Think about the last time your day was interrupted by a staged fire drill. The deafening noise of the fire alarm, the inconvenience of leaving your work behind to practice evacuating the building in an orderly fashion – it was all probably a major inconvenience, right?
The answer, of course, is "wrong." We train in order to prepare for the future, for the unknown. Practicing preemptive training helps you maintain calm when an actual emergency occurs. Instead of waiting for a problem to arise, you take steps to prepare yourself in advance.
Change management training is a lot like practicing fire drills (but without the loud noise). About 70% of change initiatives fail, which makes cultivating change management skills so important. While you may not be facing an imminent change right now, one is sure to arise in the future. Preparing yourself in advance helps increase productivity and keep operations running efficiently.
Explore these five benefits to making a preemptive investment in change management and find out how it helps you prepare for the future.
Smoothing Out The Transition
No matter what, you’re going to face resistance to major change within your company. Whether it’s a reorganization or implementation of new processes, change isn’t easy to swallow. But, when your managers have the right tools from change management training, they are equipped to smooth out this transition for employees.
Whether or not you have a major change on the horizon, preemptive management training is a good idea. With the right management skills, mitigating upheaval and maintaining calm are much easier. So, prepare your managers now, and be rewarded with an easier transition for your team in the future.
Preparing To Communicate
Any change management training program that you invest in should have a focus on communication. (And if it doesn’t, you probably shouldn’t invest in it!)
Strong communication is rarely more crucial than it is during a time of transition. You’re fielding numerous questions from your team, and the responsibility of communicating the ins and outs of a new system typically falls on the managers. When you invest time and resources into change management training, your managers on the front lines of change already have the tools in their belts to effectively communicate.
Preserving Productivity
When your team is thrown into transition, it’s nearly impossible to avoid a productivity dip. But, with an investment in change management training, you have control over how deep that dip goes.
When your managers have change management down, you’re likely to see a small dip in productivity as the change is implemented and then increased productivity on the other side. Managers have the opportunity to set an example for team members. By keeping calm, embracing change and maintaining normal job functions, they make preserving productivity in the face of transition an achievable goal.
Building A Loyal Team
One thing that’s important for managers to remember is the impact that change has on the team. If team members don’t view their managers as transparent or supportive during change, it tends to do irreparable damage.
On the other hand, change management training teaches managers to turn a potential disaster into an opportunity for greater camaraderie and loyalty. If your team believes that you have represented their best interests during the transition, maintained transparency and listened to their concerns, making adjustments when possible, they show more loyalty and experience greater job satisfaction.
Cleaning The Slate
Remember: Change is not your enemy. When managers already have change management strategies in place, they’re not putting out fires or slowing down. They’re using change to make their company better.
In fact, transition is a great opportunity to hone management skills and achieve more success. It’s a chance for people to gain a fresh outlook on their jobs, take ownership of new processes and utilize them to their advantage. If, for example, a major change in your company was the implementation of new software, you’d want to go the extra mile to master the new program and help others through the change. Those who embrace this approach become valuable assets and demonstrate initiative.
Change isn’t easy, which is why it so often fails. But, with the right management training, your leaders are prepared to help any transition succeed.
Change management training and insight is complex, so don’t stop learning about it. Download the guide below to continue mastering the challenge of transition.
