How to develop change agility in your organisation
13 Jun 2022
With all of the uncertainty and rapid changes in today's workplace, change agility is a must-have for any organisation. In fact, 92% of C-level executives believe organisational agility is critical to business success, per a report from Project Management Institute and Forbes Insights. However, the same report found that only 27% consider their organisations highly agile. With change agility top of mind across industries, finding strategies for improvement will be significant for us as business leaders and people managers.
What is change agility in the workplace?
Change is constant — whether we like it or not — and learning to accept change and adapt when needed has always been a key factor for thriving in the modern workplace. Change agility is this sense of adaptability in the workplace, viewing change as an opportunity rather than a threat or an obstacle.
While business leaders work toward improving their organisational adaptability, here are a few tips for developing change agility successfully in your own teams.
1. Foster a psychologically safe environment
It's vital that employees feel free to try new things and take risks, which involves creating an environment where they know they can do so. If employees are taught to fear failure then they'll likely be unable to take on change with the right way of thinking. Leaning into a culture and mindset of continuous learning while promoting and supporting ongoing trial and error will be a linchpin in helping your team members enhance their agility and approach to change.
2. Establish clear communication channels
Supply chain disruptions and the fallout of COVID-19 have left businesses wrought with uncertainty — making transparency and communication throughout organisations essential. According to a study from Paychex, three in four employees want more transparency from their employers, and three in ten claimed they left their job due to a lack of clear communication. Ensuring your organisation promotes proper communication and transparency will be key to helping your workforce stay on the same page and navigate any uncertainty or change as a team. Improving communication is not only a valuable way to improve agility and resilience, but also to inevitably increase productivity and support strong working relationships moving forward.
3. Create greater employee engagement
While markets remain competitive and rapidly changing, fostering employee engagement will be more important than ever. Engaged employees are typically considered highly accountable — where workers feel connected to the purpose of their work and dedicated to achieving successful outcomes. These accountable employees are more likely to excel in creative problem solving and effective decision making, which is directly linked to increased agility when adapting to change. Because engaged employees are typically highly agile individuals, finding ways to boost engagement will be critical to promote organisational agility.
4. Provide change agility training
Offering training and development opportunities is a growing desire from employees across industries, and providing adequate change agility training should be no exception. Whether your employees are new to this widespread uncertainty or seasoned vets in managing change, the right training can quickly elevate their mindset and approach to change when it comes.
Agility and resilience are skills that can be improved over time — so your organisation has the tools it needs to face change with confidence and keep performance high throughout uncertain times. To bring your organisational agility to the next level, implementing the right training will be a key element in helping employees get there.
If you've been looking for ways to boost your organisation's agility and resilience, ICML is here to help. Contact us to discuss training options or learn more about our change agility course today.
