In episode 65 of The Woodard Report podcast, hosts Joe Woodard and Heather Satterley covered proven strategies and insights for leading organizational change. With businesses facing near-constant change, these are skills every leader needs.
As Woodard and Satterley discussed, fear is the biggest driver of resistance to change. People also balk due to pride, workload concerns, viability worries, resentment, and loss of control. To lead change effectively, focus on thorough preparation, proper implementation, and long-term sustainment.
Strong change leadership requires urgency, vision, coalition-building, and accountability. Celebrating small wins helps build momentum while reinforcing the change ensures it sticks. Getting buy-in across the organization is crucial, especially from top executives. Assigning a respected champion can help drive adherence.
Understand change readiness by personality – change agents vs. saboteurs – and power. Pair influencers with resisters to gently bring them along. Empathize with those struggling and help them adapt rather than imposing change.
Woodard and Satterley shared leadership lessons from the TV shows Foundation and Silo. The former teaches the dangers of “magic thinking” instead of data-driven decisions. The latter reminds us that unseen work can be critical, much like bookkeepers’ unheralded but vital contributions.
An excellent resource is David Allen’s Getting Things Done, offering focus through the “four Ds”: 1) Do it, 2) Delegate it, 3) Defer it, and 4) Delete it. Other insights come from quotes on being yourself vs. people-pleasing and pushing past “I don’t feel like it” toward greatness.
With preparation and empathy, leaders can guide teams through transitions. Listen to the full podcast episode and subscribe to The Woodard Report podcast on your favorite podcast platform.