My team and I have initiated our project to enhance productivity by implementing a ticketing system and a Kanban board. However, when I introduced this initiative to the managers of the teams responsible for submitting requests, their reactions were mixed. Some managers were excited about the improvement, some were neutral, and some downright didn’t like it because they believed even though it would streamline my team’s work it would make their team’s work harder.
Here are some thoughts on the resistance:
- One manager said, “Email won’t go away”. Why can’t we create a better way to work? Are we unwilling to think about work processes to replace haphazard project management? It seems manufacturing has figured this out. Machinists don’t have to determine their priority through a bunch of emails.
- We must be explicit and plan as much of the work process as possible.
- Could we get more done if we planned more of our processes? We don’t want to make our employees figure everything out each time they need to do something. We need to plan more and stop blaming the employees for not getting stuff done. It is Management’s role to fix this.
- They don’t like change
- I told them the goal was to speed the business not my team, if there is more cost to their team but the business gets more done then aren’t we meeting the business goals? We need to be careful of the myopic department perspective.
- One manager referenced going back to the old way if it didn’t work then I said, “What if your team started to work like this too”?
- What if I had approached their team rather than the manager with this tool? Their team would likely want it too. Some of those team members have been talking to my team members and they are excited for us to use it.
- Maybe managers don’t understand what their employees are dealing with or they don’t realize there is a better way to do work.
- Some people believe inconvenience increase means a decrease in productivity. They don’t want to be stifled by the process. They feel need the ability to fire off emails to stay productive. They want their work to be easy rather than improve the business.
- If we were asked to develop a new process for these tasks, would email be part of the process?
- Seems like individuals still want to get their things done fast and forget about other’s perspectives.
- The way we work is stressing all of us out and leading to job dissatisfaction.
- Overall I think the benefit will push people to use it. I am letting the data do the talking.
If you are trying to implement change in your business, consider why you may be receiving resistance.