Organisations must capture the ‘friendly data’ – information that will help them achieve their business aim – during change projects, according to a leading expert.
Linda Ackerman Anderson, co-founder of US consulting firm Being First, told delegates at Roffey Park’s Organisational Development Conference last week that this information could help to correct the course of projects and steer them in the right direction.
Ackerman Anderson, who has worked with many Fortune 1000 firms, said most senior executives liked to see a straight line from the current state of the business to the new vision. “But it doesn’t happen that way in practice,” she said.
“You can’t map out the whole process. How rapidly you recognise the friendly data, [correct your course] and let the organisation know, is the sign of a great leader.”
She added that HR’s job was to handle the human drama of change management projects.
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“If people are not willing to take [the change] on and play their part, then the project is worthless,” she said.
