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Surviving the stress of organizational change

04/07/09

Almost one-third of employees are unable to successfully adapt to workplace changes including layoffs and restructuring, according to a recent survey by Right Management. The study suggests that employees who are unable to manage change will be less effective at work, putting engagement and productivity at high risk for many organizations.

In their survey of more than 100 senior human resource professionals across North America, Right Management researchers asked: Is your workforce able to adapt to change and increase their effectiveness on the job?

  • 31% said that their employees were not able to adapt to change and engagement and productivity are a major risk.
  • 43% said their employees are able to adapt somewhat, as their workforce can get the job done, but morale suffers.
  • 26% said their workforce is very agile and responds to new challenges positively.

While our nation continues to work through this recession, layoffs and organizational restructuring are making it difficult to keep employees engaged and productivity up. Such changes require leaders to make increasingly more difficult decisions that employees are not always ready to handle.

As the research suggests, most organizations aren’t doing enough to prepare employees to handle changes at work. Without preparation, change management strategies are almost always destined to fail.

A lack of planning is the main reason why many employees are unsuccessful at adapting to organizational change. It is only with careful planning and support at every level of the business that employees will manage change successfully.

Though the causes of organizational change will vary from business to business, managers can help reduce the impact those changes can have on employees by taking a few basic actions:

  • Communicate. Workplace stress can be greatly reduced if employees have a clear set of expectations before changes go into effect. Inform your staff of upcoming changes as soon as possible and keep communication lines open. Communication is the key to keeping employees motivated to work through change.
  • Participate. If possible, include employees in the decision making process. Ask for their input as management is in the planning stages of a major change. Then ask for their opinion again when implementing new training programs or procedures as a result of the change.
  • Stay positive. Sometimes organizational changes such as layoffs are completely unavoidable. To balance out the negative, provide a positive outlet for those employees who are still a part of the company. For example, implementing an employee development program for the remaining staff after a layoff can help improve productivity and relieve stress.
  • Monitor. Keep a close eye on how employees are progressing during the organizational change. Frequently monitor productivity, attendance, turnover and the use of sick days – anything that may suggest your team is not adapting well to the change.

The type of organizational change and how employees handle that change will vary from business to business, but just remember that communication is the key to success. Train managers to listen, learn and take action when employees are struggling with change.