When you’re running a business, a department or even simply a small team within the greater whole, you need to know that standing still means falling behind. You always need to have your eyes on a target that’s just out of reach, striving forward to new achievements. If you sit on your laurels you’ll soon learn that you won’t be earning any more, as you get outcompeted by hungrier competitors who are more committed to facing the ever changing future than you are.
That means it’s important to know how to effect change in your company: how to set bold new targets, and pivot the resources you have to meet them effectively.
Today we’re taking a look at how to make change happen at work, so you know your business is in it for the long run.
Quantify and Target
If you’re trying to make change happen at work, you need to make sure you’re quantifying what success looks like or you’ll never know if you’ve achieved it. That means either you have an excuse to wrap up before you’ve succeeded, when the going gets tough, or you commit to an endless project with no sensible way of judging that you have in fact succeeded.
When you’re coming up with goals, you need to attached quantifiable targets to them, just as you would expect of someone working for you.
If you want to grow your company, decide whether this means increasing revenue, footfall, market share or workforce, and then, quite simply decide by how much. It might be better to be conservative rather than shoot for the stars here, as a small achievable goal will motivate everyone involved to strive for better next time, whereas failing at an unachievable, huge task will simply leave people less willing to engage with future reforms.
Getting Expert Help
If you don’t have the experience in delivering change to companies, you may want to call in someone who does. Talking to interim management companies might be the answer to your prayers as interim managers exist to go into companies, effect change as described by their brief, and leave with the company better equipped to face the future.
Often used when companies are in trouble, whether that’s with a project overrunning, departments failing to deliver or a disconnect between management aims and results, they are also useful for parachuting into situations to create change. The difference between an interim manager and a consultant is that interim specialists don’t just make recommendations, they take control of the situation and don’t stop until they’ve got you the result you need.
