Vision. In the present environment, the word vision can deteriorate into a mere buzzword, which has lost its import and impact to influence the future of the organization. We don’t think that the importance of having a vision has diminished. On the contrary, we believe that its importance has increased and that your vision of the future you are working toward is crucial to the success of your company. As a result, we spend time with the partners/owners/managers discussing vision in order to uncover it and make it clear.
The vision is not meant to be a “statement” that is put in a drawer and never referred to. Rather, we view it as the ground and blueprint for any and all future activity. It is the centerpiece that orients all decisions and actions. The vision describes the future you want to bring to reality.
Your vision serves a guide to future decisions and actions. It brings consistency, unity, integrity and coherence to the whole organization. If there is an impasse or if there are questions about what to do or what has been done, very often these questions are answered by referring to the vision. It puts the whole organization on the same page.
Hand in hand with the vision goes an explicit set of values. Talking about vision, about what is important, inevitably leads to what values the organization stands for. Once these are articulated and disseminated, everyone within the organization is guided by the same values and aligned toward a common purpose.
We believe that you can't improve the business without improving the owner, and you can't bring greater freedom and happiness to the owner without re-shaping the business.
So, the business owner has to be fully committed to change and must have a clear vision picture of what the business should look like after the disruption of the change process has concluded. In order to be successful, the change process must bring everyone in the business along together, in the same direction and with the same momentum.
The site picture – the vision - that the owner maintains for the future of the business must include some basic elements. 1) Absolute clarity is imperative; you have to be clear about your understanding of it; only then are you more able to clearly communicate it to others. 2) Tangible: a vision must be real and concrete; something that people can touch, feel, and become engaged in personally. 3) Succinct: a vision must be concise, brief and free of details. 4) Persuasive: A compelling vision moves the people to action. It leads them into a future where they would not go on their own.
Managing a change of vision
We’ve established what a vision needs to have. Now let’s discuss how and why the owners vision has to be communicated enthusiastically and convincing enough for staff to own it personally.
Managing change is critical in an age where customers demand more for their money; competition is in relentless pursuit, and technology changes weekly. How do you respond to the risk of employees standing in the way of your vision – your new values? Do you spend a significant amount of time managing employee perceptions about how you aim to reshape your business? Of course you do, but it can be challenging.
Business owners often see change as a project that can be handled by a series of clearly defined steps. This perception arises because the owners are usually buried in the realities of business pressure and recognize that organizational changes must occur. The vision and the objectives are so clear in their own minds, they assume staff will understand change is necessary and will support it. Owners fail to understand that employees seldom perceive change with the
same clarity and determination as they do.
Employees may be skeptical, since cultural change is based on a corporate perspective, not on individual needs, each of which is different. Fear and concern center around compensation, job security, sense of worth, perception by others, position and social patterns. Employees may not be confident the organization will properly manage the transition to a new vision and values. They may be afraid there’s a lack of support while moving to a new job, if they have one at all.
Staff must first know what is happening, when it will happen, and how they will be impacted. Employees must believe they will get the training, knowledge, information and authority to manage performance affecting the products and services they deliver.
Change management must have strong, credible leadership and sufficient time and resources for high levels of communication, information gathering, participation, collaboration, education, training, and appropriate incentive and reward systems.
It’s one thing for business owners to have a great vision, but it’s an entirely different scenario to make that new vision real for an entire organization. If your vision has real substance, as we’ve discussed, you can and will persevere through the pain of lasting change.
For more on how to drive your company to success, visit Powerhouse Learning or contact Brandie Hinen at brandie@powerhouselearning.com.