Chapter 2: Potential Advantages
After identifying the problems and the needs, the manager listed possible benefits the department would realize with the type of change she was envisioning. Knowing she was trying to solve multiple problems and move an entire department at once, she recognized that setting forth potential benefits was essential. Many of these benefits were in direct alignment with solutions to the problems she faced. Others were more tangential but equally as important and powerful, especially when all were combined.
In reflecting on the potential of what a change process could do, a list of expected benefits was created. She also knew that if the department was able to see these benefits, she would benefit as a result. She created a list of both the benefits that her department would realize as well as what she would as well.
Possible Benefits for Employees
Employees would reap the following potential benefits:
Networking- They would begin to work together as a group rather than individually. They could share their processes, help one another, and encourage each other.
Motivation- Working as a cohesive group, employees would begin to feel as though they are part of a larger group. By working in smaller teams where they were accountable and supportive to one another, they would be more motivated to adapt.
Accessibility to peers and resources- As previously mentioned, this change process would allow employees to connect, share, discuss, and challenge one another to improve and reflect. They would be able to share resources easily and have a small team to reach out to with questions.
Improving teaching excellence- Through the working with their peers, the sharing of ideas and resources, and the continual discussions, employees would improve inside the classroom with their teaching practices. By adding in a layer of consistent reflection and discussion, employees would see improvements in their practices.
Strengthening communication- Before, communication had always been in the form of mostly email coming from management. This change process could allow for communication among employees as well as a channel for communication from management to be delivered to employees.
Sharing responsibilities- Management would be able to share ideas and tasks with the groups of employees, who could then tackle them together as a team. This would give employees more voice in the resources and tasks that they are a part of on a daily basis.
Receiving and sharing feedback- Employees would have an opportunity and a space to receive feedback from their peers. They would also have an opportunity to provide that feedback to their peers. This would occur through planned activities as well as through informal discussions.
Developing “skills and wills”- By having reciprocal dialog with their peers about their tasks, responsibilities, and challenges, employees could help one another further develop their skills in the profession and encourage their willingness to grow.
Reducing isolation- Through the development of their teams, employees would have a small group of peers who they could reach out to with questions, comments, and needs that arise. This could develop a sense of community and bring employees who are geographically located around the globe together.
Possible Benefits for the Manager
The manager would also see potential benefits. They include:
Department outreach- The manager needed a systematic way to shift the department which was geographically dislocated.
Encouraging Departmental Improvements- With the department connecting peers, the manager could use this to help individuals and groups improve their processes and challenge one another to grow. This would result in department-wide improvements and employee buy-in.
Uniform information- The department as a whole would be receiving uniform information. This would allow for the department as a whole to move with a single voice with the same information to everyone. They would also have the opportunity to have small group discussions of this information to make it more meaningful.
Common goals- Through connecting the employees, the department could move toward common goals throughout the year. By working in teams, they could have goals to meet as a small group that all contribute to the overall goals of the department.
1:1 coaching sessions- By implementing the model she was starting to envision, the manager would have the opportunity to have individual coaching sessions with each employee. This would help to support each individual’s work and help to further each individual employee’s relationship with the manager.
Group Coaching and Mentoring sessions-One of the main goals to this change model was the ability to coach groups of employees at one time. This facilitates the ability of the director to model, guide, and instruct each group on how to bring the theoretical into applied practice. The ultimate goal would be natural and authentic engagement among peers and interactions with consumers served.
Manager Perspective: Benefits to a Diverse Population
While I knew the benefits to such a potential shift would be great for the department as a whole, it was important to consider the diversity of both employees and students. The new vision would have to honor a complex group of professionals who serve a diverse student body. Working with diverse consumers and employees challenges a manager to consider how to break barriers that exist and promote an inclusive environment. Many of these barriers are invisible, but are powerful in their ability to separate individuals. I like to refer to breaking barriers as code breaking, where we learn to appreciate and understand the uniqueness of all individuals while also understanding differences. In essence, we are code breaking when this happens as we learn to understand and better communicate with one another. All this would also require a change that would have to occur within each employee’s personal landscape. This would allow it to be a real shift and positively affect the performance and success of the students served.
I wanted to groom the entire department and each individual into higher level educators; “When educators participate in reflective practices that cultivate self-awareness … they are in a better position to deliver high quality instruction” (Patti, Holzer, Stern, & Brackett, 2012, p. 264). But how could I shift the department to unleash all the potential benefits I had listed and those that were yet to be realized?
Chapter 3: Considering the Challenges of Change
Change is uncomfortable; however, leaders who know an organization’s success can depend on change as a prime opportunity to bridge gaps in performance. When challenged, people often avoid circumstances that change the status quo (Tamilarasu, 2012). Working through discomfort is the important and essential activity required to making the shift needed to reach a desired state. That resistance may continue until participants discover the benefits that will arise as a result of the change (Tamilarasu, 2012; Ionescu & Bolcas, 2015). The manager had her list of benefits ready; however, she was well aware that the change that was required for those benefits to be reality was not simple and may not be initially well-received. Resistance to change can be the starting point of the real work. It is human nature to resist change and cling to what is safe and familiar even when it is no longer