From the Hair Salon to the WI: what lockdown has taught some of us about change and adoption, and what’s left for the rest…

Exciting times last week as I landed myself a prized hair appointment! It also gave me a chance to consider what we now face as the ‘new normal’, how we’ve been forced to adapt, have already made some big changes and what lessons we can learn.

It was a strange new world in the salon and I was feeling unsure what to expect. The hairdresser had called me to re-arrange an appointment that was cancelled during lockdown. That gave her the chance to take me through what would happen, but also gave me the feeling of being looked after. I knew I had to wear a mask and take my own magazines, but I was not ready for the temperature gun as it was pointed at my forehead. The salon staff patiently walked me through their process and eventually relaxed me into a seat.

My hairdresser shared that she’d found it quite challenging trying to plan out what work would be like on her return. She had spent significant time working through scenarios in her mind, but then realised she’d need to accept that she would simply need to get back into work to really test out and adjust to the new processes. Three days in and she had a better pattern, more of a routine, a glimpse of a new way of working. And she knew she had to keep repeating, adjusting and tweaking to make sure that the new habits formed and for the pain of the change to be reduced.

This process is happening all around us.  At the beginning of the year, I was lucky enough to be selected as President of the Weybridge Women’s Institute. Little did I know what 2020 had in store! It has been an exceptional time for our committee, our 110 members and for WI members across the UK.

We quickly agreed to shift our member meetings online using Zoom and focused on re-aligning ourselves to keep everyone connected. We engaged various communications: email, Facebook, phone calls, post and door stop deliveries, to ensure all members knew what we were doing. Even those that haven’t felt they could engage – hindered either by technology and lack of use of it, or by over-use and ‘Zoom fatigue’ through work – have praised our approach, our enthusiasm, and the way we have continued to make them feel part of our WI and reassured we are there for each other.

Each month, we have more of our members choosing to join the new format Zoom meetings, and we’ve even gained new members in lockdown. We made the changes visible and interesting. Word got around that we were still up and running, and soon other WIs made contact asking for help. Of course, I obliged with explanations, demonstrations, helpful links, copies of templates we’d used, and moral support and encouragement. Giving them the support they needed and letting them know I was there if they needed me gave them the boost they needed to change.

This is all good stuff, but as I hear about members and other groups who have not yet embraced the technology needed to engage, I feel sad. Let’s face it if they don’t feel that burning platform and the need to change now, will they ever? And if not, won’t they just fall further behind and in danger of being more isolated. Of course, we continue to call members who have not attended our online meetings so we have not given up hope just yet…

Both of these scenarios give us great insight into what is needed to successfully land change, encourage adoption to new ways of working and to form new habits. Here’s some top tips for organisations large and small going through change:

1. Outline the vision and the new beginnings, if people can imagine themselves in the ‘new normal’ they will start to think about what’s needed to continue to achieve their goals in that new way of working.
2. Make the target goal as clear as possible, as early as possible. This gives people time to adapt and move through the change curve.
3. Treat people with care. Identify very important stakeholders if you need to. Open a feedback channel, so you can receive and respond to questions and feedback proactively.
4. Cater for different learning styles, providing a variety of information delivered using different communication methods to reach all of your audience.
5. Change is hard, accept that and reassure others that you know they need your support to get through it and that it’s OK to ask for help.
6. Provide support groups – advocates, early adopters, early experts – and collaboration or communication channels so people can support each other.
7. Provide a safe environment for people to play and experiment without judgement.
8. Change means a drop in productivity in the short term. Allow time for routines to establish and new habits to form.
9. Measure adoption so you know when performance levels are meeting or exceeding those pre-change.
10. Keep at it. The laggards will either start to see that they are being left behind and decide they have to embrace change and join in, or they will never make it. An honest private conversation with a detracting voice might be worthwhile.

Finally, accept that it’s sad but true that some people just won’t adopt change. Rest assured if you can successfully deliver change across your organisation, then you can significantly minimise the number of laggards you are left with. Leaders need to manage these people most resistant to adopting change through ongoing guidance, communication and measurement – done well, over time some of these laggards will then surprise you and finally adopt the new ways of working – and when this happens it’s very rewarding.