by Cody Hodge

Created on: June 29, 2009   Last Updated: July 06, 2009

When your organization is going to be going through any type of change, you have to be able to lay the foundation for that change. If you are working for a big company, or for a little one, you have to make sure that people are ready for the change. It doesn't matter if you have four people, or 1,853 people, it only takes one person to make the changes not stick. Whenever you are ready to make a change, there has to be a foundation for it.

When your organization is going to be going through changes, there are some steps that have to be taken in order to make everything go smoothly. The first thing that you need to do is make sure that everyone is aware that changes are going to be coming. If people aren't aware that things are going to be changing, you might catch a lot of people off guard. If people are caught off guard they might panic, and if they panic, they might react wrongly to the changes.

Once everyone is aware that changes are going to be taking place, you have to make your people aware of how the changes will effect them at work. Will an employee have to work more hours, do more jobs, or is it going to make life easier? Will the changes effect management, employees, or both? Once people are aware of how changes will effect them, they will be able to start planning ahead for the changes at hand.

The biggest key to laying the foundation for the change is to make sure that people are ready for the changes when they come. Will you implement the changes slowly, or will they happen at once? Either way, make sure that specific dates are posted for the new changes, and expectations for the changes are made clear. If there are clear dates, and guidelines for what happens, employees will be able to transition easier.

When the changes do go through, make sure that you have a good support system so that employees can adjust to the changes. Whether it be managers on hand to help with training, or with any questions that employees might have, it is important that employees have guidance through the transition time from one policy to the next.

Organizational change takes time and patience. It takes clear goals, decisive guidelines and deadlines, and good support for your staff. If people are well informed about the changes, and are able to transition to them smoothly, there is no reason why the changes shouldn't make your business run better and faster. Change is hard, but it can be made easier with good planning.

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