63
Chapter 8
Instigating Change and
Engaging Teams
Jean Ann Larson and Amanda Mewborn
Importance of Change Management
Industrial engineers or management engineers are change agents wherever they work and whatever
their job title. eir jobs entail helping teams and organizations change by improving processes
and outcomes. ey do this through improving processes, redesigning layouts and workspaces,
and implementing new technologies and systems—just to name a few examples. is chapter
discusses the need for industrial engineers to fully understand this key aspect of their role. It is
often the least studied and the least understood, yet it can have a large impact on the success of
the engineer’s endeavors.
Industrial engineers in healthcare, often known as management engineers, need to be even
more aware of their role as change management professionals. eir projects put them rmly at the
intersection of processes, people, and technology. One of the major advantages that they bring to
their projects is that their training and expertise uniquely qualies them to ensure that the project
recommendations and outcomes factor in all aspects leading to a solution that optimizes people,
Contents
Importance of Change Management ......................................................................................... 63
Why Is Team Engagement So Important for Eective Change Management? ............................ 64
When Do You Engage Teams around Change? .......................................................................... 64
How Do You Engage Teams? ......................................................................................................65
How Do You Help Teams through Change? ...............................................................................65
Barriers ...................................................................................................................................... 66
Enablers .....................................................................................................................................67
Roles and Responsibilities ..........................................................................................................67
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 68
References ................................................................................................................................. 69
64 ◾ Jean Ann Larson and Amanda Mewborn
processes, and technology. e management engineer is the one responsible for making sure that
a systems approach is taken.
e industrial engineer’s role in managing change in healthcare may be more important than
the engineer’s technical skills. In healthcare, many decisions are not based on data or facts, and
instead are based on politics or power. It is crucially important to have people onboard and sup-
portive of changes, as most change cannot be forced upon people in healthcare. For example,
analyses may suggest that an emergency department needs two trauma rooms, but the trauma
physicians may insist that they want four trauma rooms. Often, in situations like these, the hos-
pital will choose to build four trauma rooms, despite analyses indicating that only two trauma
rooms are necessary. Change management can be the key to the industrial engineer’s success in
healthcare, where decisions are not based solely on objective data and analyses.
Why Is Team Engagement So Important for
Effective Change Management?
ough the management engineer’s ability to instigate and drive change is critical to the success
of the project, he or she cannot do this alone. e most successful engineer works with the project
sponsor or team leader to make sure that all the stakeholders and team members are on board with
the team’s purpose and the project initiative. And though it seems like taking these steps to engage
the team members up front is slowing the project when senior leaders are pressing for urgency, in
the long run, going slow in the initial phases will not only speed completion of the project or ini-
tiative, it will ensure success and may even be the dierence between success and failure. Similar
to the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle, the better the quality of planning and the more thought
that is put into the project up front, the more successful the outcome of the project.
When Do You Engage Teams around Change?
In the healthcare industry, it is rare for an engineer to work completely alone. Granted, he or she
may spend time in the oce doing extensive analysis or even documentation. However, even those
seemingly solitary activities require signicant input and review by team members who are close
to the process—whether that process is a business process or a care delivery process. It is impor-
tant for the engineer, regardless of role on the project (e.g., operations analyst, facilitator, project
manager, or lean expert), to quickly get to know the members of the project team, from the senior
executive to the person who only occasionally is part of the process but who has a part to play. e
sooner the engineer can begin to establish a good reputation for trust, objectivity, and his or her
competence, the better. A few examples of ways to build trust and establish competence include:
◾ Inviting a team member to lunch, so that each person can gain an understanding of the
other’s background, skills, and training, as well as learn a little about each other’s personal
lives. is information helps to understand each other’s value system, and identify what is
probably important to the other person. When one knows what’s important to each member
of a team, facilitation of the team becomes much easier.
◾ Request an opportunity to observe operations in areas that are unfamiliar. is will pro-
vide the industrial engineer with information on the culture and ow of work in the area.
