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Dear friends,
Well, the new (school) year is here, and it’s time for fresh starts and new ideas! Wishing you well as work picks up after the summer. I recently took on a new role at work, leading a successful program with a long and illustrious history. I’ve been really excited about this new gig, partly because I think the best time to make change is when things are going well. When we decide not to fix things because they’re not broken, we fail to reach our potential.
I recently made some changes as a new leader, and despite my best efforts, our program improvements (yes, I stand by my assertion that they are improvements!) got a mixed reaction. I’m sharing my imperfect change management strategy as a work in progress. I’d love to hear your ideas too!
First, identify and prioritize your stakeholders. The audience for the program (in this case the people we are training) is our primary stakeholder, we need the funder onboard to ensure ongoing support, and then the leadership group and faculty opinions can come into play.
Second, start with your audience. The tradition in academic medicine has been to assume leaders know what our audience wants- whether we’re trying to support patients or caregivers or trainees- without asking them. Now we know we need to start with the people we seek to support.
Third, make change as a group. I did not make any changes or decisions unilaterally. I sought input from program leaders and, of course, from my supervisor in this role. I invited longtime faculty to take key roles and worked to get their buy-in.
Fourth, communicate widely in advance. Here’s where execution is key. I shared planned changes in email and at a Zoom meeting, with room for discussion. Sadly, some colleagues did not engage beforehand and felt surprised- not in a good way- when the changes I’d made came about. I keep learning the lesson that there is no such thing as too much communication! Maybe this time it will stick.
Fifth, accept the pushback. I knew I was going to have some naysayers, but there was more attachment to “the way we do things” than I expected. I felt tempted to argue for my point of view, but instead I plan to accept the feedback gracefully and work to engage my critics. After all, if someone is resisting change, it’s because they’re attached to the program as is now. I hope to harness that commitment and collaborate going forward.
Finally, temper your expectations! It seems silly in retrospect, but I really did think everyone would agree with the new approaches and ideas once they experienced them. Now I am reminding myself that- wait for it- change is hard! There will always be some negative reactions. Remember your most important stakeholders and focus on their feedback!
September will find me figuring stuff out as I go, with lots of learnings to share with you! As always, please share widely and, if you are so inclined, sign up for the blog here. Keep in touch and do share good news so I can amplify your successes!
Warmly,
Urmimala