In any business, change management is a hurdle that all departments and leaders have to navigate. Managing change often comes in all shapes and sizes and the approach can vary from project to project and is not always one size fits all.
No matter what type of change you’re managing, putting thoughtful strategy and processes in place will help you be more successful in your outcomes. According to one study, 71% of organizations implementing a change management strategy completed their projects on schedule. We put together 4 tips that can apply to DSOs when dealing with the different types of change they might be navigating across their organizations.
Emphasize the Opportunities for Everyone
One of the best things that you can do early on in any change for your organization is to get buy-in from your team. The sooner they are in the loop and the more details you give them as to why this is a beneficial change to them, the more likely it is that they will be receptive to making changes in their day to day. If the value is not clearly communicated or demonstrated, the more hurdles you will face in ensuring adoption across the board, and the more likely it is that your team will lose sight of the “why” behind the change.
Understand the Process of Change
In this Harvard Business Review article, one of their key change management takeaways is understanding the process of change. As we mentioned earlier, no two changes are the same, but many will follow the same formula for success. The article goes on to explain that there are almost always three stages of change: Preparation, implementation, and follow through.
- Preparation: The change manager is focused on preparing both the organization and its employees. This involves helping the employees understand the need for the impending transition and outlining the vision and plan for achieving it.
- Implementation: The change manager is focused on executing changes in a way that is compatible with the company’s vision for the future.
- Follow-through: The change manager is focused on ensuring the change sticks and becomes embedded in the company’s culture and practices.
Make Change Management as Simple as Possible
This is one of those tips that is oftentimes easier said than done, and there will always be a balance to strike between simplicity and execution. Having detailed and documented processes laid out ahead of time will help minimize questions, confusion, and frustration during the roll out process. Access to on-demand training (if applicable), written out step-by-step documentation, FAQs, and real time support can help ensure the resources are in place to keep onboarding as simple as possible.
Be Reactive to Ongoing Change
Keeping two way communication open during a big change is the best way to support your team and keep yourself locked into the day-to-day (at least early on) to ensure long term success. With a new change you might not know what you don’t know until the change is enacted in real time. Making feedback easy and heard whether it’s through daily stand ups or online feedback forms is the best way to stay agile to improve the process post launch.
Conclusion
If you’re preparing to implement a membership plan in your DSO, partnering with the right plan administrator is another important step for ensuring successful rollout and change within your practices. Membersy is a complete service membership plan administrator and we pride ourselves on ensuring a seamless partnership for successful plan adoption across your organization.
Don’t just take it from us, but hear it from one of our partners instead:
“The partnership is seamless. The customer service that our team receives from Membersy makes it very easy for our teams to want to participate, and at the end of the day we have healthier patients as a result,” said Stephanie Jeffers, COO at Night & Day Dental.
Learn more about a dental membership plan for your DSO by scheduling a consultation with Membersy today.
