By Debbie Blagsvedt, CSM, LSSGB
A few weeks ago, I attended a networking event for Junior Achievement of Sacramento sponsored by the Sacramento Business Journal.
Dream Big & Reach Your Potential
Junior Achievement of Sacramento offers volunteer-delivered, kindergarten-12th grade programs to foster work-readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy skills. Junior Achievement uses experiential learning to inspire students in our community to dream big and reach their potential.
Walking Down Memory Lane
Walking through the doors, memories of my involvement with Junior Achievement in high school came flooding back. Listening to business leaders at the ripe old age of 16, I recall feeling a sense of excitement and curiosity about what it would mean to “reach my potential.”
The concepts introduced over 40 years ago still resonate with me today in my role as an OCM consultant as I work with organizations and encourage them to, “dream big and reach their potential.”
Major organizational change is about transformation—it’s a process of profound and radical change that takes an organization in a new direction and drives them to reach their potential.
So, what can organizations do to bring the lofty idea of dreams and potential into reality? Consider adopting these concepts when embarking on your next change initiative:
Change Initiative Tips
1. Collaborate on the vision. A vision is an essential part of any change initiative—and something that’s recommended by all the change management methodologies.
Without a vision, organizational change efforts can lead people in circles or question the organization’s sanity.
A well-developed vision helps boost urgency and maintains focus on the future.
Effective visions start with senior leadership imagining the future—but it doesn’t stop there.
Creating a vision requires collaboration with key stakeholders at all levels to ensure buy-in and shared ownership.
2. Embrace change as an opportunity: While working on a reorganization project, I asked workgroup members what excited them about the project. One member responded “opportunity,” which was followed by several heads nodding in agreement.
Change provides the opportunity to think differently, repair what’s not working, and build on elements that contribute to an organization’s success.
To go back to Junior Achievement principles, part of change being an opportunity is the commitment to “dream big.” Allow project teams to realize this opportunity through their engagement and involvement.
3. Believe that challenges can be overcome: Have a little faith, my friends! If we can land a man on the moon or develop a hand-held device that provides answers to the most obscure questions in seconds, then organizations can overcome formidable challenges.
Leaders must put their trust in staff to lead the charge.
In order to develop solutions to challenges, an effective approach is to have those closest to the challenge together work together with people who are not.
Engaging the right people at the right time with the right skills and attitude can bring an end to what was once a daunting barrier.
Final Thoughts
It was an honor to be back at my former Junior Achievement stomping grounds—and to be reminded that no matter our age, job, or current project, we can always use support to help us achieve our big dreams.
Does your organization need change management support? Contact us at info@kaipartners.com to learn more about how we can help your organization meet its goals!
About the Author: Debbie Blagsvedt is an Organizational Change Consultant with over 25 years’ experience in change management, performance management, process improvement, training, and facilitation. She has a worked in both the private, public, and non-profit sectors in industries that include health, legal, financial, social services, high tech, and transportation. She currently works as an Organizational Change Consultant with KAI Partners on assignment with a public sector agency. Debbie is passionate about collaboration among teams which she believes leads to high employee satisfaction and is equally fascinated with the rapid-fire speed of change and what it means for organizations today. Debbie grew up in the bay area but now considers Sacramento her home. She has many interests from home projects to wine tasting, volunteering, witnessing the changing face of Sacramento, and going on new adventures with her family and friends…Not to mention nightly walks and occasional mountain hikes with her dog, Emmett.