For most club businesses it’s so much easier to go back to the way things used to be. The thing about change is that it mostly strikes the psychological part of the system, and club leaders that charts the course of the club, must expect and properly handle the emotional ups and downs of the membership and the staff throughout the transition.
Just over the past few months, I’ve either been involved with or have witnessed the firing of key clubs staff, rebirth of entire organizations, layoffs, and repositioning of companies (yeah, those management companies are spending money like the 112th Congress). Although I personally enjoy the prospects of change, years of dealing with various clubs and organizational changes has taught me a lesson or two about dealing with the unsettling factors involved with major change within clubs. I’ll share a few of them here.
Deal with the fear of change. Your other option is stagnation which is much scarier. The way you can help the club and staff overcome the fear of change is to provide as many facts and analyses as is possible. The more knowledge everyone has, the less emotionally reactive they become.
Don’t act out of panic. You’re almost sure to make the absolutely wrong decision. Enough said?
Take things one step at a time. Keep a strategic view, make your plans, and then act accordingly. The longest journey begins with the first step.
Remove yourself from the situation. Pretend like you’re giving advice to someone else. I’m saying this from experience. Something happens when you’re removed from the situation – you become more rational and less impulsive in your decisions.
Get your staff on board during the planning process. You need the affected mangers and organization leaders on board to make successful transitions happen. They need to understand why the change needs to occur, where the organization is headed, and how you will get there in order to transmit the ideas throughout their respective departments. The more time you spend with them laying out the groundwork before the change occurs, the easier the transition.
Communicate, communicate, and communicate. Engage the organization throughout the change process both by talking and listening. This is no time to hide in your office, behind your computer screen. Pay particular attention to the quiet ones. They’re the ones listening to everyone else and can provide a wealth of information about the general morale and other on-goings within the club.
Expect problems. Know that things will go wrong. Your staff will get cold feet, the markets will change, and your finances won’t go as planned. It’s OK. Your plan should have wiggle room, but also, don’t beat yourself (or anyone else) up if things go slightly off course. Regroup and pull things back on course. You never know, you might even decide to change the intended course halfway through the process based on the new information.
Not everyone will be unhappy. Whenever I’m presenting to a group about a particular subject I always notice a few quietly nodding their heads. By tuning into the “Head Nodders” know that some of your staff is already on board to make these changes happen. Use them to help you in the change process. If they’re already nodding they most likely share your vision, and can help you during the transition.
The ending is just as important as the beginning. Once you’ve gone through some type of change process, don’t let the organization fall back into the old patterns otherwise your efforts will go to waste. Everything associated with the change process will feel a little shaky for a while. Make sure all the processes, new systems, and new positions are solidly in place before you relax and grab that cold frosty to celebrate.
Change, whatever it may be, is one thing that’s inevitable, the better we prepare to be agents of change the better and more valuable of a manager and a leader we become.
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