Pm change agents_v_1.4

1. PMs - change agents
of the Organization
Khaarthigha Subramanian
Thoughtworks Technologies Pvt. Ltd

2. •Drivers of Change
•Why PM’s need to be change agents?
•Characteristics of Change agents?
•Where can PM’s act as change agents?
•How PM’s could act as change agents?
Outline

3. Drivers of Change - need for
“Managers as change agents”
Changing expectations of Manager’s responsibilities

4. Why Change is Inevitable?
Regardless of the market an enterprise is operating in, or how successful it
has been in the past, change is an inevitable factor in the life-cycle of any
enterprise:
• Change is driven by factors within the enterprise itself, such as the wish
to reposition the enterprise within a market, or to implement a new
business model, to merge with another enterprise, or to expand into a new
market,
• Change is driven by factors external to the company, such as market
rivalry, disruptive technologies, demographic changes and new
government regulations.

5. Drivers for Change
Challenging role of Leaders to create “Firm of the Future”

6. Firm of the Future
• Scale , Speed and customer intimacy
• For firms of the future, scale will still offer potential benefits, but the
dynamics of scale, speed and customer intimacy are changing. Firms will
need to adopt new measures and tools for delivering customer intimacy
and speed.
Assets vs. ecosystems
• Today, firms are defined by the assets they own and control. In the future,
firms will be defined by the ecosystems—the assets and the
partnerships—that they control.
Capital gets a reset
• The Firm of the Future will see the emergence of new ownership models
to enable longer-term perspective. As we transition away from the
Shareholder Primacy Era, we will see longer holding periods for private
companies and more concentrated ownership for public companies.

7. Challenging roles of Managers
Professional managers vs. mission-critical roles
• To succeed in the future, companies will need to adopt a clear mission and identify the roles that
are most central to delivering it. We call these the mission-critical roles.
• Companies will need to adopt a clear mission and identify the roles that are most central to
delivering it. All too often today, the professional managers, rather than mission-critical roles, are
at the center of the firm.

8. What are the changes that
we see or want to happen
around us ?
Write top 3 changes that comes to your mind… (that are progressive)

9. Example
•System:
• Internal
HR Policies
Recognition
Rewards

10. Example
•We need to change the way we work with
clients:
Challenge the status quo & move to a better
spot
Channel the investment of strategic needs &
priorities

11. EXAMPLES

12. Different aspects of Organizational changes
• Operational
 Delivery
 Sales
 Marketing
 Administration
• People & Policies
 Recognition
 Rewards & Retentions
• Business Services
 Consulting
 Outsourcing
• Community
• Industry
Project
Mgmt.
People &
Policies
Delivery &
Customer
Relationship
Culture
Knowledge
& Capability
Community
Business
Operations
& process

13. Why do we think these
changes are essential ?
Write why those top 3 changes that came to your mind as important…

14. How does the change
connected to the role?
Write the overlap of PM’s/Delivery Principal /Lead’s responsibilities
touching these spheres…

15. Integrating change Mgmt. and Project Mgmt.
Shared objective
• When management and change management are integrated, the efforts of both can be focused toward a
singular objective—improving the performance of the organization by successfully implementing a change that
delivers the intended results and outcomes.
Proactive steps
• When change management is integrated into the project management steps, the efforts to lead the people side
of change can identify and mitigate risks in a more proactive manner, address anticipated obstacles and
resistance and build commitment and buy-in for the change.
Sequencing and alignment
When technical/organizational activities and people activities are integrated, the right steps can be taken at the
right time in the project lifecycle to help employees embrace the change and produce the right outcomes for the
project.
Exchange of information
• Integrating change management and project management activities improves the flow of information.
 the integrated approach helps ensure that impacted employees are receiving the appropriate messages.
 it helps ensure that the project team receives effective feedback on adoption, usage and reaction to the
change.

16. Change agents -“The Law of Few”
As Malcolm Gladwell - in his book, “The Tipping Point“, he states:
“The success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on
the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social
gifts.”

17. Agents of Change
These provide a direction for how to go about reaching a tipping point

18. Power of Context
The Law of Few
Human Beings are very sensitive to the
environment or the context we operate in.
Through the right settings and with
sharing the context, you can influence the
behavior of your target audience

19. (change agents) – People who act as catalysts for change…

20. • Clear Vision It is essential to note that a clear vision does not mean that there is one way to
do things; in fact, it is essential to tap into the strengths of the people you work with and
help them see that there are many ways to work toward a common purpose.
• Patient yet persistent – Change does not happen overnight and most people know that. To
have sustainable change that is meaningful to people, it is something that they will have to
embrace and see importance. Most people need to experience something before they really
understand that, and that is especially true in schools.
• Asks tough questions – It would be easy for someone to come in and tell you how things
should be, but again that is someone else’s solution. When that solution is someone else’s,
there is no accountability to see it through. It is when people feel an emotional connection to
something is when they will truly move ahead.
• Knowledgeable and leads by example –leaders have “character and credibility”; they are not
just seen as good people but that they are also knowledgeable in what they are speaking
about.
• Strong relationships built on trust – All of the above, means nothing if you do not have solid
relationships with the people that you serve. People will not want to grow if they do not
trust the person that is pushing the change8. The change agents I have seen are extremely
approachable and reliable.

21. Few techniques could be…
• Multigenerational Influence
• Cultural Intelligence
• Entrepreneurial Attitude
• Technology
• Being Strategic About Change
• Process Changes
• Driving Bottom-up initiatives

22. How you PMs could be
change agents on these
aspects
How do you think you can help catalyze the change in a different way ?

23. From
Professional managers
to
the mission-critical Leaders

24. References
• https://www.prosci.com/change-management/thought-leadership-
library/integrating-change-management-and-project-management
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2014/03/24/every-leader-must-be-a-
change-agent-or-face-extinction/3/#338c0a786cf8
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2013/07/30/the-12-habits-of-highly-
collaborative-organizations/2/#5da12a63e398
• https://www.forbes.com/2010/09/08/change-strategy-management-leadership-
managing-human-capital-10-steps.html
• Catalyst: http://georgecouros.ca/blog/archives/3615
• http://www.bain.com/story/firm-of-future/index.html -> Firm of Future
• http://georgecouros.ca/blog/archives/3615 -> Law of few
• http://www.productiveflourishing.com/maven-connector-or-salesperson-whats-
your-archetype/

25. ANNEXURE