Change Management Part Two – Entrepreneurial Mindsets
In part two of our Change Management blog series, we will be looking at changing the culture in your organization. In our case, we needed to move to a more entrepreneurial mindset. The principals we employed will be useful to you regardless of the change you may need to implement.
It goes without saying that any change is easier said than done. However, you can take meaningful steps to change your culture. The first step should be to identify the skill gaps in your organization. Armed with this information you must develop and deliver effective programs for your employees to ensure they acquire the necessary skills. In some rare cases, it may simply require a change in personnel.
Changing the culture of your organization can be overwhelming so we have developed 7 habits for you to focus on – not as an individual but as an organization. These habits are presented here with the notion that one of our overriding goals was to become more “entrepreneurial” as a firm:
- Be informed. There are already subject matter experts in your organization – they just need to become visible! The key is getting your experts within your organization to see themselves as experts and then as promoters of the brand. People are looking to hear from specialists in their field of interest.
- Be provocative. Challenge some of the current assumptions in your industry and find a way to stand out. Review your methodology or operations and look for innovative ways to improve.
- Get connected. Get out into the community and network whenever you get a chance. Become well known as a significant player in your industry. Track your competition; get a feel for what you think makes them successful. Also, be aware of your online presence and how that reflects your vision. By way of a small example, if the leaders of your organization have LinkedIn profiles without a picture, are you sending the right message? Does your online profile reflect your vision and ambition?
- Be ambient. Make sure that you are sharing regular, relevant updates and stay in touch with prospects and contacts on a regular basis so that people think of you when they have a problem. In terms of online presence, if you are posting content to your website or your social media profiles every day, you are going to get far more people engaged and interested than if you only post one update per month.
- Be helpful. Give until it hurts. It might seem painful at the time to put so much effort into a client or potential client but following the golden rule always pays back. Keep your eyes open to assist even if the fit is not with your own product or service. Being a connector and supporter will pay off down the road.
- Be resourceful. Try and create unexpected value out of bringing ideas and people together. Work closely with your staff to develop relevant training programs and resources. Make sure they are equipped with the tools, or have access to the support required, to implement the new vision/culture.
- Be Celebratory. Change is often very hard on an organization; especially one that has been stagnant for a prolonged period of time. As a result, it is essential to celebrate the victories and acknowledge the benefits that change has brought about.
In theory, these are great tips but how do you instill them into your organization? If you are asking the people in your organization to change the way that they have done things for years, you have to affect them emotionally and rationally. They need to know why they need to change and how it affects them in the long run.
Stay tuned for the next installment in our Change Management blog series about branding and how you can change the perceptions and amplify your market visibility.
Micheal Burch, CPA, CA Managing Partner, Welch LLP
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Peter Evans, Founder & CEO, Expertfile
