My adorable granddaughter, Callie, is a first grader and last week she was the victim of un-communicated change. Here’s what happened: While in the lunchroom the principal moved her to a completely empty table. She ate her lunch in silence and embarrassment. She thought she had been moved to the equivalent of the “naughty corner” and she had no idea why. Later that day she was in tears as she explained to her mom that she had gotten in trouble, but didn’t know why. Her mom, my daughter Amanda, works at the school as a teacher and asked Callie’s teacher what happened. Callie’s teacher assured Amanda that Callie had not done anything wrong and that there must have been a misunderstanding, as Callie is such a well-behaved little girl with great grades. (Okay, I’m bragging a little--it’s a grandmother thing.)

Anyway, together the two teachers went to see the principal to find out what had happened. As it turns out, the principal thought Callie looked crowded and simply wanted to start a new table so the kids would have room. He was unaware that no other children joined Callie’s table and that they all thought Callie was in trouble.

Point of the story: If you are going to introduce change into the lives of your team members, make sure they know why and how it will benefit them.

Following are some useful tips for introducing change in your organization:

• Let your team members know it is coming. Give them a heads up as early as possible. This allows them time to start adjusting to the idea.
• Make sure team members understand why the change is necessary. Explain how it will benefit the company, your clients and the team members.
• When appropriate, allow them to have input about how the change should be implemented. The more involved they are, the more ownership they will feel in the process and the more successful it will be. (The principal might have asked Callie, “Would you like to move to a new table so you have more room? Perhaps a few of your friends would like to move with you.”)
• Break it down as much as possible. As with any undertaking, when you implement in chunks, you have an opportunity to test drive components and make adjustments along the way. This allows for a smoother transition both operationally and emotionally.
• Once the implementation takes place, check with those involved to get feedback about possible improvements or changes that might need to be considered.

Click this link to learn more about the book Change Happens! 52 Ways To Seize Success. It offers 52 affirmations for embracing change and is designed for readers to focus on one each week.