term wins is a key leadership technique. This is precious to me. I will apply this principle at work now and in my non-profit mission quite gainfully.

Another great week of learning at JWMI.
Takeaways below
Dr DP

JWI 555 Organizational Change & Culture, 5/18/13

I. Quick wins play a vital role in major change initiatives
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Overall transformation effort on a large scale change will take a long time.
Generate steady stream of short-term wins to get there.
Demand immediate results.

Early winds drive rapid learning and prepare people to take on greater challenges
build confidence, capabilities of frontline people carrying out change

II. Kotter (p127)
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1. Provide evidence that sacrifices are worth it.
2. Reward change agents with a pat on the back.
3. Help fine-tune vision and strategies.
4. Undermine cynics and self-serving resisters.
5. Keep bosses on board.
6. Build momentum.

III. Rapid Results
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- produces quick results with which you need to win the game
- is a technique to deliberately set up the conditions of a crisis with a challenging goal and a short time frame
ie recreating the creative forces associated with urgency in a change project
- leads to sustained change
- is fun and challenging
- punches through resistance faster
- success is clear and measurable
- focus is on result to be achieved
- fosters willingness to experiment and innovate, moving away from the way things were always done
- short term structure forces people on doable, bite-sized ideas that have the greatest impact
- scope creep is not an issue
- feelings of participation and team work are high
good ideas are welcomed from anyone regardless of formal position and acted upon quickly
- can become a cultural idea of how we do things
- people learn to be better team members and leaders

IV. Rapid Results Project
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(1) fills a compelling need
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- creates urgent demand for action and results

Role of Senior Manager
- Establish urgency
- Demand change
- Serve as a senior sponsor: set expectations, help form the team, oversee progress
(2) A Team must form and be empowered to take action
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- people are closest to the issue and to the work
- includes frontline people and managers
- must have range of expertise and perspectives relevant to the results to be achieved
- reach out to others to add missing skills and insights necessary
(3) The Team agrees to a challenging, measurable goal to be achieved in 100 days or less
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balance level of energy and experimentation vs set up to fail
(4) After brainstorming, the team develops a solid work plan for implementing high-impact ideas.
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shared roadmap:what needs to be done, timetable and accountability
(5) Disciplined follow up
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Enjoys management oversight.Weekly meetings. Track measurable progress towards the goal

V. Emergencies create
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- a great sense of urgency
- a clear, shared agreement about what success looks like
- removal of competing agendas
- team work
- experimentation
- amazing productivity and creativity

VI. To Drive Change with Rapid Results
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Identify most current, high-impact problems
Generate ideas to fix them
Create a dedicated SWAT team to move quickly
Use a Good project management - work plan, accountability
achieve goal - 30-90 days , energize
Expand effort to more challenging goal

VII. How to meet and address resisters
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Resistance smothers motivation and reinforces dysfunctional behaviors:
Culture, Calcification & Complexity can suck the life out of change efforts.
Pull the motivation levers !!!

Different people in a corporation are motivated by different things(Gerstner, 2002)
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- money
- advancement
- recognition
- fear
- anger
- learning
- opportunity to make an impact, see efforts produce concrete results
- rouse with a threat of extinction
- inspire with a compelling vision of future
- being part of something bigger than you