Digital Change and Conflict

Introduction

Many years ago,  as a young business analyst, I was asked to help run a programme management office on a multi-million pound Europe wide CRM implementation.  The overall programme manager had walked out following a serious of disputes. I joined a team of consultants from a global management consultancy.  Nothing had prepared me, or the other consultants, for the conflict and relationship breakdowns we found ourselves in the middle of. 

This began my lifelong interest in why change programmes fail and how we train our minds for the challenge of change.

Digital Change

Integrating new technologies into areas of a business can fundamentally change processes, workload, skill demands and culture. This can constitute seismic change. Where there is change, there is resistance to change. And where there is resistance to change, there is conflict. 

What is Resistance?

Our ancestors gathered and hunted food and evolved behaviours that helped them respond to the challenges of survival in unstable environments. They were driven to find comfort and shelter to survive, and respond to threat by fleeing or by aggression confrontation.

Out of pure survival, the unknown was a threat until it was understood it wasn't; an animal, a rival tribe, the elements.  Our ancestors passed their evolved brains to us; wired for survival, comfort and often hostile to the unknown.

Most jobs today don't involve being chased by predators. However our brains and bodies are the same; much as we tell ourselves rationally that it's just new technology or it's just this new person or it's just this new process, if the body is not happy it will produce cortisol and want us to step away. Our mind will comply; this is resistance.

Resistance and Conflict

A change project will not rise to the level of its ambition, it will fall to the level of the learned responses of those experiencing change. Resistance to change may take the form of hostility, passive aggression, non-compliance, outward aggression, blame, judgement and absence.  These repsonses to change are often poorly managed. An adversarial culture develops. 

Digital Change and Managing Conflict 

Any quick Google search will produce a wealth of conflict management tips and resources on topics such as: open dialogue; mediation; training; feedback mechanisms; leadership.  All are valuable and highly skilled disciplines.  

At Ethical ERP we believe in:

A Vision: Conflict, and the prospect of it, should be addressed at the outset.  A vision of success has to include a vision of what failure looks like.
A Plan: Every change initiative should be a measurable project plan with clearly defined scope and outcomes. One outcome should be establishing the right climate for change and managing conflict.
Mindset: Any leader or team member is a role model and role models model. Training on inner and interpersonal conflict resolution skills as a part of any digital transformation programme is the most cost-effective way of bringing everyone on board with the mission.
Community: Dualistic thinking leads inevitably to an 'us and them' culture. This thinking is prevalent on digital change programmes.  We believe in inclusive, mission driven communities.
Inclusive, mission driven communities of employees who enjoy being led by emotionally intelligent, transparent, supportive leaders and who trust the process of being led through change.

Impossible? Of course not.

Looking Ahead

Ethical ERP was established around the notion that high performing, mission-driven workplace communities are buildable. We developed our Change Mindset Programme to address this very challenge.

Businesses must be ready to embrace new technologies and methodologies as they arise. By fostering an environment of continuous learning, innovation, inclusivity, non-dualistic thinking and conflict management, companies can ensure sustained success.

The future of work is not ‘machines taking over’. The future of work is harnessing our ever-increasing understanding of the human mind to ensure people and technology have parity of esteem and learn better and better ways to work together.