Why embracing processes is key to change management, growth and transformation

If you are a creative individual or if your job description has a significant component of creative tasks involved, congratulations, you are justified to have a natural disdain for processes! NOT! Yes, that was a NOT joke.

Moving on, embracing the processes is important to embrace change. And managing organizational change is key to growth and transformation. At least, that is the narrative this blog is going to explore – change management by embracing processes and helping your organization transform.

Some math and pessimism to wake you up

70% of change initiatives fall flat on their faces because of bad management and poor implementation. There is no secret formula to ensure implementation of changes.

Some magic and much needed optimism to lift you up  

All depressing statistics aside, there is a magic potion, yes magic potion discovered by none other than Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft! ‘What is that magic motion?’ What’s the hurry, champ? Read on...

This is how Microsoft’s organizational structure looked before Satya took charge. The internal competition was nothing short of destructive to the firm’s growth. So, Satya did what the US government could not: implement gun control! Metaphorically, of course (thanks to the second amendment)! He applied the magic potion generously and all the hands that once held guns now held plants and sunflowers.

‘But, seriously what IS this magic potion?’ Seriously champ, you need to ease up on the throttle there!

Okay, but acknowledging that you are anxious, here is the answer: Growth Mindset!

Now, don’t cry foul champ, it is indeed the magic potion! If you are still skeptical, check out how Growth Mindset caused the stock prices of Microsoft to skyrocket:

Re-inventing Processes to increase Productivity 

It is important to re-invent processes as all the previous processes would have followed the previous philosophy – a school of thought which was destructive, no less! So, the best way forward would be to re-invent processes – processes where lifting each other up will be given precedence and putting down the other team member will be frowned upon and eliminated altogether. (By the way, there is no ‘inventing’ without the ‘venting’ part and hence mentorship was given precedence: there was space for employees to vent, unlearn and re-learn every process that was significant to their success.)

Customer at the center externally, Processes at the center internally  

For your firm to have the customer at the center, processes have to be at the core of the functioning of every department. This is something that Satya understood better than most CEOs and that is why he is still hailed as the man responsible for making the turnaround possible for the Tech Giant.

The story of another tech giant  

The story of Microsoft was convincing enough to tell you that processes are paramount to change management and subsequently, growth and transformation. And yet, there remains another tale to be told. Incidentally, the tale of another tech giant, named after the biggest named number no less. (Googolplex, anyone?)

Google ‘crazy’: the first result is ‘Larry Page’  

So, Larry Page and the management of Google had this crazy plan to re-organize Google. And every one of their employees was glad that they took a hard pass on that ridiculous British proverb about ‘fixing what ain’t broken.’ (That grammar mistake shows the indifference for said proverb)

Putting the ‘alpha’ in alphabet  

Larry identified multiple employees at various levels with extremely adept entrepreneurial skills. He wanted all these ‘alpha’s to take accountability to get to the 10X growth he had envisioned. Yes, Google envisioning a 10x growth! Larry makes no effort to dial down the crazy, right!

Again, he emphasized on two things:

1. One underlying philosophy
2. Defining processes under this umbrella philosophy

The underlying philosophy was improving as many lives as Google, ahem, Alphabet could. So, simple and self-explanatory. For this to happen, each of the entrepreneurs that Alphabet had would have to double down on change management to make room for scaling up. 10X GROWTH, remember? And they wonder why Google is still in the top 3 (among the Tech giants) despite sharing the podium from the 2000s.

The way forward

If the changes and progress of Microsoft and Google are any proof, there should be plenty of persuasion for even the most rebelliously creative minds to embrace the processes that line the underlying philosophy of the organization you work for.