Galba Bright's final post in this three part series ... shows creative space for change in places that may surprise you. Thanks Galba!
Create Space for Discontinuity
The Government Ministry that I spoke about was widely viewed as the most obstructive of all at the beginning of the project. By the end of the first year, it had achieved staggering improvements in processing times and had eliminated a nine month application backlog. The Ministry did this with a minimum of additional staff and with no additional physical resources.
The workers transformed their Ministry’s results by changing themselves
Their success was a catalyst for significant improvements in the approval's system. One day, one of the officials confided in me. He told me that when I rolled up my sleeves and spent a few hours poring over their records he and his colleagues began to feel that they could trust me. By the time the project ended, the Ministry had the best performance record of any of the Government departments.
The project scope was extended significantly, a one year project became a two and a half year assignment and we developed a new management development programme which the Government of Jamaica was still delivering six years after the end of the project.
I often wonder whether the project would have been so successful if I’d insisted that “my way” was right from the beginning.
We want to deal with change effectively. “Managing” change is an exercise in helping yourself and others attach meaning to events. We’ll have greater success if we accept the need to manage our emotions. We also must make mindful responses to the emotions that people facing change - express.
I encourage you to develop creative space for others and for your self. Be sure to also leave space for discontinuities. Exploring these spaces can be frightening. The process can also be extremely rewarding. Why not give it a try.
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