Change is an inevitable part of any organization’s journey towards growth and success. However, have you ever wondered how and when exactly a change process comes to an end? In this edition of our newsletter, we explore the importance of a good ending and the three crucial moves that can help ensure a successful close.
When we ask people about change initiatives, we typically hear a range of responses. Some wonder if it will ever end. Others may realize that it’s already over without them even noticing. These sentiments indicate a lack of proper closure and a missed opportunity for the organization to integrate the change and reap the full benefits from it.
Let me share the story of how one of my clients managed the end of a change initiative.
I was working with a marketing division of a global company along with two colleagues. The project ran over three years and was centered on developing the group as a “smart and healthy team.”*
The team had made great strides over this period. Staff engagement scores had significantly improved. Team morale had risen. They had a shared language for talking about their work as a team, and were unified to tackle a clear “Rally Cry” each year. They had more effective relationships and better outcomes with the various parts of the business that they served.
And now, it was time to bring the initiative to a close. Their leader was going to move to a new assignment. The company was being restructured, offering new possibilities for the team. The move towards hybrid work as the COVID-19 restrictions eased allowed them to work together in new ways.
Everyone agreed that the necessary work had been done. That it was time to bring this initiative to a close, and to start considering what might be next.
To support them in having a “good ending,” we proposed three essential moves from the Harvesting phase of the RCA Seasons of Growth™ framework — Consolidate, Celebrate, and Close.
Consolidate: Determine how to sustain the progress that has been made and identify the individuals responsible for carrying it forward.
The team had invested a lot in developing new ways of working together. They identified how they were going to continue these practices as part of the “new normal” way of their work practices. They decided that two members would take responsibility to monitor how this was going by facilitating periodic reviews with the team of their progress.
By ensuring continuity, you can prevent the change from losing its momentum, and ensure its long-term success.
Celebrate: Take the time to acknowledge and pay attention to what has been accomplished and the people who made it happen.
We prepared one final “smart and healthy” team workshop. This session started with a project timeline in which team members recalled various events over the previous three years and how these had positively impacted the team. They named various people and noted their contributions to the work.
And they celebrated their director as he moved to a new role. They shared their appreciation of his leadership and wished him well.
Celebrating the achievements not only boosts morale but also shows gratitude towards the team members’ dedication and hard work.
Close: Formally end the initiative as a focused effort, extract valuable lessons, disband the team, and allocate any remaining resources.
While the team’s work continued, the focus on “smart and healthy” moved into the background as new priorities demanded attention.
The ending of the initiative was named and clear to all team members. They knew that our work on this project had ended. And team leaders took lessons from the three-year initiative to guide how they developed the next team change initiative, to equip the team for a new environment in 2024.
Leaders were aware that they would need to launch a new change initiative that enabled the team to successfully navigate through a changing corporate and market landscape. We are working with them now to Prepare a new cycle of change, building on the experiences of the now-closed “smart and healthy team” initiative.
This step enables you to wrap up the project, learn from the experience, and allocate resources effectively for future endeavors.
Though these steps may seem simple, they hold great significance. They allow your staff to identify how their work has made a difference, and they signal to the organization that change initiatives need to be integrated into its mainstream work.
A good ending is just as important as a strong beginning. By paying attention to the Harvesting phase and adopting these three moves, you can end your change process on a high note, reinforcing its positive impact on your organization and its members.
Until next time,
* The “Smart and Healthy Team” model was developed by Patrick Lencioni and is described in his book The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business.”
Practical Tips To Harvest Change
-
- Consolidate – Determine how to sustain the progress that has been made and identify the individuals responsible for carrying it forward.
- By ensuring continuity, you can prevent the change from losing its momentum and ensure its long-term success.
- Celebrate – Take the time to acknowledge and pay attention to what has been accomplished and the people who made it happen.
- Celebrating the achievements not only boosts morale but also shows gratitude towards the team members’ dedication and hard work.
- Close – Formally end the initiative as a focused effort, extract valuable lessons, disband the team, and allocate any remaining resources.
- This step enables you to wrap up the project, learn from the experience, and allocate resources effectively for future endeavors.
- Consolidate – Determine how to sustain the progress that has been made and identify the individuals responsible for carrying it forward.
This approach to harvesting change is similar to how I have supported other clients:
- Closing leadership coaching engagements by supporting the leaders to identify how they will continue making use of their self-awareness and new capacity in their ongoing work.
- Designing and facilitating the closing module of a 6-month leadership development program to enable leaders to identify how they had grown and developed and to support them in formalizing peer groups for ongoing support.
- Ending a five-year peer learning program through a series of virtual sessions that allowed participants to draw out their learning and build partnerships with fellow leaders for support in facing new challenges.
- Closing an eight-year transformation process amongst a dozen organizations by taking stock of all that had changed in their ecosystem and exploring shared interest for continuing collaboration.
If you’d like help harvesting change, please drop me a line and we’ll set up a meeting to see how Randel Consulting Associates can help.