(By Alec Drake) The 1969 Beatles lyric in “Across the Universe” says, “nothings gonna change my world.” How can that be true? 1969 was a year of tremendous change; we landed on the moon and went to Woodstock. In 2023 the rate of change is mind-blowing, and we are hard-pressed to cope, so what can we do?
We all react to change on our terms. Some resist anything different from what they think is under their control. Some people are blind to what is happening around them, and some ignore what can help them. In the business world, change is rampant, driving the economy and disrupting simultaneously, affecting millions of workers and slapping us in the face.
Many people fear change, and I work to be the opposite, running to change as a path to growth. We can all agree that dealing with change is not always fun. My positive outlook on change comes from an expectation that after all the disruption, things will be better. I admit that sometimes I get tired, as everyone does, since change is constant.
The Pros And Cons Of Change Are Well Documented
We only have to recall phrases bantered around to recognize the contrasts in how we see change. A change is going to do you good. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Change or die. Change is the road to growth. We can even go back to 500 BC to Heraclitus, who wrote, “ Nothing endures but change.”
Buddha said, “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” ― Goodreads.com
So, my change experience can be very different from your perspective. While the choir of voices around us proclaims what is changing, maybe nothing will change your worldview. However, change has a way of finding you, grabbing your attention, and forcing you to pay attention.
How Do We Manage Change Thrust Upon Us?
Legacy business models like print, radio, and television have been turned on their heads and scrambling to catch up to change. Recently, everyone working in new media channels like streaming and podcasting also felt the winds of disruption and change accelerated by the pandemic. The rate of change is so fast now that companies can pop up and disappear before we know they were created or had time to subscribe.
Managing change in sales organizations that drives revenue to keep companies afloat is crucial. Charles Milofsky and Carl E. Huffman, Jr. described specific behavioral styles and a strategy to manage change as contributors in the book Thriving on Change in Organizations, edited by Rick Crandall.
Milofsky and Huffman suggest three categories of individuals that must be managed through change: Encouragers who readily accept change, Resistors that fight change, and Non-Committals who need to be convinced. The manager’s goal is to support the Encouragers to keep morale high, team them with Non-Committals, and keep the Resistor busy and isolated from Non-Committals.
The self-esteem of Non-Committals is low, so they will need individual nurturing to win them over. The Resistors will demand the most attention from managers and, in time, will be swayed by the majority. Managing change is complicated, and this strategy could be helpful as one process. Regardless of how we feel about change as managers, we must become skilled in helping our teams navigate the constant winds of change.
Summary
The business world is in constant flux, with change driving the economy and disrupting industries, and people react very differently to change. While some resist or ignore change, others embrace it as a path to growth. Managing change is crucial for sales organizations to operate at high levels and drive revenue. Strategies to manage different behavioral styles include supporting encouragers, convincing non-committals, and keeping resistors busy and isolated from non-committals is one path to better change management.
Alec Drake writes on revenue management and sales improvement strategies. You will find more articles in his “Sales Success Library” at Alecdrake.com. Alec is also the founder of The Radio Invigoration Project (T.R.I.P.) You’re invited to join this new LinkedIn group supporting radio sales. Contact Alec at [email protected]. Read Alec’s Radio Ink archives here.
