Chapter 15, Leading and Prospering in a Changing Workplace
Leading Change Checklist
Fill out the following checklist as if you were a supervisor charged with managing and leading in a continuously changing workplace. The more points you can answer "yes" to, the more successfully you will be able to adapt to and implement change.
Yes No
___ ___ 1. Have I accepted the fact that constant change in an unavoidable reality today?
___ ___ 2. Am I paying close attention to how things are changing?
___ ___ 3. Do I have a vision for a particular change I want to make that I can clearly explain to others?
___ ___ 4. Am I promising too much with this change, saying it will be solve all our problems and thus creating unrealistic expectations?
___ ___ 5. Do I accept the fact that my employees are going to be ambivalent about the change I am about to initiate?
___ ___ 6. Do I have answers for the various questions my people will ask about the change?
___ ___ 7. Have I consulted with my employees about the proposed change and gotten their input?
___ ___ 8. Do I have a good understanding of how the change will affect the jobs and roles of my employees and how it will make them more efficient?
___ ___ 9. Have I built into my plan some occasions for quick success to help my employees build their confidence in a new role or using a new procedure?
___ ___ 10. Have I planned ways to celebrate early successes to help make build commitment to the change?
___ ___ 11. When someone makes a mistake in implementing the change, have I prepared myself to praise them for trying and to help them learn from the mistake?
___ ___ 12. Have I set up training to help employees learn how to implement the new procedure or operate in their new role?
___ ___ 13. Is the environment in my group one that consistently looks for ways to improve and is finding ways to improve a part of everyone's job?
___ ___ 14. Have I considered what might go wrong in implementing this change and made plans for dealing with these problems?
___ ___ 15. Do I regularly remind my employees that the status quo is always temporary and getting too comfortable with various procedures is dangerous?
___ ___ 16. To help build trust and commitment, do I always tell employees the truth about the current situation and what my plans are for change?
___ ___ 17. Do I keep employees informed about organizational problems or opportunities in other areas that may bring about change in our group?
___ ___ 18. If a change might cause people to lose their jobs, am I forthright and honest about that and am I willing to help them find another position in the organization or elsewhere?
___ ___ 19. Have I planned the period of transition with the understanding that will be confusion and that it will take time to implement a particular change?
___ ___ 20. If the change is a big one, have I planned a pilot test to see how well it goes before making it apply to everyone?
These questions are a sample of the issues a supervisor should be aware of and address in leading and implementing change. The more of these to which you can answer yes, the more prepared you are to be a change leader. Being a change leader will make you a more valuable employee and help you build a successful career.
This checklist was inspired by similar checklists in the book Managing Transitions: Make the Most of Change by William Bridges (Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1991).