Instigating Change and Engaging Teams ◾ 65
Additionally, the engineer will be able to engage sta members in conversation, understand-
ing what is working and what could be improved at the front line. is also gives the engi-
neer an advantage when the group may be discussing the details of how work is done in a
given area, as the engineer will have experienced it rsthand.
◾ Seek out opportunities to get to know people personally. Perhaps your child plays the same
sport and the two of you can sit together during a game and develop a personal rapport. Or
perhaps the two of you share a hobby that you can enjoy together—such as movies, plays,
hiking, or sports teams. Any personal connection that can be developed with others can
carry the engineer a great distance in regards to change management.
How Do You Engage Teams?
In order to engage the team, the engineer starts by getting to know team members one individual
at a time. He or she meets with the senior executive or project sponsor to get a clear understanding
of the project purpose and the importance to the organization of that purpose. Ideally, the project
is important to accomplishing one of the organization’s key strategies. Sometimes listening to the
sponsor talk about the project also helps the sponsor and engineer clarify project scope, boundar-
ies, and even the real or more fundamental reasons for undertaking the project. is is critical
and can help the engineer be invaluable to the project sponsor and the team in that he or she can
keep an eye on making sure the project meets the stated expectations, as well as those that are not
stated outright.
In addition to time spent with the project sponsor, the engineer may want to spend some time
up front getting to know key players and some of the key challenges of the processes and systems
that impact the project. Even before the initial kicko meeting, he or she can begin building trust
and condence in the team and in their ability to work together to accomplish signicant goals.
During the initial kicko meeting, it is important that the senior executive, project sponsor,
team leader, as well as the informal leaders, make sure that everyone on the team understands the
purpose of the project, why it is important, and why each team member was selected to be on the
team. Team members also need to understand the expectations of the team (i.e., what leadership
wants the team to do), and the expectations of each individual. e engineer should take this
opportunity to clarify his or her role with the team and make it clear whether he is the facilitator,
analyst, or project manager—depending on the specic role—and how he or she will help or sup-
port the team. It is also important that the team understands what his role is not. He is not there to
do all the work and solve all the problems. Although the engineer has unique perspectives, skills,
and competencies, the project and its success or failure belong to the team.
How Do You Help Teams through Change?
e rst thing to keep in mind about helping teams get through change and use it to their advan-
tage is that a team is made up of unique individuals, each with his or her perspectives, concerns,
and biases. e purpose of the project must rst appeal to each and every member of the team. e
initiative should be one that they individually and as a team want to be a part of. e initial kick
o meeting should be part motivation, encouragement, and pep talk, making sure that team mem-
bers understand the importance of the project initiative and how important each of them are both
individually and collectively to the success of the project. e engineer serving as the facilitator or
66 ◾ Jean Ann Larson and Amanda Mewborn
project manager should make sure that the team has the skills, tools, and time required to work
together and individually outside of team meetings to get the work done. e project sponsor and
team leader, along with the engineer, manage the group process and morale. Team meetings need
to be productive and engaging so that team members look forward to the meetings and feel that
they are accomplishing something that will truly better serve the customer—which could be other
department colleagues, physicians, patients, or even the community—making it worth the eort
and hard work that they will put into the project.
Good facilitation and group process skills are critical. In this book there is an excellent chapter
on facilitation that is recommended for those engineers who take on the role of facilitator. ere
are also excellent references cited at the end of that chapter for those who want to learn more
or further develop their skills. A classic book that has served many facilitators well is e Team
Handbook (Scholtes, Joiner, & Streibel, 2003).
Another key skill to help manage the change and move the project and team along is project
management. Again, there is an excellent chapter in this book that gives a great overview of project
management regardless of the engineer’s role on the project.
