We have choices when it comes to delivering large scale change. Many leaders seek to manage complexity via a rational and well-planned schedule of change activities implemented through effective programme management. Others take the opposite view of accepting that change is emergent and hard to predict so they get people involved and just go with the flow. However there is a third way, which is about adopting systematic practice for large scale change; creating the best possible conditions for change; and learning and adapting as we go.
My practice as a leader and facilitator of large scale change is about working in that third way – whilst respecting and incorporating other ways of leading change – by collaborating with others to identify the interventions that will create the greatest leverage for change. This tends to be in one or more of these six areas of activity:
- Providing critical thinking on approaches to change and transformation – from how to set up a change strategy for success right from the start, to choosing the best methodologies to deliver the desired aims, to practical approaches to implementation, scale and spread of improvement.
- Tackling complex problems – using large group engagement and complex problem solving techniques to achieve outcomes in one or two days that might typically take several months’ worth of work using conventional approaches.
- Co-designing and facilitating events and retreats for leaders – building shared purpose around organisational or system goals, creating energy for change and promoting new ways of thinking and working.
- Offering workshops, keynotes, and “masterclasses” – expert sessions that reflect the latest and most effective thinking and practice in the delivery of improvement and large scale change.
- Building the capability of specialist improvement teams and front line teams – reviewing the current arrangements and enhancing both technical improvement skills and agency (the power to make a difference) for quicker, more sustainable results.
- Establishing and convening networks and communities for learning and improvement – based on social movement principles, mobilising people through collaborative working to share and accelerate change.
My work is about providing leaders with a clear agenda for action on large scale change and improvement, working in evidence-based ways. Here we mean “evidence” in its widest sense: incorporating knowledge gained from practice, the wisdom of global opinion formers and consensus among thought leaders, as well as formal research findings.
Email me at helen@helenbevan.uk to discuss any aspect of this work.