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 Welcome to Allegra Consulting's February 2009 Newsletter.
With 2009 well underway, most of us are busy executing our plans for the year.
The current economic climate brings with it some uncertainty and anxiety. It also brings change. In many workplaces significant changes are happening to support improved business efficiencies and reduction of costs. As change practitioners, we are well placed to use our knowledge, skills and experience to assist with and lead these changes.
With this in mind, this month we encourage your input to our next Allegra Consulting Event by asking you to send us what you consider to be your three (or more!) greatest change management challenges. We will then review and group these for discussion at our March forum. See below for more details of this event. Our change management article this month examines leadership styles when driving organisational change and we also bring you a round up of some of the most current and relevant change management thinking published on the web.
We also spend Five Minutes with... Sherry Herman, an experienced change practitioner with an impressive track record in delivering real change. On the topic of non-professional change, we at Allegra Consulting - like all Australians - have been thinking of those whose lives have been changed so irrevocably by the recent Victorian bushfires. The devastation and loss to so many families and individuals has brought about a level of change that we cannot imagine.
However the true Australian spirit in the face adversity has been inspiring and like so many fellow individuals and organisations, we were happy to donate to the relief fund - hoping that it goes a small way to helping those affected rebuild their lives. Our thoughts and condolences are with all those touched by the disaster.
Wishing you all a constructive and productive month!
- Helen Haley and the team at Allegra Consulting
The date for the first Allegra Consulting Event for 2009 is now Thursday 19th March. We are delighted to announce that our guest speaker will be Jill Harbrow - an experienced and respected change management professional with more than 15 years working in the change management discipline.
Jill is currently working as a Change Manager at NAB, but has comprehensive experience in organisational change, communications, HR, and Project Management. Her corporate and industry experience spans Financial Services, Manufacturing, Retail and Distribution, Mining and Minerals, Public Sector, Automotive and Telecommunications. The primary focus of her work centres around the development and implementation of change management strategies with the core activities including organisational impact assessment and design, stakeholder management, business readiness and communications. Some of the initiatives Jill has worked on include large-scale systems implementations, mergers and acquisitions, business process outsourcing and transformation programs.
So please mark this date in your diary and keep an eye out for your personal invitation which will be emailed next week. You can also visit our website for updates. We value your input to shaping our seminars and community forums so please send us your thoughts around your top three "Change Management Challenges". The best submission will receive a complementary ticket to our March seminar.
Leading successful change initiatives
Inspirational Leadership
Whether working for an organisation or self-employed, we have all encountered different leadership styles. There will be some we have enjoyed “ and tried to model our own leadership approach on “ and those that we found lacking.
There has been a great deal of debate and discussion about leadership styles employed during time of change. According to academic Dr Kathleen Reardon, leaders need to be proactive in their approach to change and even adopt different and complementary styles of leadership.
Leadership styles have changed considerably in the last 60 years from the 1950s can do style which used authority to command others through to the visionary style of the 80s and 90s. Today we talk about strategic leaders who can best be described as embracing change and recognising that leadership versatility is necessary. Rather than one constant approach, a mix of these styles may need to be used to successfully implement the different phases of a change initiative.
Although there is no blueprint to follow as a leader of radical change, according to Dr Reardon there is one style that consistently achieves results and helps overcome resistance to change “ inspirational leadership.
Dr Reardon explains the inspirational style as characteristic of those who are able to develop meaningful visions of the future by focusing on radically new ideas; they learn by experimentation.
They are inquisitive, curious and satisfied by finding radically new solutions. They emphasize openness and operate more as facilitators than directors,™ says Dr Reardon. Inspirational leaders are needed throughout the change process. In the planning phase they provide creative input. They empower and involve followers in the enabling phase, inspire and energise them to adopt change after it has been launched and maintained.
With the support of other leadership types, for example commanding, logical and supportive, the inspirational leader is well suited to spearhead and drive organisational change.
Allegra Consulting provides specialised change leaders and resources to help bring success to your organisation's change initiatives. For more information visit www.allegraconsulting.com.au
Change Management news and views
Sometimes it's difficult to find the time to keep abreast of the latest change management thinking. This new section in our newsletter aggregates a variety of insights and commentary via links to readily available articles and videos on the web. Some may be in-depth, some short, some old, some new and some quirky! But we hope they are all useful. Note that we will indicate if the link goes to a video.
1. Paul Glover For snappy and authoritative updates on the global world of change management, check out Paul Glover's professional blog on the Smart Company website. Smart Company is one the US's most respected business publications and Mr Glover's insights are witty and up-to-the-minute: Link to Paul Glover's blog 2. Patrick Dixon
Patrick Dixon is a respected speaker who has delivered countless presentations on many change related topics, in particular the importance of a motivating leadership style in change initiatives. This is a link to one of his YouTube video presentations. Link to Patrick Dixon's video 3. Change Management Strategy Every so often it's good to refresh our view of the change management "basics". This article by a San Francisco-based consultancy covers the basic tools and techniques that can help organisations transform their business and culture - quickly.
Link to 10 Principles of Change Management
Work with Allegra Consulting
Change Manager
We have a fantastic opportunity for you to join a group of like-minded change professionals who have implemented an internal consulting model within a global organisation. This role requires experience in supporting large scale projects. If you are a collaborative leader, skilled in stakeholder engagement, training design and delivery, communications and impact assessments we can provide you with the opportunity to be part of this dynamic team.
Learning and Development Consultants “ Expressions of Interest
We are looking for expressions of interest from experienced Learning and Development Consultants. We have a number of clients who require learning and development capability and expertise. Typically these roles will require you to provide best practice learning and development support across businesses which are undergoing significant change.
Organisational Change Manager
We want to hear from you if you are an experienced Organisational Change Manager who is able to support one of our corporate clients undergoing major change. As part of a wider change team, you will be responsible for developing and managing the change strategy for a large business unit undergoing a significant program of change in a growing business. The ideal candidate will have excellent influencing and coaching skills with a proven track record in providing practical support whilst providing a strategic overview of the program. Email us at resumes@allegraconsulting.com.au or call Diane on 03 9614 1616 for a confidential discussion about any of these opportunities.
Five minutes with...
Every month, we publish a short Q & A with some of the world's most experienced change management practitioners. This month we spend five minutes with:
Sherry Herman, Director, Harbinger Corporate Resources
Read Sherry's Q&A
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