Cannabis Firms: How to Implement Those New Years Resolutions
If you are going to reach your 2025 goals, you better know how to implement your strategies and projects i.e. get better at change management.
Changing employee behavior is key to cannabis business success; yet as much as 70% of change management initiatives fail. This won’t surprise embattled cannabis staff struggling under financial and competitive duress, and operating in semi ripe organizational models.
Simply put, being bad at change will have ominous consequences for most weed companies.
I gleaned 8 change management secrets from my cannabis work in North America and beyond:
1. Keep things simple
Focus on implementing one major behavior or initiative at a time. When a company or individual has 10 priorities, it might as well have none.
2. Make goals actionable
Demanding vague or unrealistic change is ineffective and often de-motivating. According to research on goal setting, targets and new behaviors need to be precise, carry a commitment and be measurable to be attainable. To ensure compliance, I ask employees to document the desired behavior and sign it as a pledge.
3. Tell a compelling story, repeatedly
Turn your change imperative into an inspiring story that is frequently communicated across the organization. This 'narrative' should resonate in a person’s brain (i.e. what’s good for them & the company) and their heart (i.e. it's emotional or spiritual appeal).
4. Be practical
According to Diffusion theory, embracing a new behavior typically follows a diffusion curve - early adopters, safe followers, latecomers, and malcontents. Managers need not try to change everyone all at once, just the key adopters & influencers who will provide the required early change momentum.
5. Activate peers
According to Social Comparison theory, people look to those in their immediate circle for guidance for what are acceptable behaviors and priorities. Teammates can set expectations, shame us or provide positive role models. Enlist them in change efforts.
6. Enrol leaders
Change initiatives come up short when employees disengage after not seeing their managers 'walk the walk.' Managers must proactively support the change effort by rewarding good behavior, censuring non-alignment, and providing coaching where necessary.
7. Tweak the management system
Organizational policies (e.g., performance measures, compensation schemes) can be barriers to change. Managers should identify and remove these roadblocks in advance of launching any change initiatives.
8. Change the surroundings
Behavioral Decision theory says that adjusting the situation around a person can trigger their desired change. For example, to improve the chances that a person will notice something place it in the top right corner of a page.
Call me. I help companies drive major transformation that boost financial, operational, and strategic performance.
#changemanagement #change #tranformation