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PQ magazine for part qualified accountants.
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Coping with change at work |
Nobody likes change, but with the economy taking a nosedive companies are tightening their belts and making organisational changes to survive the downturn. |
Nobody likes change, but with the economy taking a nosedive companies are tightening their belts and making organisational changes to survive the downturn. Working environments are transforming in response to the new, harsher economic conditions. So what's going on inside your boss' head? Are they managing the transformation effectively?
Change is part of life, but it can be stressful – your boss should expect emotions to rise. Without wishing to overstate the case, the five stages of grief, describing the process of dealing with personal loss (including bereavement), are relevant as they depict the typical responses to change. The five stages sequentially are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and, finally, acceptance (anger being particularly prevalent in the current economic climate). Sound familiar? Managers can help staff through the transition by listening to them and asking about their concerns and involving them. Workers who are engaged in the transformation process are more likely to buy in to the changes, according to business psychology consultancy YSC. So does your company have 'changeability'? Dr Michael Jarrett, author of Changeability: Why some Companies Are Ready For Change and Others Aren't, argues that those companies that are more prepared to embrace change, those with 'changeability', are more successful than those who do not have it. Jarrett says that lucrative companies develop a culture that adjusts quickly to changes to the environment or marketplace.
According to advice on the PwC's US website, to effectively implement change managers "must gauge the impact it will have on employee behaviour patterns, work processes, technological requirements, and motivation". So change is good when it has purpose and is managed effectively; it drives the company forward. If change is afoot in your office take it in your stride. As Emperor Marcus Aurelius (AD 121-180) said: "Can anything that is useful be accomplished without change?" |
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| [«all Career Advice] |
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