Changing the Culture
Lately I’ve been writing a lot about the problems with higher education. Today, I want to discuss solutions. Unfortunately, there’s no quick fix - most of the problems in higher education stem from deeply imbedded culture and culture is the hardest thing to change in any organization.
Top-Down - Let’s just acknowledge right off the bat that the most effective way to change the culture of any organization is from the top with your senior leadership. If they aren’t on board, then wide-spread change probably isn’t in your foreseeable future. But right now we have a glowing opportunity to change the culture in our organizations, since many of them are being forced to adapt to today’s economic realities. Change isn’t just advisable - it’s coming whether they like it or not. If you have credibility with people in the upper levels of your organization, now’s the time to start planting seeds. Give them books, articles, blog posts to read. Show them that there may be a better way of doing business. They’re all going to be making some tough decisions soon regarding budgets and I’m sure more than a few are looking for any way they can to avoid layoffs. Increasing organizational efficiency and producing a better “product” are two of the most effective steps they can take but I’ll bet all the money in my pockets that they don’t consider their organization to be inefficient or their current “product” less than ideal. Show them it is and how to fix it and you’ll see results.
Be consistent in your realm - Now, as great as the above paragraph sounds in theory, reality is that you probably won’t be able to affect wide-spread organizational change. But you’ll probably be much more successful at affecting in in areas that you work directly in. The key here is to be consistent - you’re trying to change people’s habits and it’s not going to happen by simply writing a policy document and putting it out there. You need to constantly remind them of the “right” way to do things and stick to your guns. It could take a while before people catch on so be prepared for the long haul. Provide positive reinforcement when people go by your new process and negative reinforcement when they don’t. It’s kind of like training a pet. Eventually they’ll get it.
Show results - Once you’ve gotten people to change their habits, now it’s time to deliver your results. Is the new way getting things done more effectively? Then scream it from the rooftops. Show people that does work and it’s in their best interest. We’re selfish creatures - the only way you’ll really get our attention is if you show how what you’re talking about directly impacts the people you’re working with. Show them how they can make their lives easier and they’ll love you for it.
What do you think? Do you have tips for people struggling to change the culture of their organization? Leave a comment!
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January 22nd, 2009
I’m actually super excited about the course I’m taking in the MBA program this semester called “Organizational Change and Development” and how it applies to social media, as well as my role in higher education right now and what we’re dealing with.
In our first class the other night, our professor introduced a few models for change, and the one I gravitated most towards is called the “Positive Model.” In this model you initiate the inquiry > inquire into best practices > discover themes > envision a preferred future > and then design and deliver ways to create the future. But the idea here is that it’s not nit-picking out every single thing that could be wrong, but rather, focus on the positive. My theme for ‘09.
Another model that was interesting and can be applied here is Lewin’s Change Model: unfreezing behavior, movement towards new behaviors, refreezing the new behaviors.
January 22nd, 2009
I for one, make lots of criticisms of the way “We do things” but you have a good list here. One thing I’d add is, “be good at what you do.” I think it’s easy to be a critic, it’s easy to want to be a naysayer and the person who jolts people out of their comfort zones. But I think that the adage that you win more bees with nectar than you do with oil is a valuable one.
Sometimes being approachable, being well-informed and keeping your mouth shut can be an effective tool in getting what you want. Because when you do speak, people might be more apt to listen.
Not always, but I think knowing what you do best and contributing what you can is a critical piece to the puzzle.
I think also that you need to know when you’ve outgrown your situation and don’t be afraid to be bold and move forward when the circumstances call for it.
January 22nd, 2009
I hate to start with disagreeing with the first premise, but cultural change doesn’t start at the top. I’m in a senior leadership position in an organization with significant culture issues, and no amount of walking down from the mountain with new commandments for the masses changes the culture. Culture is changed at the individual level, one relationship at a time. As a senior leader I can help by rewarding different behavior and looking at new ways to do business processes, but if the people involved don’t want to change, they won’t.
January 22nd, 2009
@Kyle - we’re going to have to agree to disagree on that, but every textbook I’ve ever read on the topic clearly states that the culture of an organization is set and maintained by its upper-echelon. If senior management isn’t on board, than wide-spread change is near impossible.
