Do You Need a Stability Manager?

The concept of a change manager is growing in popularity, with the role becoming a standard part of many organisations, the Change Management Institute is gaining membership and Communities of Practice for Change Management are dotting the specialist landscape. Providing focus to this area is long overdue; there is a terrible history of repeated failure with initiatives that require cultural or significant procedural change.

Out of one of those change management meetings came a question, posed a bit facetiously, but warranting some thought. What about establishing a “Stability Manager” role? When people are experiencing change, they seek something more familiar. When moving to a new city people look for stability. Joining clubs that promote similar interests, becoming part of professional associations that are part of one’s profession or attending a church are examples of seeking stability in the midst of change. Why don’t we employ this role in change management initiatives, appealing to what we as humans do in other areas of our lives?

A Stability Manager could arrange specialised communities of practice, emphasise what is NOT changing in the midst of business churn and provide coaching on the process of making change or allowing change to occur in one’s life, versus just how to respond to a specific change posed by the business and its priority project. It could well be a very useful and much-needed role, making significant change easier to bear, with a title that has more appeal.

Maybe it is time we do think of stability factors as well as change factors. In your current projects, what stability factors could you emphasize in your organization alongside the changes you are imposing?

Our thanks go to Michael Davies from the Australian Department of Human Services for asking a GREAT question about the concept of a Stability Manager.

Intelligent Disobedience Leadership provides workshops, coaching and consulting with a focus on managing change with courageous leadership through intelligent disobedience. We can help you and your teams design a community of practice which leverages constructive “intelligent disobedience.” For further information, email us at info@intelligentdisobedience.com.