Achieved Strategies

These days it takes a different mixture of guts and determination to lead a major change initiative.  You must have the audacity to abandon what you’ve done in the past and courageously turn to your employees as collaborators for change. This different mixture of guts, determination, audacity, and courage is key to form a partnership to co-create solutions that bring about the needed change in business.

The old-school change leader (read manager) thinks he can announce change is necessary and that employees will act on his proclamation.  You know to not fall into this old paradigm.

In Linchpin, Seth Godin reiterates this call for a different change-partnership by including a summary of General Charles Krulak’s law: The closer you get to the front, the more power you have over the brand.

Remove the word brand and replace it with change: The closer you get to the front, the more power you have over the change.

As a savvy change leader, you recognize that employees on the front line have a deep pool of insights, ideas, and experiences.  You recognize that there is much power your employees hold in the total sum of their experiences.

The difference between you and the old-school change leader is

• You genuinely want to hear and learn from what your employees have heard and experienced on the front line

• You co-create with your employees new solutions to transform the business

• You challenge yourself to push down decisions to employees because they see things in your business you can’t – you’re not on the front line

• You dare to be optimistic in times of change

• You know that wisdom runs deep within the organization and it’s a competitive advantage when it’s authentically tapped

• You get that causing change is affects the humanity of your employees

Work is not just a place of business, but also a place where people hope to make a difference. It will take your determination and guts to bring change by turning to those on the front line, your employees.