A few years back, the corporation I was working for acquired a company that presented great synergy opportunities. No layoffs were expected at the outset, and it seemed like a homerun for everyone involved. However, during the transition period, the decision was made to outsource all IT Infrastructure support, including that of the acquired company, resulting in heavy job losses, with a limited number of retained positions to manage the new third party.

As you can imagine, the roughly 900 IT people across the organization who stood to lose their jobs were extremely upset. My article today will focus on the team within the acquired organization. The acquired organization included 85 IT staff who would also be in scope. They had been excited to join the new company and were especially angry that their leaders were accepting fantastic new positions in the parent company while their roles were being eliminated. They felt betrayed.

To his credit, the CIO from the acquired company met with a number of the team face-to-face, giving them an opportunity to express their anger and ask questions. This was not an easy thing to do. He knew people were upset with him personally and emotions were raw. But in making himself available and honoring their emotions, the CIO was able to help employees bridge that gap of understanding. This helped the affected employees feel more respected, but it was only the start of the process.

After the outsourcing announcement was made, I took over as the new leader of this acquired IT team. To truly help those employees move from a place of betrayal to one of respect, I knew I had to do more than just be present. I had to help them in a tangible way.

I began meeting with employees one-on-one, trying to find what would work best not only for the team, but also for each individual. With team members spread across four continents, this sometimes meant being creative, such as using chat tools to translate and video conference services. But the key was making an honest effort to help them process the transition both emotionally and professionally.

I remember one employee who was especially bitter. It was practically seeping through his skin. I helped him gain more visibility within the parent company by making him an active part of the transition. This improved not only his resume, but his attitude as well. He became more engaged and ultimately landed a permanent job within the parent company in a new role.

I worked with another employee who, because of his extensive experience, was worried about finding another position in his pay scale. We made him our global lead with the new third-party IT company and he became a critical part of their success. They hired him on and he still works with them today.

These small decisions were not immediately successful. There were still periods of uncertainty and anger. But by engaging the employees, I made leadership an ally, not an enemy. I couldn’t save their jobs, but as a leader I could still support them and show them respect in a way that benefitted not only the individual, but also the company.

Here are more ways leadership can show employees respect during organizational change:

Acknowledge employees’ contributions. It’s important for leaders to explicitly acknowledge how much employees have brought to the organization. Employees need to have their commitment honored. Oftentimes people go to a dark place and feel that somehow the decision is about them. They take it very personally. Feeling that way can have a huge impact on their engagement and productivity during a transition time. Honoring the contributions they’ve made can take the edge off that feeling.

Honor the place employees are at. Typically leaders are excited about a change, ready for the benefits that are expected, while employees are scared and angry. It’s critical to give space for employees to go through what can sometimes feel like the stages of grief. Denial, anger, bargaining and finally acceptance are all common experiences for people going through organizational change. Leaders must honor that process and understand that everyone moves through it at a different pace and in different ways. But a good leader also helps an employee recognize when they’ve been in one space for too long and it may not be serving them anymore.

Listen and respond. Leaders need to take the time to understand what the concerns and fears of employees are during a change and help them come to terms with the decision. Once they’ve gotten a full picture of those concerns, a good leader helps employees see what’s possible now. Leaders need to help employees see that they have options and they should help employees explore those options. That kind of engagement can help generate excitement for employees who had previously only seen the downside of the change. Those employees are more likely to remain productive throughout the transition.

Be visible. Senior leaders who are tasked with moving this kind of change in an organization are oftentimes not the executors, so they may not have first-hand touch-points with much of the employee population. It’s helpful whenever possible to be more visible than they have been in the past. Personally attending Q&A sessions, or making a point of walking the hallways and engaging in one-on-one conversations with employees can make them feel like you’re making every effort to understand their situation.

Are you embarking on a significant change? A merger? Downsizing? Restructuring? Outsourcing? Divesting? Would you like to accelerate change adoption in your organization? Are you looking to minimize disruption to engagement and productivity? Do you want to hold on to your key talent?   Contact me today for a consultation at christine@evokethepossible.com or 001-612-636-3370.

Check out other articles on Leading Through Disruptive Change – Retaining Talent and Empowering Leaders.