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The spirit of change - Eric Albert - lesechos.fr

When we apply the change to the letter, we only implement the recommended actions to « tick the box ».

Which company is not in a process of change? Fortunately, almost all of them are. But, the question is, how many actually change. There is no doubt that all of them are implementing real changes. But these often fall far short of expectations and needs for adaptation to an environment which is moving with unprecedented scale and speed.

Organizational change is not enough

What is easiest to change is the organization. So it makes sense to start there. A new organization is a framework which aims to facilitate interactions between actors and to improve the efficiency of the collective. Everything is therefore in its use. A matrix model, which makes it possible to break down silos and pool resources, can quickly become a gas factory and a machine for producing conflicts. Or lose its purpose, each recreating its territory while respecting the appearances of the matrix. This is why organizational change is not enough.

Very often, companies add a behavioral dimension to it. The matrix organization is associated with the order to collaborate. Everyone is invited to set goals in this area. Disciplined, the actors play the game and to collaborate better, they decide, for example, to meet more often. This is certainly a good start, but it does not guarantee the quality of the exchanges, the taking into account of the constraints of the other and the ability to manage disagreements. In other words, very often when it comes to behavior, the actors set objectives for organizational action plans. In doing so, they follow exactly what is asked of them. But they are not in the state of mind at the origin of the change: the realization that more collaboration between entities and actors is needed. Because when we apply the change to the letter, we only put in place the recommended actions to « tick the box ».

Other sources of satisfaction

Appropriating the spirit of change is more complicated. This implies questioning yourself and questioning your way of functioning, your attitudes, your way of relating to others. Very often, it also affects what gives small satisfactions ... For example, seeing your entity perform better than others. But this source of pride no longer exists in the spirit of the new model. It will therefore be necessary to find other sources of pleasure in the collaboration.

Appropriating this new mentality is far more difficult than literally applying an action plan for change. It touches everyone's privacy. However, this is the condition for the changes to really take place. This supposes that the leaders, the first, are convinced of it for themselves. Then they transmit to the teams an impetus and a method to help them progress: a sacred managerial challenge.