Maintain momentum for change

Saturday, July 21, 2012

IMPLEMENTING change can be a long and exhausting process and it's easy to lose momentum along the way, but a few deliberate steps can help keep up the energy level, says Harvard Business Review.

When implementing change, it's crucial to communicate short-term wins to motivate people to stick with it. But not all near-term successes are created equally.

Pick milestones that are:

1. Visible. People need to see firsthand that their hard work is making a difference.

2. Concrete. Ensure that the wins are real and that you're not declaring victory prematurely.

3. Unambiguous. Small gains, such as conducting a productive meeting or resolving a scheduling discrepancy, are not short-term wins. Pick things that show real results and are indisputably relevant.

The Management Tip of the Day offers quick, practical management tips and ideas from Harvard Business Review and HBR.org (http:\\www.hbr.org). Any opinions expressed are not endorsed by Reuters.

Today's management tip was adapted from the Harvard ManageMentor Online Module: Change Management.Reuters


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