Learning and Development’s Role in Organizational Change
Why does change fail? There are a lot of reasons, but most of them come down to people. And if we're talking about people, L&D needs to be involved.
That’s why on this episode of the podcast, I wanted to share the fastest way to organizational change and explore L&Ds role in change.
Listen to the episode or scroll down to read the blog post ↓
Key Points:
02:49 Why change initiatives fail
03:49 Creating a strategic people plan
07:33 Should L&D be involved in organizational change?
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Learning and Development’s Role in Organizational Change
Why does change fail?
Think about that for a moment.
Have you experienced an organizational change initiative that did not go as planned? What caused it to miss the mark? Was it a lack of leadership support or a lack of buy-in from staff?
There are a lot of reasons change can fail. But most of them come down to people. And if we're talking about people, L&D needs to be involved.
That’s why I wanted to share the fastest way to organizational change and explore L&D’s role in change.
In this blog post, we’re covering the following:
I work with nonprofits to create training and leadership development strategies that create the most good for their people.
And change is a big part of that.
I often say that training is always a change project because it's either being driven by a change or it's being used to drive a change. And I want you to leverage your position in L&D to help your organization see success.
1) Why Change Initiatives Fail
The statistics show that about 70% of change initiatives fail.
I'd argue that most of them fail because of people.
Change often fails due to:
A lack of leadership support
A lack of staff involvement
Poor planning
Poor communication
Change fatigue
Did you picture people as you read that list?
A lack of leadership support (PEOPLE)
A lack of staff involvement (PEOPLE)
Poor planning (processes and PEOPLE)
Poor communication (PEOPLE)
Change fatigue (because PEOPLE are humans and we can't do it all. Burnout is real)
So what is the fastest way to organizational change?
A strategic people plan that intentionally involves and connects people throughout the change process.
2) Creating a Strategic People Plan for Organizational Change
You may be wondering how L&D can help.
But I'm thinking, “How could we not?”
I worked with a client recently who was undertaking a change. They wanted a training that would help build the skills needed for the change to happen.
This is a huge win.
Change often requires new skills. So L&D can and should be at the table. But here's where it gets better. Once we're at the table, we can do so much more.
So here's what I did.
I worked with this client to create a series of live virtual training sessions. And yes, they taught some skills. But more importantly, they took people through the change process.
We spent time reflecting on the past, what worked and what didn't work. We allowed them to bring up the things that were presenting challenges for them. And we celebrated the things that were working really well. We learned from the past.
We invited the executive leader, who held this vision for the change, to a session to share what that vision was and why. The learners could hear firsthand and ask questions. And we allowed the learners to share their excitement for this vision, but also their hesitations and their fears.
We talked about what success would look like. And they had a chance for their voices to be heard.
We involved them in the change.
We also talked about the implications for their work. What does this mean for them? And that's where we started identifying the actions they would need to take to achieve this vision. And we were able to start incorporating skill-building for those actions.
We spent time building those skills. And we also provided wraparound support to help them test those new skills on the job.
In the final session, months after that first session, they reflect on how it all went. They can learn from their experiences and those of their colleagues. They can celebrate their wins and brainstorm solutions to their challenges because it's probably not going to go completely right the first time around. There will be things that go well, and there will be things that are challenging, and that's okay.
They can also start to make plans for how to integrate this change into their daily work or into the future, so it just becomes part of how they work.
3) Should Learning and Development be Involved in Organizational Change
Some people might question if L&D should be involved in organizational change.
And to that, I say, “How can we not be?”
We are the perfect piece of the puzzle. We can create that strategic people plan for your change initiative.
With our help in L&D, the organization can:
Maximize the perception of leadership support.
Maximize staff involvement so they feel heard and like they're part of the process.
Maximize planning as staff build their own processes to support the change.
Maximize communication
Minimize change fatigue.
Build skills.
L&D is the secret weapon to effective organizational change.
To hear the full conversation I had on the Learning for Good Podcast, scroll all the way up and tune into episode 84.
The Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective
Helping to change the world for good is hard enough as it is. Finding good support shouldn’t be difficult, too.
I know what it feels like to want someone to bounce ideas off of and to learn from, someone who really understands you and your work.
Nonprofit L&D leaders have been overlooked for too long. You need a place where you can meet like-minded talent development pros, learn from industry leaders and tech vendors, and find the support you need to make a real impact.
Thankfully, great nonprofit support is no longer hard to find or financially inaccessible.
Welcome to the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective – the only community specifically for nonprofit talent development professionals.
When you join this community, you will walk away with a new, diverse, and powerful network – and a sounding board for your staff development needs.
So if you're ready to exchange ideas and collaborate with your peers, come join the Nonprofit L&D Collective.
