The critical role that direct managers play during change – both upstream and downstream – cannot be overemphasized. They represent the real keystone of organizational change. However, managers have no time, nor need, for the kind of tools favored by internal change consultants and project teams. What do they really need then? Three things: a very concise overview of your model; stethoscope-like tools; and better influence and “light-politics” skills.
Article first written for the People + Strategy blog of HRPS (USA); and subsequently featured on SmartBrief, a content aggregator which selects “only the most important industry developments from more than 10,000 major media outlets, regional newspapers, trade publications and blogs”. The Strategic Capability Network (Canada) also published the article on its blog.