Experiential Learning of a Business Consultant

My Consulting Experience with Bramma

Resistance to Change!

When we analyze the major roles of a consultant, every management book speaks the same language that consultants are organizational change agents! It also mentions that change is not an easy phenomenon to happen where lots of obstacles and hurdles are there on the way of change, which is to be cleared by a consultant. Among all obstacles, EMPLOYEE RESISTANCE to change acts as the major challenge in organizational change management as far as consultant is concerned, according to conventional management books. But here, I would like to share my personal experience in SME consulting arena, which speaks a slightly different story comparing to the conventional theories!

I do agree with the fact that employee resistance is a major challenge I faced in organizational change management process.  But when I analyze the consequences and level of impact in the change management process, I rate EMPLOYER RESISTANCE TO CHANGE as the most difficult and alarming constraint I ever faced in the process. It is quite surprising to see employer resist themselves in the change process. I am sure that it may not be the same scenario in large scale business, but in the case of SME, where 99% enterprises are promoter driven business, it is much visible. Let’s go deep into some real case examples.

As far as every change process is concerned, change should start from top to bottom. So, organizational change should start from organizational structure and management style. We used to analyze irregularities and interlinked communication process in organizations while conducting initial process study in an organization. Then we suggest structure revamp and try to bring professionals in the organization in order to drive the process. Most of the companies lack professionalism which pulls them back in the growth process, and that’s why professionals are much required on a long term basis. But as I mentioned earlier, here we face the major challenge, the EMPLOYER RESISTANCE TO CHANGE!

Most of the employers fail to assimilate the change happening in the management style. They are not able to gel with the new people come aboard.  Issues start from the point where they fail to understand the new roles and a consultant struggles to act as a lubricator here! A consultant needs to be diplomatic in such situations, but in some cases, we had to put our foot down where we see things move in the opposite direction.

For e.g.  In a company we brought a new professional as Head - Sales, and he was assigned to streamline the sales activities which were on a pathetic stage till then. Sales people were not following the reporting system and also they failed to generate the desired outcome. The new person implemented some reporting system and also he started tracking the system very strictly. But all of a sudden the key person started involving in the process and he started violating the system by himself. Communication process went scattered where he started spying and receiving communications from the employees directly where the Head was missing many! As a result of frustration, Head resigned the job and went out of the organization.

This is a simple example but we faced even extreme circumstances where the employer himself asked us to frame strategies to terminate new comer professional, only because he was not able to gel with him!

There are plenty of such cases available in our case files. But what could be the reasons? We tried to analyze the reasons and find out major reasons for such cases,

• ·         Most of the employer lack a well defined organizational vision
• ·         They fail to delegate authorities to employees
• ·         They fail to develop trust factor in their people and system
• ·         They fail to come out of self entrepreneurship to entrepreneurship

People force is the major driving force in every organization. It is a must that you have quality manpower in the front to lead the process, when an organization is looking for growth or business development with a professional approach. Nowadays it is not that difficult to get quality manpower in SME, as many of them are willing to work in Kerala. But the real challenge is to sustain them with the organization in a long run. It is purely depended upon how employer treats them and maintains them, without disturbing the new environment. And for that an entrepreneur should have good vision and broaden mindset to accept changes, unless the scenario never changes!

-          Deepesh M

Manager – Consulting

Bramma Learning Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

Mob: 9847896265

Phone: 0484 2705535

3 Reasons to Hire a Consultant

3 Reasons to Hire a Consultant

Many companies turn to consultants when they don’t have the staff to handle a particular need, but there are many other solid reasons to consider hiring an external consultant.  Hiring a consultant could be just what your company needs to recharge, think outside the box or explore a new approach.

Here are 3 reasons out of many to hire a consultant:

1. Fresh Thinking - Bringing in someone new who hasn’t lived and breathed your business every day is bound to give you a new perspective. A consultant is going to ask questions and look at your business from a different lens. A consultant also brings learning and knowledge from other client work and other categories that just may lead to that out of the box idea you have been seeking. Hiring a consultant to lead a brainstorming session for your employees is a great way to recharge and excite your team and break out of a rut of ‘same old’ thinking. If you are looking to launch a new campaign or product, a consultant could help you uncover a brand new approach while also getting your team inspired and onboard.

2. Relieve your Overworked Staff – If you are like most companies these days, you’ve had to layoff staff, eliminate positions or freeze hiring.  You’ve kept your best and brightest stars, but you are also asking them to work more and in some cases do the job of several employees. Over time you run the risk of burnout or running off the very people you want to keep. Bringing in a consultant to help out with a project or take on some work for a period of time is cost effective and a good way to show your employees that you respect what they do and realize sometimes they need a break! Letting your staff take a vacation, reclaim their weekends, or just leave work at a normal hour again will go a long way to building good morale and acknowledging their extra effort.  Good employees often leave jobs when they don’t feel appreciated.  Bringing in a consultant to help out is one way to show your appreciation during a particularly busy time.

3. Special Project – As a company you may be curious about trying out a new form of marketing or maybe a ‘new to your company’ way of working. Hiring a consultant to lead and possibly teach your employees about a different expertise is a great way to ‘try it’ before you make a full investment.  You may decide to utilize a consultant to set up and manage a blog for your department or to define a new target and create a plan to reach this new audience. Using a consultant allows your staff to continue to pursue their work while exploring a new possible area at a low risk and low expense.  The results, however, could pay off handsomely!

These are just three reasons out of many to consider hiring a consultant. Working with consultants can be a low risk, low investment option that yields a high return. Next time you find yourself stuck, understaffed, or wanting to try something new – consider bringing in a consultant like Bramma Learning Solutions Pvt. Ltd.