We work with complex businesses on wicked change problems.
Our approach embraces changes in core beliefs, necessary shifts in attitudes, the realities of work values, the prime importance of behaviours and daily practices, the added value of change-related activities and the catalytic effects achieved by the right artefacts.
Here’s what we mean:
A core belief defines an aspect of group identity. Attitudes shape behaviour. Companies can articulate a core belief and seek to instil attitudes that support a core belief.
Change fails when only core beliefs and attitudes are addressed.
That’s why Throughline also works with teams on work values. Work values determine the propensity of individuals to align with a core belief and adopt new behaviours. To do anything meaningful, you’ll need to establish a baseline before embarking on managed change.
- The Hofstede Model© is a good tool, especially for M&A (the sooner the better, really) and anytime there’s a business need to align culture with strategy.
- The ITIM Focus tools make it fast and easy for Throughline to measure teams according to Hofstede’s dimensions.
- Clear metrics show work-value shifts as a result of change programmes.
Key behaviours & behavioural indicators are the crux of any “change progamme” which means change catalysts will want to colonise them. But they’re also the stuff of everyday working life.
- We recommend you capture actual practices so that people recognise themselves in the descriptions of existing behaviours.
- We can help you choose 3-5 high-level desired behaviours to cover the process lifecycle, and indicators that map for each desired behaviour.
- Indicators can include the drill-down into sub-behaviours.
Change programme activities are where the rubber hits the road. To build the new culture, we can work with you on:
- shaping how visible leaders model new work values and behaviours. Our leadership coaching ethos>
- formulating credible stories that connect new practices to the new core identity belief and getting those into circulation. Why stories work >
- designing, running and evaluating sessions held with people to help them make sense of the new cultural ideal.
- adjusting incentive structures, role descriptions and appraisal frameworks take account of the time and energy devoted to sustaining new practices. (Our associates can help.)
- (Don’t forget you may have legacy training, incentive, appraisal activities that may need updating. Our associates can help with that too!)
Artefacts are things you can create to instil culture. Make the new cultural ideal crystal clear, attractive, compelling and new:
- Distill the new ideal into a single image or metaphor. These are easiest to share and remember.
- We make interview-based movies communicating fresh, compelling statements by leaders about the new core belief .
- We make short animated movies that reinforce the new ethos. These days, it makes sense to assume these assets will leak beyond company walls. We turn this to your advantage by making smartphone-sized movies to a high standard and your people will enjoy sharing them.
- New or revised training materials make it actionable. New or revised appraisal frameworks and remuneration structures make it worth people’s time. (Again, our associates can help.)
- Weed out materials that are out-of-step with the new culture, or update them so they are better attuned to future practices built around the new core belief.
Working across the dimensions of core beliefs, attitudes, work values, everyday practices and artefacts gives change programmes the best chances at success.