Mar 6, 2018
Do you ever think to yourself, “Wait, that worked for so and so that had the same challenge, why didn't it work for me?” I just had that experience yesterday with something I was working on. WTF right? And I think this is especially true when we are dealing with big challenges. I think part of that is the difference between being having change happen to you, and actually being a change leader. And that’s why I had Andy Sheppard, author of The Incredible Transformation of Gregory Todd, and a well-known expert in the area of helping organizations craft constructive change and to be leaders in change as well on Inside LaunchStreet. The conversation is all about change leadership and what it takes to get it done.
Key Takeaways:
[2:24] You might be surprised to know that Andy can insert a credit card into his mouth, both widthwise and depthwise.
[3:31] Why is managing change such an important skill right now?
[4:24] Andy believes that we can’t implement sustained change unless we know how to lead it. Andy’s specialty is extreme change, requiring both behavioral change and system change.
[8:06] Is change about managing through a specific change or about finding a way to leverage change in an ongoing way?
[9:05] Tamara reminds LaunchStreeters to identify change that is connected. It makes a difference when you take your role and figure out how to connect the dots. You must be looking at the connected whole.
[10:03] Andy believes that a pitfall we get into is trying to emulate what we observe rather than applying the principles of our own situation. Read about this in “How To Become The Toyota of Your Industry”. This can often create more problems than you can solve. Tamara reminds LaunchStreeters to put other’s best practices into your own context and take the principles out of them and not necessarily the tactics.
[13:51] Andy shares that a good change leader is able to look at the physical practices but also unseen changes. You also need to look at principles and have a process that is guided by your principles. The right roles and responsibilities of who’s leading the change must be examined. Andy highlights an experience about how a CEO’s questions set him up for successful change.
[17:24] How does the culture determine if change will be successful?
[20:26] Tamara cautions LaunchStreeters and those leading change not to rush into it. Think about how it’s going to impact others not only today but down the road.
[23:46] Listen in to find out why you need some sense of urgency in change. How does inertia kill our change efforts?
[25:08] Andy took the IQE Assessment to determine his innovator archetype. His archetype is experiential futuristic. Experiential learners learn in motion. You innovate by doing. Futuristic is all about tomorrow. You are ten steps down the road. Andy is great about change management because he’s all about doing but also thinking about the implications of change.
[28:03] Andy’s book, The Incredible Transformation of Gregory Todd, is a business book written as a novel. This helps you to be immersed in a situation so that you can go apply everything in a live environment.
[31:01] Andy hopes that readers of his book come away with a flavor of what it means to lead change and practice everything together.
[33:42] Connect with Andy at AJSheppard.com and on Linkedin.com/in/ajsheppardchangeleadership.
[34:07] Andy advises LaunchStreeters to be prepared to unlearn everything you already know about change. Challenge your own assumptions. He shares a personal experience about managing change.
[37:53] Tamara reminds listeners that you can all be change leaders. Look at the blogs and podcasts on LaunchStreet.com to get started.
If you are ready to:
get buy-in from key decision makers on your next big idea
be a high-impact, high-value member that ignites change
foster a culture of innovation where everyone on your team is bringing innovative ideas that tackle challenges and seize opportunities...
Join us on LaunchStreet — gotolaunchstreet.com
Mentioned in This Episode:
The Incredible Transformation of Gregory Todd: A Novel about Leadership and Managing Change, by A J Sheppard