Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

Hello, and welcome to my latest newsletter…

Well, it’s been another great week, working hard on a number of projects and also re-connecting with some amazing colleagues…

Are you ready for change?

Last week I was lucky enough to pop along to a great HR Leaders Breakfast over in the North West discussing The Employment Rights Bill arranged by Maureen Brown at Sullivan Brown Resourcing Partners - HR Recruitment Experts and lead by Melissa Scott and Tom Evans at DTM Legal LLP .

The interactive session focused on the Employment Rights Bill that the government announced a few weeks ago. While it has got a great deal of traction from the media (certainly when it was launched), it’s important to know that the bill is very much in consultation mode at the moment and to quote the Government anticipate “that the majority of reforms will take effect no earlier than 2026”

While still some time away, how are you planning on communicating this with your colleagues and what it may mean for them in the future?

My suggestion is to create a quick update to colleagues that will help with any questions they may have. Don’t be afraid to share this with your colleague representative teams or any forums that you have in your organisation so questions can be answered and people don’t make up their own minds on what they think it may mean for them.

Changes to the Worker Protection Act…

One change that is happening is the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 that has just come into force on 26 October 2024, to prevent sexual harassment of employees in the course of their employment.

To help the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has published ‘Employer 8-step guide: Preventing sexual harassment at work’ that can be accessed here.

Step two focuses specifically around how to engage your teams on this important change, while I’m hoping most organisations will be all over this, please do get in touch if you and your teams need any advice and help on how to land this in your organisation.

Which leads nicely onto this week’s subject…

Break it down!

This week’s focus area has been inspired by a conversation I had last week with a business leader who was asking for some support with how they communicate a large change in their organisation. They’d got a great strategy, but were wondering how they could bring it to life for not only their management team, but for their colleagues…

This is not uncommon, many teams and leadership teams are expected to navigate constant change and execute ambitious strategies, but how?

Start with Why…

Simon Sinek wasn’t wrong with his 2009 TED talk (watch it here). Starting with why is perhaps the most powerful thing you can do.

Why gives purpose, and is more than likely going to help your message land in the right way…

When people grasp the reason behind the strategy, they’re more likely to engage with and support it.

I don’t need to know all the detail right now!

A bit like I mentioned in last week’s newsletter… people don’t need to know every detail right away… Break your message down into smaller ‘easier to digest’ parts that will help people get it quicker.

If you’ve started with the why, you can spend the next few weeks building the rest of the detail over time…

While it may be an overused analogy, think of this process like building a house… You’re not going to start building a house focusing on all the fittings and fixtures in the house first, that can come later… Your focus at the start should be building the foundations… (you get the idea)

Get visual:

Words are great, but visuals are your best friend when it comes to sharing your plans…

Now, please don’t get me wrong – of course you’ll need to build out plans and explanations and scripts, but the most effective way of sharing a plan is via a visual or (better still) video.

If I think back to a successful change programme I helped to deliver, we took the time to create a series of short simple videos that broke down the plans and (more importantly) actions that colleagues needed to do to understand the change – guess what, the change went down perfectly!

Still not getting it? look at how Lego share complex instructions in a really simple way (I'm going to talk about this over the next few weeks - they're ace!)

Watch your language!

Jargon is not your friend, stop using complex words to share your message.

Language is so important when sharing a complex message, by using the right language in a clear and simple way you’ll get your message across so much better – and if you don’t need to use words, all the better!    

I’ve got a question…

Make sure that you have a way colleagues can ask questions, seek clarification and share feedback.

I always talk about the importance of two way communication, and any complex change should plan for questions and interaction. This builds understanding and helps colleagues feel empowered in the change that’s happening (they’re now part of the change rather than being done to)

Think about setting up Q&A sessions, briefings, interactive sessions where colleagues can share their thoughts and ideas. Creating dialogue will help your message land right and (more importantly) will drive engagement and involvement.

Keep the message flowing…

Don’t think that sharing the message once is going to do the trick… you need to keep the message going, so everyone knows about it.

Your message needs to be reinforced and shared at every opportunity, so colleagues are connected with it both before, during and after the change. Colleagues need to hear the same message multiple times, in different ways, before it truly sinks in.

Use different communication tools to share your message, and don’t just use the same methods each time… mix it up so your message lands right (and please don’t forget to keep it simple!)

In other news: Time to renew your spark?  

Over the last 20 years I’ve been lucky enough to work with so many different organisations, helping to build and develop internal communication strategies, lead on change programmes, M&A activity and create events that sparkle.

In the final quarter of the year, I’m launching a brand new product to help internal communication teams realise the potential that they have.

It’s called renew your spark and is a chance to press the pause button, create some time to think and review of current activities, plans and strategies (and also looks at communication tools too!).

If you'd like to know more about renew your spark (or any of my other programmes), please do get in touch.

Want to know more?

It’d be great to connect again! Maybe you’ve got a question or an idea, either way… let me know!  

Link to my website: www.sparkconsultants.co.uk

My LinkedIn profile: David Barber

Thanks, and speak soon

Dave