Garvin: Change through persuasion

9 important questions on Garvin: Change through persuasion

According to Garvin leaders can make change happen only if they have a coherent strategy for persuasion. Explain this.

Garvin found that for change to stick, leaders must design and run an effective persuasion campaign: one that begins weeks/months before the actual turnaround plan. Managers must perform significant work up front to ensure that employees will actually listen to tough messages, question old assumption and consider new ways of working.

How can leaders accomplish sustained improvement? (Garvin)

They have to take a series of deliberate but subtle steps to recast employees' prevailing views and create a new context for action. Such a shaping process must be actively managed during the first few months of a turnaround, when uncertainty is high and setbacks are inevitable.

Describe phase 1: setting the stage.
 (Garvin)

1. Convince employees that radical change is imperative
2. Demonstrate why the new direction is the right one.
(f.e. MC used strong wake-up call, hands-on-deck mail, contact newspapers: make sure staff can't claim ignorance).
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Describe phase 2: Creating the frame (Garvin)

1. Position and frame preliminary plan
2. Gather feedback, announce final plan
(f.e. help employees interpret proposals for change, send draft of plan, explanation, respond: this way convincing employees that this plan belonged to them and create an ongoing communication platform)

Describe phase 3: managing the mood (Garvin)

1. Manage employee mood through constant communication
(f.e. pay attention to employees' emotions, preserve a receptive climate for change, give time to grieve and recover, make people feel cared and supported, ensure the turnaround plan proceeded quick, acknowledge feelings of depression, emphasize with employees, keep employees focused on the continuing work ahead, praise employees)

Describe phase 4: reinforcing good habits (Garvin)

1. Reinforce behavioral guideline to avoid backsliding
(f.e. avoid backsliding into dysfunctional routines, help employees to maintain new behaviors, reinforce organizational value, use actions to backup words)

It's clear that the key to the Medical Center success is that Levy (change manager) understood the importance of making sure the cultural soil had been made ready before changing. Explain three levels he needed committed (Garvin)

1. Head: cognitive level, in receptive environments employees are better able to let go of competing views.
2. Heart: emotional level, in receptive environments employees identify with the organization (values) and are committed to its continued existence.
3. Hands: workers in receptive environments have also psychical hands-on experience with the new behavior expected of them.

What is the main message of Garvin? To create a receptive environment...

persuasion is the ultimate tool. Persuasion promotes understanding, understanding breeds acceptance, this leads to actions. Without persuasion, even the best turnaround plan will fail to take root.

Dysfunctional routines, by contrast, are barriers to action and change. Which six ways are there to stop change?

1. A culture of "no" (always a good reason not to do something)
2. The dog and pony show must go on (ends and means, form and content are confused: how you present becomes more important than what you present)
3. The grass is always greener (to avoid facing challenges, managers look at new products/services etc. when this happens too often: problems will stay)
4. After the meeting ends, debate begins (resistance results in endless debates)
5. Ready, aim aim (no definitive course of action)
6. This too shall pass (ignore new initiatives, work around time)

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