The Client

Like many local authorities, Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils have been experiencing perpetual change to working practices, advancing technologies, and increasing work with a complex, uncertain external environment. This has led to fear, unease, and vulnerability in employees. Change was perceived as constant, and the fear and unease caused made employees resistant to change. This resistance to change inhibited progression for both the organization and the communities which they serve. As part of our ongoing relationship with Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils, conversations were had on how we could support employees given the perpetual change that they faced as a Local Authority.

Need

• Together with the client, we observed a need to support both managers and employees in reframing ideas about change, to normalise change and to reduce the perceived threat.
• In doing so, we could support them in moving towards a position of change readiness that would reduce conflict and resistance and increase motivation and enthusiasm for workplace developments.

Solution

An in-depth familiarisation stage was undertaken first. This involved analysing relevant organisational data, having conversations with stakeholders and employees, and conducting a rapid review of evidence surrounding change readiness. This data combined to inform the design of a tailored 3-stage action plan:

Stage 1: 2 x1 hour live webinars based on the psychology of change were designed and delivered for all employees, covering understanding change in a uncertain and complex environment, drivers of change, individual responses to change and positions in change.

Stage 2: 2 months later, 6 face-to-face 3 hour 'Embracing Change' workshops were designed and delivered for all employees to build on the knowledge from the first webinar and begin to develop understanding and skills in change readiness. Each workshop included both a 'recognising change' exercise, where groups of employees would acknowledge and share their feelings about change, explore what and how changes have affected and will affect their work; and an 'action' exercise, based on an evidence-based approach where multi-functional groups worked through examples of change and developed actions around how best to address and manage that change.

Stage 3: Another 2 months later, 3 x20 minute pre-recorded webinars were designed and delivered to upskill managers. Webinars used multiple evidence-based models and covered content around increasing managers understanding of their own and others' response to change, reframing change and developing change readiness, and tools and techniques to manage amidst constant change.

Resource packs were produced in support of each stage, which included self-guided exercises, examples, and templates to use to reinforce learning and provide a self-led solution to those who prefer to engage with written information.

Outcome

Feedback was collected for the stage 2 workshops before, immediately after and 5 months after the workshops. At the start of each workshop, delegates were asked questions about their own experience and responses to change. At the end of each workshop, delegates were asked the same questions, and an additional 2 questions to identify if the workshops had achieved the intended outcomes. By the end of the workshop:

• 85% of delegates felt OK about change (12% increase from before).
• 86% of delegates felt that they could talk openly about change (3% increase from before).
• 90% of delegates felt they would think about other people's views on change (14% increase from before).
• Importantly, 71% of respondents thought that the workshop had helped them to think differently about change.

Additional feedback about the workshop itself was positive and centred on the workshops as a great opportunity to meet others and spend time together; general thanks and feedback on facilitators; reflections on how the workshops had changed how they might approach change; and feedback on workshop content or format.

5 months after the workshop, delegates were asked the same questions as those asked at the end of the workshops and results remained largely unchanged.

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