Managing Transitions

The importance of William Bridges' message for our times

William Bridges’ classic, Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change is familiar reading to those of us who assist others with change, whether it be personal or organizational in nature. The core idea advanced by Bridges is that the desire to change is one thing, but the ability to change another. He says that change begins with needing to end something, which is never easy. But then things get even harder. To change means to adopt something new; new beliefs, new behaviors, new responsibilities, new working arrangements; and adopting something new is often a bit scary as you find your way. You may lack the skills and knowledge to do what you are trying to do, and you may encounter aspects of the new way of doing things that you don’t like at all. As you run into these difficulties, you experience the messiness of change; Rosabeth Moss Kanter, a Harvard Professor, says that, “Change is always a mess in the middle.” Bridges refers to this messy middle portion of change as the “neutral zone” since it’s just as likely that you will give up as it is that you will succeed. If you do succeed, you will encounter what Bridges refers to as a new “beginning” which is another way of saying that you haven’t yet fully arrived. You’re through the worst of it but you haven’t really settled comfortably into a new way of being.

The bigger the change, the more difficult it is to pull off, and the greater the risk involved, the more likely it is that you will either not begin at all or get stuck in the messy middle. After a period of slow progress followed by backward movement, you may decide to call it quits. You wouldn’t be the first to pull out of a failed merger or give up on your plans to set up a branch of your business in China. You feel terrible but part of you is relieved that you don’t have to keep trying. You reassess your opportunities and put your energy into something else.

These days, the number of transitions you are being asked to manage is substantial and growing. If you’re in the C-suite, your list probably contains something about understanding and applying artificial intelligence, reducing expenses, developing new sources of revenue, improving collaboration, creating a more positive culture, developing talent, implementing new systems, improving customer service, introducing agile ways of working, making acquisitions and deciding whether people should return to the office. If all these require ending something, entering into a messy neutral zone for a period of time, and then needing even more time to allow new ways of operating to settle in before their benefits can be seen, it can feel like a lot. Not surprisingly, this can wear on you and others in the top team, resulting in some worry, negativity and occasional bouts of grumpiness.

While it would be naïve to suggest that by looking at the upside of what is to be gained by these changes you can avoid occasional dips in your mood, energy and commitment, there’s no point in letting negative emotions make things worse than they have to be. Fortunately, Bridges offers some advice to get through it all. Here are some important points.

· Acknowledge the endings. Identify who is losing what and understand why they might be upset. Show some sympathy for their sadness and to the extent possible, compensate for their losses. Help people understand the why and do so more than once. Provide as much helpful information as you can and eventually, when the time is right, mark the end of the “ending” phase and the shift to a new way of working (even if it’s really just entering into the neutral zone). Make it clear that the ships have been burned and there is no going back. Honor the past but drive home the message that what is to come is necessary and it’s time to start making it happen.

· As you experience sliding into to the “neutral zone”, define it as a time of learning, creativity and opportunity. Cut people some slack for their mistakes and provide constant encouragement. Help people share stories of small wins and find ways for them to teach and support one another. Ask for lots of feedback on how things are going and act upon it whenever you can. Encourage people to experiment instead of insisting that there is only one new way to do things. Keep reassuring people that it’s going to be messy but that you are going to make it through.

As people are starting to get it, they are entering the “beginning” phase, which may seem odd given that they are nearing the end of the change process. Bridges wants to remind us that it’s not over until it’s over. Change isn’t complete until we aren’t thinking of the new way of doing things as the new way anymore. During the early days of the beginning, remind people of the purpose of the change. Give each person an important role to play such as learning a new skill or helping a peer who is struggling to adjust to the new approach. Realign incentives to reinforce the behaviors you seek and provide people with the tools and resources they need to do their new job. Listen to issues they encounter and if necessary, form task forces to address them. Even after you think the transition is complete, understand that change has a long tail and a few people may still be holding out. If you have given them enough time and they are never going to get on board, you may have to move them out or to another part of the organization for the good of everyone else.

If it’s you who is trying to change, understand that you need to go through the same process of ending (letting go), entering the messy middle of the neutral zone and eventually reaching the new beginning. Significant change can be accompanied by strong emotions. If you pretend that you can ignore them or try to race through the process without addressing them, they will come back to bite you. Grumpy you will show up at just the wrong time and something around you will break. Instead, slow down, take a few deep breaths, and tell yourself that no matter how hard it feels, you will get through it in time. Allow others to support you, be curious about what is going on in your heart and brain instead of being angry (What stage of change am I in? Why am I upset? What can I do to take another step forward?) and engage in things that make you happy to offset the hard work. When you reach the new beginning, reflect on what you did to get through the transition. Chances are, whatever you learned will come in handy soon.