As
I look back on events in my life that had an impact on how I view
the world I can honestly say that my father played a major role
in many of these lessons. The event described below has created
a lasting impression on me and affects how I view the change process
in my work. I hope that it affects yours.
It was a cold January
morning in Montana. Snow had fallen the night before, the air
was brisk and as is common in Montana winters it was an overcast
day. Dad and I had just finished breakfast and were trudging through
the new fallen snow on our way to the barn. We could see our breath
as we talked and waded through the knee-deep snow. Our project
for the morning was to harness up and drive a young draft horse
mare that had never been hitched to a wagon. It was also a first
for me. I had never witnessed this process firsthand but dad had
done it so many times before. He always looked forward to these
interactions with the horses and I could see the anticipation
in his face.
Many years before my
dad started raising Percheron draft horses and it was more of
a hobby than a business for him. Over the years he had accumulated
some cattle and horses and ran his ranch as a supplement to his
regular business. He typically had about twenty horses somewhere
on his ranch ground and would keep a few in the acreage behind
the house to work with in the winter. Whenever the hay bills got
too high he would sell a few but he never was excited about the
prospect. The horses were a part of the family and I believe he
grieved the loss. For him interaction with the horses was not
a chore but a labor of love and that's how he always approached
working with them.
The Percheron draft
horse is an imposing and majestic breed that can stand six feet
tall at the withers or shoulder, have a hoof the size of a dinner
plate, and can grow to weigh over a ton. Dad favored the Percheron
breed because they were typically taller and had few problems
with their legs and feet. In coloring, Percherons are either coal
black or a dappled gray that fades to white as the horse ages.
The grays were Dad's favorite and he had just recently purchased
this young gray mare to add to his collection. She was a fine
two-year-old with a well-proportioned head and body - a great
candidate for a pulling team.
As we entered the barn
I saw that dad had put a halter on her earlier in the morning,
brought her into the barn, and she had been eating hay placed
in the manger of the stall. It was obviously a new experience
for her. She was tense, her ears were back and she was anxious
about being confined in the small area. I was a little anxious
myself. I knew the power that a horse this size could generate
in a kick and my mind raced as I had visions of being kicked and
launched through the wall of the barn. The last thing I wanted
to see was a rodeo in this confined space. Because I was unfamiliar
with the breaking process I really had no expectation of what
would happen next. What I was privileged to see greatly surprised
me.
As he approached the
horse Dad started talking to her in a calm and reassuring voice
and made sure that she could see him. He came up to her head and
stroked her and began working back down her length, patting and
rubbing her sides. All the while she never stopped watching him.
Her sides nervously twitched as he worked his way down her length.
After several minutes he reached down and picked up one of her
front feet by the hair just above the hoof. He patted her leg
and worked her foot and foreleg back and forth and then he moved
to the other side of the horse and repeated it on the other front
leg. Next he worked his way toward her rear legs, stroking and
slapping her side lightly as he went. She nervously moved away
from him but he stayed right with her, stroking and rubbing her.
All the while he calmly talked to her, calming her with his voice.
Facing towards the
rear of the horse he positioned himself near her side and bent
over to pick up her rear foot. She resisted at first but gave
in quickly. He again repeated the same patting and moving process
he had done on the front legs. She offered less resistance as
he repeated the same process on the other rear leg. It was now
obvious that she was calmer because her nervous twitching had
greatly diminished.
The next thing my father
did astonished me. Grabbing a length of rope he gently tossed
one end over her back and let it slap her opposite flank. It startled
her a little and she moved away from him. He then slowly pulled
it over her back until it fell off. He then repeated the process
over and over from both sides all over her back and shoulder for
several minutes. When he could see that she was not reacting to
it any more he then touched and lightly tapped the rope to her
sides and rear legs. She was still apprehensive but could see
that the rope would not harm her. Then my father gently slipped
the pulling collar over her shoulders and coupled it together
around the base of her neck. She calmly accepted it.
The final steps were
just ahead. Dad took the harness from the wall and readied it
for placement on the mare. A pulling harness is a noisy combination
of leather straps, chains and connecting clasps that can weigh
over 75 pounds. In order to get her used to the noise, he shook
it several times allowing the chains and clasps to rattle noisily.
Then taking the harness in both hands, he slid it over her rump
and onto her back and shoulders. She jumped aside a little but
accepted the weight. Still talking to her he started connecting
the clasps and completed installing the harness. Finally he inserted
the bit into her mouth and connected the bridle around her head.
She chewed on the bit - trying to get used to the new sensation
in her mouth - but offered no other resistance.
It was now done. The
young mare just stood there, fully accepting the closeness and
weight of the harness and bridle. Little did she know that this
was opening a new chapter in her life that fulfilled her life's
purpose - to channel her massive strength to help her master.
Next she would be hitched up to a wagon for further training.
I will save that part of the story and its relevant lessons for
a future article.
Reflecting back on
the events of that morning I now can picture many parallels with
the work that I do today. That morning my father was initiating
and managing a great change process in the life of that majestic
animal. Given an alternative, I am confident the mare would have
rather been anywhere but in the barn stall that morning. This
spirit is often the same in humans during the change process.
Also, if not handled properly, the outcome of the event could
also have been traumatic for both the horse and my father.
Personally I had come
fully expecting to see a ferocious battle of wills and strength
between man and beast. However, my father took total control of
the change process. Rather than try to match his physical strength
against hers in a winner-take-all battle and crush her will to
resist he chose a higher level path. He chose to lead her through
the change rather than have conflict with her.
I believe that the
methods he used that morning are very applicable to leading organizational
change. Listed below are the parallels I believe are appropriate
to us.
- He
had an action plan.
My father knew each step of the process and the expected end
result and he implemented the plan flawlessly. Successful change
management requires good planning. It must support short-range
implementation of improved processes while supporting a long-range
strategic vision for the business.
- He
talked to her to calm her. All organizational change
requires that we communicate what we are doing and why. People
want to know what is going on and this communication helps relieve
the tension in employees. In addition, just like that horse,
some people in the organization will never understand the details
or accept the reasons for the change. However, the communication
process itself will relieve some of the anxiety of these participants
also.
- He
engaged the horse in the change process. The horse
knew that my father was the one leading the change and they
had a personal interaction as he soothed and encouraged the
horse. The change agent must be visibly engaged in the process
while simultaneously providing leadership and assurance during
the course of the changes. To be effective it must be a personal,
hands-on process.
- He
allowed her to set her own pace in buying into the change.
By seeing how she was reacting he was able to know when to go
to the next step. No two people or organizations absorb change
at the same rate. Only by being intimately involved in the process
can the change agent judge whether it is time to take the next
appropriate action. Change is an iterative process with differing
rhythms and intensities based on the technology and players
involved - not a one-time event. Good judgement is crucial to
successfully advance the planned changes.
- He
was committed to make the change. There was no doubt
in my mind that we would be there in the barn until we completed
the task, whether it would take two hours or two days. If my
father had lost patience with the horse and put it off for another
day the process would have been much more difficult the next
time for both parties. Indeed, it would have been a rodeo event.
Change is not for the faint-hearted. You must have the courage
and tenacity to see it through. The organization must know that
the leadership of the organization is committed and will not
waver on accomplishing the objective.
Whether man or beast
we are all creatures of habit and we all resist changes in our
environment. In order to become successful change agents for their
organizations, leaders must influence their organizations to overcome
this natural resistance and then lead them to implement new concepts.
I trust this story provides fresh insights on ways to be more
successful in the change process.
Click
here for Article Index
Questions? Comments
? please email us OMC,
Inc. Information
