Does Managing Change Need to be Gradual and Systematic?
One of the 25 Most Important Insights I’ve Gained
I’m hesitant to request my team to implement too many changes simultaneously. We should navigate change at a slow and systematic pace.
I have heard sentiments like this from a VP of Sales or a CEO numerous times. While the specifics often relate to adjustments in the sales team, as that is my area of expertise, the message is relevant to every role. This notion ranks among the most harmful myths in the business world.
To provide some context, I have been a consultant, speaker, and trainer for over 30 years, collaborating with more than 500 B2B sales teams. Recently, a client recommended that I create a compilation of the 20 most significant lessons I’ve learned and elaborate on each one. I embraced this idea and generated an extensive list.
To refine it, I applied the following criteria:
- It had to be a significant lesson—one capable of dramatically influencing an individual, a sales team, or a business—not something trivial or superficial.
- It had to stem from my personal experiences, meaning it wasn’t acquired from a book or borrowed from others. It had to be something I’ve learned through practical application.
- It had to have been validated through real-world experience, rather than being theoretical.
- I needed to wholeheartedly stand behind its accuracy.
These are principles and insights I would firmly support. Applying these criteria, I trimmed the list down to 25 lessons. In no particular order, I’ve completed several entries, and you can find the links at the end of this post. Here’s the next lesson on the list: “Managing change doesn’t necessitate a slow process. It can be swift and transformative while still being effective.”
When we onboard a new employee, we anticipate that individual will adapt to significant and widespread changes—a new compensation structure, a different supervisor, a new working environment, and a fresh group of colleagues. For a B2B salesperson, this might include learning to sell new products or services, mastering a new software system, and connecting with a different clientele. We expect them to adjust to all these shifts within a few weeks. Why is it, then, after they’ve been part of the company for a while, we feel reluctant to ask them to change?
Why can’t we request they adapt to a new compensation plan, learn a new automation tool, and support a new product line all at once? They have done it in the past, and they can certainly do so again. Setting an expectation for slow change restricts the organization from fully achieving its potential. Operating at a slow pace in a fast-paced world amounts to falling behind.
We all recognize that the world is evolving more swiftly than ever before in our lifetimes. This unprecedented rate of change in human history requires those who can adapt and evolve as quickly as their environment to not only survive but thrive in the current marketplace dynamics. Those who do not will gradually find themselves marginalized and left behind by the rapid transformations occurring around them.
“I am convinced that if the rate of change within an organization is slower than the rate of change outside it, the end is approaching.” ~ Jack Welch
A lesson I learned from one of my clients illustrates this. The company consisted of four divisions situated across different regions, each run as distinct profit centers without any motivation to collaborate. The CEO sought to alter the company’s structure. At the time, I was operating under the common belief that change had to be implemented gradually, so I anticipated a slow, phased introduction of a new organizational model over six to eight months.
However, he opted for a different approach. He convened all employees from the supervisor level upward for a weekend retreat. On Friday afternoon, he announced that their positions were now obsolete due to an outdated organizational structure.
They were given until Monday morning to redesign the company, establish the necessary roles for the new system, and apply for one of the new positions on Monday. What ensued was a series of intense small group discussions that led to a complete overhaul of the organization. They transformed the company significantly over a single weekend. Most employees sought new positions, and some departed from the organization.
Except for the CEO and CFO, everyone experienced a change in their roles. My primary contact, the VP of sales, ended up taking on the role of sales manager. While implementing the changes took a couple of weeks, within a brief period, the new structure was in place, people had assumed their new roles, and business continued as usual.
A radical and transformational change for a company of about two hundred employees occurred in a flash. In today’s fast-changing landscape, embracing the idea that change must be managed slowly hinders organizations from seizing the opportunity to not only keep pace but to lead the transformation.
Recent Comments