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In Change Management, Allies Are Crucial
October 20, 2010
Today's tip has to do with the importance of organizational allies in change management.
Overcoming resistance is a major challenge of change management efforts. Facility executives who try to go it alone make the job much harder.
One important step in change management is finding support among senior leaders of the organization. These executives are well positioned to explain the urgency of the need for change. They also bring authority to the initiative.
It's also important to gain the backing of functions affected by the change. If a facility executive wants to move to a green procurement policy, for example, the purchasing department should be brought in to the effort. Finance is probably another good ally.
What's more, the facility executive should not neglect the need to have support from within the FM department. Even if the change being made isn't directed within the department, it will affect the facility staff , whose support is crucial to success.
Building this sort of support takes time and effort. But it's essential to the change management effort. Skipping this step can undermine the entire effort.