Status Updates From Journey to the Emerald City...

We have examined 9 practices that help leaders implement culture change in large organizations: he is an integrated process for culture change period started dialogue about the change with the organization. Allow for subcultures. Start at the relative top. Work with intact teams. Creative process control period apply the change globally. Assist The Walking wounded. Align the organizational systems.

That is why you must simultaneously, with the three steps we identified in the beginning of this section, work on the low morale while you work on culture.

Few situations present tougher leadership challenges than declining morale. The demands differ markedly from those in which a solid company needs to improve or faces a new development in the environment. Low morale is endemic and internal. It can undermine the ability of an organization to affect their culture and change it.

A state of hopelessness in which people believe no change will occur which leads to the inevitable catastrophic event or series of events.

A state of ambiguity where people feel reality is not being acknowledged and that no one is listening to them as they seek clarification and acknowledgement. They hire percentage of experiences will always be misinterpreted at this stage regardless of the amount of quality or interpretation. Finally, the third stage is giving up.

Stages of decline in morale. First is questioning period a state of confusion which people are tentative about their confidence in where things are headed. Experiences not being interpreted by leaders and they contradict longstanding beliefs. Second stage is doubting.

Dialogues with management such as town halls, provide the opportunity to interpret such experiences for people, get their feedback, and provide context for the change. Yet if you really want honest dialogue, town halls may not be intimate enough. That's why some leaders find other ways, for instance breakfast with Bob.

Include things such as hiring and promotional policies and reward systems. Ultimately for the change to be complete, the formal and informal systems of the organization need to reflect the cultural beliefs. By aligning the systems with the beliefs you institutionalized the culture. First you shaped the culture, and then your culture shapes you.

Systems refer to the informal informal systems embedded in the company's operations. Informal systems include things such as daily interactions and task, the ways in which people hold meetings and the firmness of deadlines. Formal elements in

Addressing the common blockages. Lack of flexibility of leadership style. Propensity to undervalue the soft side. Lack of essential skills to make the change happen. Failure to make the change of priority. Failure to visualize the change period poor timing and directing and facilitating.

Are we aligned around the personal commitment each of us needs to make and creating new experiences for the organization? Are we aligned around how we agreed to hold ourselves accountable for the change?

Alignment checkpoints. Are we aligned around the urgency of the need to shift the way we think and act? Are we aligned around our cultural beliefs? Are we aligned around the actions we expect people to take? Are we allowed around the experience we're creating as a team and leading change?

No hallway discussions, openly share your perspectives with the group. Where all the hats you should be wearing during the discussion period remember the goal is to move forward as a team, we will not advertise the disagreement, but we will demonstrate our full support for the decision.

Ground rules for positive confrontation include focus on the issues and not the personalities. Avoid personal attacks. Separate your own opinions from the facts as you know them. Acknowledge your own hidden agendas. Make sure you can reinstate the views of others before you debate them. Don't interrupt. If you think someone is hiding out check in with the person and ask them what they think.

...and meetings people keep bringing up issues you thought were resolved, people complain, make excuses and blame others for progress, you observe a lack of ownership and enthusiasm for implementing a course of action that has been set, and people state that they disagree with the decision or direction that's already been taken.

How to tell when you are not aligned. Signs of a lack of alignment include people remaining silent and voicing their opinion when you call for a decision, you keep being surprised by the actions people take because they are inconsistent with the agreed upon direction, you don't see tangible progress on an issue when all rights you should be moving forward throughout the organization...