Stakeholder buy-in is key to successful implementation of new ideas

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Dear Joan:

I am curious about a developing work relationship situation, that I feel may be of interest to my boss. The two newest hires in our office are mid-20’s, very ambitious, very bright, quick thinking and motivated to get results. I admire this in their abilities. I would also like to note that while this is an academic setting, it has also been a fairly stable office to work in. We pick and choose our battles; therefore, we tend to get along and recognize what we can and can’t change.

Recently, one of the newly hired co-workers has made several suggestions for change,

sometimes without thinking through the process, and at times without communicating its impact to staff outside of her team. Sometimes her suggestions have been infuriating, because her lack of experience has not prepared her for what others in the office see as potential problems. Nonetheless, the boss supports any efforts she brings up, allowing her to take the reigns in her position as a Director.

Other staff members oppose the changes, but feel it would be useless to bring up the potential challenges because they have been “shot down” on similar areas. It has created possibly unhealthy feelings from the more experienced staff toward the less experienced staff.

I don’t think anyone wants to speak out about it because we don’t want to rock the boat, and also because the boss seems so set on agreeing with whatever is suggested. I might say this could be a natural reaction to fresh ideas, and renewed energy in the

processes and may seem appealing when it comes to combating daily operational changes. I’ve been through enough new ideas to know why it was created in the first place and how many times it reverted back to the original plan because of lack of foresight.

What would be a diplomatic way to address this issue with the boss and possibly to the

new co-worker? Or, should I just shut my mouth and let mistakes be made and lessons learned? I have to say, I know nothing that I know now without making my share of mistakes and certainly don’t want to curb her enthusiasm. But, when I see my co-workers getting frustrated, and potentially feeling discounted, regardless of their experience, I feel that in my position as Office Manager, I should at least bring up the issue.

Answer:

Why not blend the two camps, so the new ideas can spark needed changes and the seasoned folks have a chance to temper them into practical form? I do think you are in a position to make this happen and here’s how you could approach it.

Schedule a meeting with the manager of the area and tell him or her exactly what you told me. Tell the manager that you realize fresh ideas are necessary and will help to improve the department. Describe the affect of the new ideas on some of the experienced staff members. Explain that this resentment is likely to not only derail new ideas but build a wall between the old and the new groups. Go on to say that part of the development of the ambitious newcomers is to work within the existing culture to get buy in and support for getting the new ideas implemented. Conclude by saying that both groups would benefit from merging together to get the desired outcome.

To do this, suggest that “Process Improvement Meetings” be held and facilitated by the manager. The purpose of the meetings is to examine existing processes and procedures and find ways to improve and streamline them for overall quality improvement. Almost every company in America is undertaking quality improvement in this way. They know that standing still is a one-way trip to obsolescence.

Your manager is probably thrilled with the fresh blood in the department and has been eager to embrace the new ideas and doesn’t want to squash the enthusiasm. This new forum for process improvement will give the new ideas the structure and format they need to guarantee that the new ideas won’t be ignored or sabotaged.

To prevent possible conflicts, think through some of the group dynamics problems that are likely to occur and plan to head them off before they happen. For example, you are sure to hear “Why change it? The old way has worked fine for years.” The manager needs to set the tone of the meetings with a clear vision for the group. For instance, he could say, “We’ve enjoyed good success and a good reputation. We can’t rest on our laurels. In order to stay current and get good results in the future we need to continually upgrade our operation. As a result, we need to set some ground rules for how we will participate in these meetings. Some of the ground rules I’d suggest are:

• ‘Look for opportunity in every idea—no idea bashing before it’s fully explored.’
• ‘Ideas that enhance service and quality of our product should trump our personal inconvenience.’
• ‘Create changes we can all ‘live with’ (even if they aren’t perfect for every one of us).’
• ‘Balanced participation’
• ‘Respectful consideration of all ideas and opinions.’”

Then let the team add more. The idea is that the meetings need to be actively facilitated so there is a balanced flow of ideas from all corners. Then during the evaluation of an idea, the “this will never work” and “we tried that once and so I know that’s a bad idea” can be minimized.

If an idea is raised that did fail in the past and the group ended up reverting back to the original process, have a thorough ‘post mortem’ to discuss why the idea died and how those lessons could be used to rejuvenate the new idea and make it work.

By having a formal process to capitalize on everyone’s ideas, you will avoid creating camps and hostilities that could explode into a silent war of entrenchment and bitterness, where the established employees feel unappreciated and the new employees feel underutilized and leave. The ability to build the new future together would be a wonderful growth opportunity for everyone.

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