|
| "We all felt extremely supported in that we knew we shouldn’t be afraid to try things, to make mistakes, and to learn from them." |
 |
|
|
|
|
We have been at the centre of the development of remodelling in schools, colleges, local authorities and other organisations over the past five years. In her book Creating Tomorrow: Planning, developing and sustaining change in education and other public services (2008) Dame Pat Collarbone, one of our directors, describes it’s origins and successes.
Our emphasis is always on outcomes that are of immediate and strategic relevance to you and this practical aspect has always been crucial to the success of remodelling.
The focus of our work is always on the rational, emotional and political aspects of change. We have a robust process and use appropriate transferable tools and techniques.
How people react to change
The change curve is not exclusive to the remodelling process. It is an explanation of human reaction during any change, whether it is personal or professional. However, by linking the remodelling process with the change curve we acknowledge the emotional impact of change, which makes it easier to identify periods when people may be at their most challenged and when support, is most required. We do not assume that every person will be affected in exactly the same way or at exactly the same time. What we do predict, though, is that everyone will go through the same emotional process. The important thing is that having experienced the lows of the change challenge they go on to experience the highs of actual achievement.
This emotional dip – a consequence of a mix of rational, political and emotional factors – typically occurs shortly after the beginning of the change process when the range, depth and implication of the changes that need to be made become fully apparent. The dip does bottom out and people do move into a more positive and enthused stage, especially once solutions start to be developed and plans for action are underway.
Without expert support to help people understand the emotional dip and, rather than be daunted by it appreciate it as a creative part of their change process, organisations can lose heart and compromise their ambitions – at best snatching at instant solutions which have little if no relevance to their core issues and requirements and so are doomed to disappoint. |
|
