The rationale for choosing a question for an article is because if it was given a title of 'managing change', or 'effective change management' I am confident that many people would physically groan and say "Oh no, not ANOTHER article about change - it's all been written about so much that its now OTT".
I recognise there might even be stronger reactions to the title regarding managing change.
However one cannot get away from change - it's all around us and even the new government talk about it if not every day, certainly on a regular basis.
And what do I know about change, you might be tempted to ask.
Actually I know a lot about it and although I haven't hit the guru status - well at least not publicised as such, nevertheless I've experienced it so many times in my career that I believe I am now the expert! What I have witnessed and been on the brunt of it is how the changed has been managed appallingly - I've yet to witness change being carried out that leaves staff motivated and eager to continue with the organisation.
Managers might read books and even articles like this either from libraries on on the Net and think they are now equipped to manage the change.
In my experience this is nonsense! What managers need is support and guidance and dare I mention coaching and counselling him/herself to ensure that the change is successful in terms of maintaining motivation, willingness and engagement in the company irrespective of whether they too might ultimately have to leave the organisation if jobs become redundant in the future.
I have written many papers on the topic and am constantly contacted by people who become so stressed when change is mentioned they sometimes feel they cannot cope with yet another 'change initiative'.
This is why many HR people struggle to get their new policies/procedures to the point of being considered let alone being implemented in their organisations.
HR people know (or should do), what is appropriate for their organisation's well-being, (and I don't mean welfare!) yet they cannot get their ideas on the company's business agenda.
It is not always (though one must recognise occasionally it is) that HR people want to make a name for themselves by initiating something different in the organisation, it is generally because HR strongly believe from their professional perspective that the company would benefit by such an initiative.
The words that we have heard so many times "employees are the most important assets in our organisation" unfortunately has not yet been proven! There are some organisations who do believe this and behave in a positive way towards employees.
These are exemplary companies who treat employees as people instead of payroll costs but unfortunately there are still many where this is not so.
Conclusion As the role of HR has developed and become more involved with strategic decisions, I believe it is time for the functional staff to also become more confident about what they do and believe in themselves as being the professional in their organisation.
This means that HR possess high levels of integrity, be able to influence and importantly for managers at any level, know the business environment to be able to discuss issues at the same level.
HR must not be cajoled into a minor role who accept that they do not contribute to an organisation's effectiveness.