Barriers
Due to the fact that we are writing this chapter and as witnessed by the more than 70% of change
initiatives that fail (Blanchard, 2010; Kotter, 1995; Senge et al., 1999), there are many barriers
and obstacles to success. e best advice is to be aware of them, learn from other’s successes and
failures, and make sure to employ the best facilitation, project management, process, and systems-
thinking skills. We have listed a few of the more common barriers or obstacles to watch out for.
◾ Lack of awareness (or lack of a business case) for why the project must be successful. Just
announcing a change initiative and telling people what is going to happen, generally back-
res. People need information both about the impact on the organization and how it might
aect them personally. With a top-down announcement or mandate, trust is lowered and
resentment sinks in. All team members must be part of the process and part of developing
the solutions and the future state.
◾ Overemphasis on the technology or the new system. Certainly, implementing new technol-
ogy or an organizationwide information system can seem daunting. But it will be the people
working with that new system or technology that will make it work or doom it to failure. Do
not underemphasize the importance of the team and the individuals to making the project
a success.
◾ Focusing on the clock or calendar (time) versus the compass (where you want to go.) ough
team meetings need to have tight agendas and need to keep moving, a good facilitator rec-
ognizes a breakthrough or a need for more discussion and keeps an eye more on the goal
than on the clock.
◾ Ineective team meetings that seem to last forever and go on and on with no apparent
agenda, process, or valuable outcomes, can be a slow death to the project. People want to feel
that they are part of something that will make a dierence and that their time is well spent.
◾ A perceived solution that the team leaders or executive sponsor is using the team to imple-
ment. If a management decision is made, don’t manipulate the team into buying it. Make
clear what the team’s purpose is and what their true role is. Do not charter a team to justify
a good or bad management decision. It will lead to cynicism and cripple future team eorts.
Instigating Change and Engaging Teams ◾ 67
Enablers
Despite the many barriers that can prevent successful change eorts, many enablers can ensure
desired outcomes. Some of the most common enablers of change management success can be
understood through the ADKAR model. For more information on the ADKAR model, check
out Jerey M. Hiatt’s (2006) book ADKAR: A Model for Change in Business, Government and our
Community. According to Hiatt, the acronym ADKAR is derived from the following components,
which must be achieved by the project team in this sequence:
◾ Awareness of the need for change—establishing a clear rationale and compelling reason to
change. Examples may include gathering information from the customer as well as com-
munication from management.
◾ Desire to participate and support the change—each team member must have a reason to
engage in the team and make a change. e reasons may be as simple as respect for the lead-
ers involved or hope for a better future.
◾ Knowledge on how to change—change management does not come naturally to most peo-
ple. For most, the mantra is, “Change is good, as long as it’s not aecting me!” To ensure
success, the entire team must be trained on change and have the requisite education to lead
others through change.
◾ Ability to implement required skills and behaviors—having knowledge is not enough if we
are unable to apply that knowledge to achieve the desired results. As with anything new
that is learned, application is when the learning becomes real. In this stage, the important
elements for success include coaching and mentoring to encourage people to continue along
the path and stick with the plan.
◾ Reinforcement to sustain the change—after the change is implemented, the hard work of
sustainment takes over. ere are many enablers to ensure sustained success. Recognition
and providing incentives are two ways to reinforce the change and maintain the new way of
doing business.
ere are many enablers of change management success, and awareness of the enablers can
ensure that change is managed to include the enablers and ensure success.
Roles and Responsibilities
As with any project, establishing clear roles and responsibilities is key to success, and each role is
described in the following with regard to the responsibilities of the role in change management.
◾ Project Sponsor—e project sponsor is usually a very senior executive who oversees opera-
tions or nance across the enterprise. For example, a chief operating ocer or chief nancial
ocer may serve in this role. e project sponsor is responsible for setting the vision and
purpose of the project, and establishing a sense of importance and urgency for addressing
the project or issue.
◾ Project Champion—e project champion is a senior leader who is responsible for the area
or department where the change will be taking place. e project champion is closer to the
operations and more aware of the details and dynamics of the project area. As an example,
the director of nursing may be the project champion for a project focusing on improvement
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.