Transformation journey and its success depend a lot on the kind of leadership team that handles it. Many transformation journeys fail because of lack of involvement from the top management. That is supposed to make the calls and handle the journey at every step. Managers and senior executives need to understand this and should be able to anticipate the situations and proactively plan the journey. Moreover, managers are close to the employees and hence, their role intensifies in a change initiative by the organization.

Role of top management in any change initiative

In any transformation journey or change initiative, managers, executives and supervisors must play the following roles to help the organization achieve their desired targets and goals and become more productive and profitable.

1. Communicator about the change to the employees

Employees who work at the ground levels need to know about the change initiative first and how it will impact their work processes and culture. Managers and supervisors become key personalities in such situations since they are closer to the employees and can help them understand the various aspects and benefits of the change initiative. This is a very important task and the message should always be communicated by the managers or by the supervisors to the employees and team members.

2. Advocate the change initiative

Managers and supervisors need to be in favor of the change and should advocate it to motivate the team members. Everyone on the floor looks up on their seniors to draw inspiration and hence, being the pro-change initiative will always help in making processes and systems involved in the initiative a lot smoother and easier to comply. It will also act as a catalyst for the organization during the change initiative.

3. Train and coach the employees

The top management should also play the role of coach for the employees who will ultimately become a part of the change management initiative. Every manager and supervisor should treat their employees like apprentices in their day to day work that concerns the transformation journey. Just like coaches in every field, managers and supervisors should also possess and ingrain the below qualities in them to be the best.

1. a)Awareness about the change and the processes involved
2. b)Desire to be a part of the change process and support it
3. c)Knowledge about the change process
4. d)Ability to implement and ingrain the skills and techniques required for the success of the change initiative
5. e)Bring in reinforcement to sustain the change initiative

4. Communicate and coordinate with the members and the project team

The top management should act as a bridge between the employees and the project team managing the change initiative and should be able to communicate the messages between both the parties and prepare reports on a regular basis for better analysis of the situation. The important role managers and supervisors play here is that they become a key personality in providing the inputs and solutions to the problems that might be creating difficulties in the transformation journey.

5. Manage resistance

Resistance is very common yet very impactful in any change initiative and hence it becomes quintessential for any organization to manage it to have a successful change initiative. Manager are closest to the employees, this makes them more efficient in understanding the resistance, the problems of the people and the factors that give rise to resistance. They should be able to manage the resistance and provide viable solutions to the leadership to tackle or minimize the resistance.

Top management is the key body in any change initiative on whose shoulders the entire transformation journey rests. Hence, it becomes very important for them to be efficient, aware, and able to manage and look after the change management initiative that runs in the organization to make it more productive and profitable. Team Faber Infinite Creative Solutions have helped hundreds of clients in successfully managing change initiatives and have trained thousands of people involved in the change management initiative to change and aggravate the outputs for the organization. For more information, contact us at consulting@faberinfinite.com

Written & Compiled by Faber Kishlay & Faber Mayuri.