Leadership balances the emotional, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions of a personality. In some leaders one dimension predominates, while others exhibit a balance of two or three dimensions. The CQ of a team or an entire organization is a compilation of the individual CQs of its members. Groups function better if they understand their CQs both quantitatively and qualitatively. INTRODUCTION:WHAT IS CHANGE INTELLIGENCE? Thousands of hours of research and hundreds of books published on the subject of organizational change have failed to improve the success rate for major change programs. Whether a corporate restructure, a merger, a new product launch, or other program that demands rethinking and reworking, the success rate still falls below 30 percent. To improve this woeful statistic, leaders need to better understand how they approach change themselves. The Change Intelligence (CQ) system provides a tool for self-assessment. Using it, a leader can find out how they balance the “Heart, Head, and Hands” components: * Leaders who lead from the Heart connect with people emotionally * Leaders who lead from the Head connect with people cognitively. * Leaders who lead from the Hands connect with people behaviorally. No one type is ideal, but all leaders can succeed once they understand themselves clearly. People perceive change as a threat, something to be feared, not unlike death. The phases of human reaction to change are:
Denial
Resistance
Exploration
Commitment
CQ AND THE LIFECYCLE OF CHANGEChange happens in three stages: planning, doing, and sustaining. At the planning stage, Heart-oriented leaders should compensate for their tendencies by putting robust project planning methods in place. Head-oriented leaders need to make the effort to involve stakeholders and all facets of leadership in planning for change. Hands leaders also need to be mindful of stakeholders and aligning interests for change.At the “doing” stage, each leadership type can institute procedures to overcome their weaknesses. The Heart-oriented leader can use implementation checklists while the Head-oriented leader institutes a formal feedback process. To keep stakeholders and goals on their agendas, Hands-oriented leaders should use readiness and impact assessments with stakeholders. The same rules apply at the sustaining stage. Specific assessment, facilitation, or measurement tools can bridge any gaps in a leadership style. KEY CONCEPTS * Change succeeds only in about a third of cases because, despite an enormous amount of work on change management, change leaders do not understand their leadership styles. Once a leader understands their “Change Intelligence” (CQ), or style of leadership, they can use the appropriate tools to manage change. * Leadership balances the emotional, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions of a personality. In some leaders one dimension predominates, while others exhibit a balance of two or three dimensions. Any style can be effective with a clear self-assessment and the right tools. * The Coach leads from the heart, connecting with people emotionally, thereby ensuring deep commitment to change. Although this affective style is fundamental to any successful change, it is not sufficient. Coaches need to be sure that they do not let consensus building and a distaste for conflict prevent them from moving forward. Both Champions and Facilitators share the Coach’s high “Heart” score but also lead through cognitive and behavioral dimensions, respectively. * The CQ of a team or an entire organization is a compilation of the individual CQs of its members. Groups function better if they understand their CQs both quantitatively and qualitatively.
For More information and insights get in touch anubha@prism-global.org
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