Peter Atkinson: The Skinny on Change

MOTION LEADERSHIP

THE SKINNY ON BECOMING CHANGE SAVY

by Michael Fullan

Michael Fullan begins this, not coincidentally, thin book by defining the skinny on change – “the key insights that leaders need to know about understanding and working with change.”

The first key insight that Fullan elaborates on is his answer to the “too-fast-too-slow” dilemma, which is think relationships first. A leader needs to attend first to new relationships with his staff – “careful entry”, listening, and fact finding before moving forward with a new initiative. This is simple but important advice, as it is too often the case that reform movements die a quick death because leaders fail to build confidence and trust with their staffs before launching a new initiative. So, a leader needs to first slow down and build relationships “in order to gain greater acceleration later.”

Simon Breakspear's phrase effectively captures
Fullan's point on the relationship between trust and change

Next, Fullan reminds leaders to “honour the implementation dip” that usually occurs early on in the change process. Respecting the dip means both empathizing with staff who struggle when the “cost-benefit ratio is out of whack” at the onset of the initiative and persevering resolutely with the plan.

There is also advice to “beware the fat plan”, and instead, go with the one-page plan that evolves over time. Other advice offered by Fullan includes focusing on changing staff behaviour first before concentrating on changing their beliefs, constant communication during the implementation process, and encouraging risk-taking by staff.

On the last point, I’m proud to say, Fullan uses as a case in point the transformational work of Jamie McCracken, past Director of Education with the Ottawa Catholic School Board:

As soon as he became director, Jamie set out to change the culture. [of the board]
He consulted widely and announced three priorities – success for students, success for

staff, and stewardship of resources. These priorities have remained the same for the

past seven years. To pursue the goals, Jamie made it clear that people should try new

things and learn from their experiences. Risk taking as learning became the district’s

modus operandi. ... there was a license to innovate and problem solve. Today, Ottawa

[Catholic] is the highest performing large district in Ontario in literacy and numeracy....

(p. 30)

Jamie McCracken - former Ottawa Catholic
Director of Education

Fullan devotes a chapter to the key change theory idea of connecting peers to purpose. He begins this chapter by acknowledging that “Top-down change doesn’t work – people resist when leaders try to tighten things up”, and that “The track record for bottom-up change is not any better.” Instead, he maintains that the best recipe for successful change is to “get peers to do it.” The leader’s role is to facilitate and cause peers to interact and also to participate him\herself as a co-learner in the process, respecting the expertise of others. The skinny here, states Fullan, is “that nothing succeeds like collective capacity.”

http://vimeo.com/10130233

Another point made is to load on the capacity building during the change process and go very easy on judgmentalism. To achieve this in education, Fullan recommends the instructional rounds concept of Harvard University’s Elizabeth City and Richard Elmore, which involves classroom observations focused on “description before analysis, analysis before prediction, and prediction before evaluation.”

When it comes to learning, Fullan stresses that what really counts is what takes place between workshops, and that the only way to effectively build capacity is through learning in the regular workplace setting.