How to push a change management innovation within the organization

Every company will finally have to introduce some sort of major change, but only a few prepare. That is where the importance of change management surfaces as an imperative agent in helping the managers convert their ideas into practice.

The business world is really volatile and dynamic, hence with so many changes; therefore, the difference for businesses would be the ability of the manager to visualise these changes and move towards innovation.

The relationship between change management and innovation

Change is not something simple. It requires moments of rupture and leaving the comfort zone. “If everything is going well, why change?” It is human nature to resist any process of change in routine.

However, continuing on the same path will lead to the company's stagnation, without growth and achieving its greatest goals.

Anyone who has been in the market for a while knows that to compete with strong competition you need to innovate, and to innovate you need to change. A company that already has a culture of constant change has a much easier time planning innovation.

So, there is no point in managers planning innovation and changes if the team is not and has never been prepared. It is the employees who make everything happen. In fact, they are the ones who can optimize changes in day-to-day processes, but they first need to understand what the levels are and why the changes are being made.  

Therefore, before starting planning, everything needs to be in perfect harmony: action goals, employees, leaders and managers.

How to implement innovation management in 5 steps

1st Recognition of organizational values ​​and culture

The first thing to do is to put together a company preparation plan . What are the values, mission and vision? Why do I need to change? Where do I want to go?

So, how about making the first change in organizational culture, which unites employees and leaders for a common goal? Make change part of the culture.

Managers need to be familiar with the routine environment, how employees react and think when faced with certain challenges, and how leaders behave when making decisions to overcome barriers.

Therefore, it is up to managers to apply new knowledge to the team and offer new opportunities for personal and professional growth.

2° Evaluate the impacts of the changes

This is the stage that generates the most insecurity. After all, every change has its impact but what happens if it is a negative impact? What if causes conflicts?

This is exactly why it is important to have an in-depth look at possible risks and impacts: map out what could be affected in the company, such as

Management and operational processes;

Need for specialized skills and positions;

Recruitment and selection of talent ;

New technological and innovation tools;

Impacts on the organizational structure;

Impacts on team performance;

Remuneration;

Staff behavior.

If the way employees work may be affected, it is essential that there is transition management to enable everyone to perform at their best without causing organizational damage.

3° Implement a new leadership model

Management would need the help of everyone more than ever. Hence, the leader has a great importance. But when the leader is completely overwhelmed, the process may be more challenging to achieve goals than the previous case.

That's why it's interesting to adopt the liberal leader model , but one that is always present to help the team. This way, the company will have an empowered team, responsible for implementing ideas and solving problems.

This helps to relieve the leader's workload, who can focus his efforts on other strategies. By combining this model with the inspiring leader model, the team will certainly reach a high level of excellence and changes will not be a problem.

4. Implement a support structure

It is worth planning a support structure with training for leaders. This way, employees will have more confidence in performing new roles, knowing that they can count on help whenever they need it.

Furthermore, they will have greater autonomy to question and share new ideas for changes in key processes.

5° Monitoring and analysis

As with any implementation process, it is essential to closely monitor the progress of the new changes. Perhaps this analysis process will lead to new ideas and adjustments to the company's reality.

This step-by-step process encourages change and encourages everyone's participation in order to apply innovative competitive strength. If the organization does not adopt changes on its own initiative, it will be forced to do so in the future and, worse still, with a short period of time to adapt.