Management
Issue No. 60 - August/ /
Finding a cure for change apathy
by Naomi Mashford
So what’s the problem with culture change and re-structure progams?
Simple: workers have grown tired of being pushed around from pillar to post and are now apathetic.
Many espouse the theory that ‘culture comes from the top’; while this is a valid premise I would suggest a wide range of differing cultures often exist in sub-strata.
Leadership - or to be more precise, lack of Leadership - is inextricably linked to this paradigm. Managers see and sense issues, yet choose to do nothing about it. ‘Prickly Pears’ who are too hot to handle are left to their own devices. Myths, rumours and stories gain legs and momentum and very quickly run rampant throughout the internal and external environments.
Senior Leaders and their peer group may be absolutely in favour of the ‘new order’. Why shouldn’t they be? They may very well have created it.
Middle management on the other hand, has perfected the ‘art’ of appearing compliant whilst being defiant. As a consequence, trust and team spirit in frontline staff is directly impacted by their behaviour.
Culture change is about a renewal – a completely new perspective. It is a complete change. It is helping others to look at work, each other and themselves in a fresh, exciting view.
It is not a simple fix. It takes work. It takes everyone working together. Culture Change is about finding a vision that takes in everything and everyone – a vision that motivates people to do better.
Let’s examine the implications
A CEO seeks to make a cultural change for the better; he/she consults with the Senior Leadership Team. They design and agree on a program. So far so good!
The change program is communicated to middle management, for their implementation. They say and do all the right things, but their actual BEHAVIOUR is not congruent. Look out, the foundations are now rocky. Front line staff get told what is expe...
