Change: How to get your team to buy in

I was devastated.  The US and Canadian exchange rate was plummeting. I could not believe what I saw: Even though we were growing fast, we were still losing $12,000 a month. We had increased our pricing, but the rate was still dropping and with more than $300,000 of payable each point meant another $3,000 in losses. Multiply that by 46 points and you get the idea of how dire it was... We had to cut down on staff just to recuperate on damages for previous sales. My manager had an idea: What if everyone chipped in temporarily by falling to a 4 day week to save 20% on salaries? It would save 1 or 2 jobs but would hurt everyone. How were we going to get everyone's buy in on this change?

A long time ago, I had read that there are 4 crucial steps to get a successful buy in. Here are those steps and how I used them in this difficult change:

1. Listen to the pain associated to that change

   I announced that we were in a precarious financial situation and that I had no choice of cutting back positions (on top of increasing our prices), but I was proposing a team 20% cutback on our work week. All I did then was to listen. The team voiced understandable issues: most of us live on a pretty steady budget. A 20% cutback, even if temporary, goes beyond stopping your savings for a while. I made sure to let the conversation continue until everyone could express their feelings and fears.

2. Convert that pain into a real gain

   The discussion moved on:  Summer was at our door, and a slow period for our business. In the past, members would ask for days off (even without pay at times) to enjoy a longer weekend here or an outing there. We all strive for more time with our family. Our discussion veered to what positives would come from this. Despite the temporary loss of revenue, there was the hope of more time at home. Also, members realized that no one would be cutback indefinitely. We were all saving at least a job, if not two. That was a powerful gain for a team that is strongly knit.

3. Affirm your support

   Team members are usually very resilient. Adversity is the lot in life. However, as a leader, you must state clearly how change brings difficulty. Your team needs to hear you acknowledge it and how you will be supportive, in words and in actions. In our particular case, I obviously had to take the same salary hit but also committed to halt the cutback as soon as we hit a certain revenue target. I would support in any way I could.

4. Followup and recap

   A very important element is to actually followup and recap the change that occurred. We all need a sense of closure: Did the change happen as expected? Were the pains as bad as anticipated? Did the gains really occur?  It does not matter if it turned out better or worse, what matters is that there is a followup and recap. An opportunity for the team to revisit the change. A few weeks into the cutback, we had an informal team discussion. Some players had the chance to complete a project at home they had postponed. Someone's pay had not reduced by much because of a tax bracket change. Everybody's wallet was hurting but we knew we were taking one for the team.
    

Once this ordeal passed, I was in awe. Nobody left the team during the cutback, moral seemed to have kept up and we were back in business at full speed a few weeks later. I think it was because we clearly defined the change before it happened, listened to everyone's comments and grievances, converted those in positive gains, affirmed our support in words and action and finally recapped a few weeks later. That experience and change management actually helped reinforced the team spirit. We also knew we had each other's back. For real.

What is a change you are fearing to bring about in your team? Could you use these steps?

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