The objectives of this short ten minute exercise -
- To learn a tool that will be helpful in work life
- To apply the learning
- To use this as a morning ritual to start a great day
Step 1 - the warm up
Keep your journal and the pen at hand
Sit in a relaxed position with an intent to go into a ‘flow state’ to learn something new
Take three deep, powerful breaths to lock in your focus and start the next step
Step 2 - the learning
About Kotter's 8-step change model
Dr. John Kotter introduced this model in 1995 through his book ‘Leading Change’. This model is a framework for managing organizational transformations. It emphasizes creating urgency, building coalitions, and integrating this change into culture.
Widely used in business, it draws from decades of research on effective change leadership and management.
Situations where this tool can be best used
- Organizational restructuring during mergers or acquisitions
- Digital transformation e.g implementing new technologies
- Cultural change e.g shifting company values/ behaviors to align with new goals
The top three mental muscles (competencies) developed by practicing this tool
Change Management - Understanding and applying a structured approach to leading change initiatives
Leadership - Developing a clear vision and strategy for change, and inspiring others to support and implement it
Communication - Effectively communicating the need for change, the vision, and the plan to stakeholders
A corporate story to understand the usage of this tool
Howard Schultz (Starbucks) story
The context
In 2008, Howard Schultz returned as CEO of Starbucks to address declining profits and a diluted brand experience. The global financial crisis and rapid expansion had led to a loss of focus on quality and customer experience, threatening the company’s market position.
Kotter's 8-step change model in action -
Create a sense of urgency - Schultz identified the existential threat to Starbucks' brand and financial health and communicated the need for immediate action
Build a guiding coalition - Schultz formed a leadership team with individuals passionate about Starbucks' mission. He also hired new talent to spearhead the transformation
Develop a vision and strategy - The vision focused on returning Starbucks to its roots of delivering high-quality coffee and a personalized customer experience
Communicate the vision - Schultz focused on “rediscovering the soul of Starbucks” in his constant communication through memos, town hall meetings …
Empower broad-based action - Schultz empowered employees (called "partners"). He kept all the 7,100 stores closed for a day only to retrain people on making the perfect espresso
Generate short-term wins - He launched Starbucks rewards loyalty program. He launched new, premium product lines. He used positive press to restore customer engagement
Consolidate gains and produce more change - He continued the momentum by focusing on technological innovation, such as mobile ordering and convenient payment systems
Anchor new approaches in the culture - Schultz embedded the company’s mission to “inspire and nurture the human spirit” into its culture. He emphasized ethical sourcing of coffee and corporate social responsibility, making these values integral to Starbucks’ identity.
Outcome - Within a few years, Schultz’s leadership helped Starbucks regain its financial stability, brand value, and customer loyalty
A story from the World Wars
My personal story
The context
As head of employee engagement, I had to create many employee events. The employees were always busy with their billable work. And their managers did not want to waste their time on non-billable tasks.
Therefore I had to use a lot of informal networks to make people available to participate in our events. I did not know Kotter’s model then. But had I known it, this is how I would have progressed.
Create sense of urgency - Create a pitch to show importance of employee engagement for individual managers so that they could relieve their team members for our events. I could have highlight how disengaged employees could lead to burnout, reduced productivity, and attrition (I did not do this actively)
Build a guiding coalition - Identify personal passions of senior management to include them in different teams. They could have driven the initiative forward (I did this only in phase 2)
Develop a vision and strategy - Clearly define what's in it for them (opportunity to use untapped talent/ unfulfilled childhood dreams) (I created events such as recognitions, dinner with CEO… etc.)
Communicate the vision - Regularly communicate the benefits of engagement through emails, town halls, sharing success stories of employees (I didn't do it using any documented communication strategy. It was more haphazard)
Empower broad-based action - We created champions for different communities. We gave them budgets and empowered them to design their events (I did this without knowing this model😀)
Generate short-term wins - Organized events like photography competitions, exhibiting paintings of employees’ spouses, pot-luck lunches, filmmakers’ competition on environmental issues, teaching computers to village students etc. etc. (I did it well; thanks to our champions)
Consolidate gains and produce more change - I could have used the momentum from early wins to push for larger initiatives positioning the drive as a strategic investment in workforce excellence (Well, there was a great opportunity to build our brand. However, we created amazing internal brand)
Anchor new approaches in the culture - I had studied the theory of multiple intelligences then. I could have captured employees’ top areas of intelligence in the employee database. This could have created a new orbit of employee engagement (e.g. singers, painters, dancers, people who loved teaching ….for CSRs in schools, pet lovers for taking care of stray dogs….)... anyway, someone reading this can pick it up from here
Step 3 - the reflection
Sit back, go down memory lane, think of various events in your work life where you could have used this learning.
If nothing comes to mind, think of a situation that would help you answer any one of these interview questions.
- “How do you handle resistance to change?” - Use step 1 and 2 to explain how you addressed ‘early’ resistance and built trust. Use step 4 to explain how you minimized ‘ongoing’ resistance through communication. Speak about quick wins (Step 6).
- “What strategies do you use to ensure a change is sustainable?” - Focus on Steps 7 and 8: e.g. Continuing to monitor progress and embedding the change into processes, anchoring the change in the company culture through recognition, reinforcement, and leadership behaviors etc.
- “How do you align teams with a new vision or strategy?” - Describe your strategy of communicating a vision (Step 4) and empowering your team to act (Step 5). Highlight how creating small wins and celebrating them (Step 6) helps build confidence and alignment
Step 4 - the practice
Apply your learning to the situation you selected above.
Create sense of urgency -
Build a guiding coalition -
Develop a vision and strategy -
Communicate the vision -
Empower broad-based action -
Generate short-term wins -
Consolidate gains and produce more change -
Anchor new approaches in the culture -
Step 5 - the victory lap
Celebrate your achievement for a minute. Maybe a quick victory lap doing some energizing exercise?
**
To those who felt, “Learning and applying these frameworks takes time, which is often scarce in a fast-paced work environment.” - Do you feel that the last ten minutes were worth the effort?
This exercise is not only about management tools. It’s about building a neural pathway at the start of the day. And it’s about my mantra for creating small daily acts of feeling successful and happy.
Don’t forget to carry this image 👇 in your mind. There could be a great situation where you may want to use the tool. Keep a log of all such situations. It will help you when you want to train someone.
My congratulations for your first dose of the day of success and happiness. Have a great day ahead.
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