January 22nd, 2009
@Karlyn I don’t necessarily disagree with the fact that senior leadership has to be on board, but that alone leaves you with an incomplete solution. Culture can’t be dictated down the org chart. *Everyone* has to want to change. I am living that issue right now, no matter what the textbooks may say.
Also, as the size of an institution increases, the less you can speak about a monolithic culture. It’s really lots of smaller islands of culture that interact from time to time. In cases like that culture change in one part of the organization can occur without buy-in at the highest levels. Again, this is from personal experience, even if it’s contrary to the textbook theories and case studies.
January 22nd, 2009
Like I said Kyle, we’re going to have to agree to disagree.
January 22nd, 2009
i liked this post. Want to change the culture of an organization? Step one look in the mirror. You talked a little about it but you have to walk the walk and talk the talk when it comes to change.
January 22nd, 2009
Awhile back, I learned from my former employer that there are different ways you can get employees on board with new change. The organization was at a point where it needed to “cross the chasm” requiring a significant cultural shift. One day, all 1000 some employees (whether or not you were in leadership role) received a leadership book (with a type-written message) from the Chairman of the Board. We all read it of course (to prepare for our mandatory group discussion). The book (Managing by Influence) talks about the “change triangle,” 3 techniques in leading people to be open about exceptional change (below snippet for your reference).
But what’s noteworthy to me was that my former employer recognized that every individual is a leader, if not a leader of a group, then at minimum a leader of one person, yourself. In order to bring about the needed change, they asked that everyone learn how to lead people to change, starting with yourself. Even if it wasn’t so glamorous (or cheap) to enlist help of a book per se, but at minimum, it opened people’s hearts to the topic of change and steps to get there so it’s not so scary.
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Technique 1: “In the Past” - Adding the phrase “in the past” to your thoughts and conversations focuses on the assumption that the future can be different. You will never consider a new potential for the future when your thought process unconsciously screens out the possibility for change.
Technique 2: “Step Out of Character” - to go a step beyond your usual mindset and image of yourself as a leader to produce behavior that exceeds what was previously possible. The past does not need to extend into the future, ask yourself and others to step out of character, their comfort zone.
Technique 3: “For the Good of the Company” - In business situation, we are cooperative and cordial to people whom you would not be able to get along with in our personal lives. You can repeat instructions to customers several times when we can’t show the same patience with our children or spouse. It’s a power we have when we do things for a larger purpose than our own needs. People have ability that blossoms when they are asked to change for the good of the company.
January 29th, 2009
The top is where you get buy-in and support. But, I’ve lived through a successful centralization snd CMS rollout. It was about going to lunch with regular staff members for months, making friends, building enthusiasm, and delivering hope. As a Web developer in higher ed, it’s tempting to see that you touch all areas of the institution and can therefore prescribe the remedies. But, in all those exchanges I had with folks, I learned things, and those things involved my having to change and adapt, which made the project go better than if I had only “managed up” on the project. IT folks need to become more human and likable, and not view the culture as problematic so much as rich with history, quirky people, and infinite potential.
People don’t want to be fixed. Cultures don’t want to be fixed. In general, people just want to take pride in what they do and get recognized for it. That’s what leads to awful animated gifs and type styles on horrible Web pages. That’s all part of a very human impulse, an impulse that needs to be nourished, not quashed.
Understanding that, by listening and responding to content managers’ issues is much better than diagnosing problems from a distance and then getting permission from above to put the hammer down. Maybe with an ERP system you can do that because the stakes are higher. But with a web site, it’s less about IT security, transactional integrity, and c.o.b. than it is about more emotional issues of message and marketing.
Higher education is a cauldron of emotions. Those faculty members that folks hate working with have much more schooling than most of us Web developers, and that means they might be able to teach us something. IT folks need to respect the marvelous and quirky culture of higher ed and work within it. Otherwise, we should just work in the truly top-down corporate world (where I worked for 18 years) and be done with it.
February 4th, 2009
What! No mention of the Tipping Point, the book by Malcolm Gladwell, as a way to spread ideas and change cultures? It’s not a definitive guide, but Gladwell does have some interesting observations.
Still, top-down, bottom-up, a culture is not easy to change. But management buy-in and support at the top, and conversations — lots and lots and lots of conversations — in the middle and at the bottom, all play a role. The bottom line for me is — communication. After that, the questions are: how effective and how often?