Brand Management Techniques | Change Management

There's no room for complacency in business. Just when you think you've cornered the market, along comes a competitor with something better. No sooner have you released rosy growth forecasts than the economy collapses.

Talk in the boardroom is rarely about the here and now. Instead directors focus on what to do next -- the strategy for survival and success. Businesses have to evolve and adapt, if only to keep up with the competition.

Sometimes, however, more radical action is required, and evolution becomes a revolution. "Change is typically anything substantial that requires a business to significantly alter the way it operates," says Craig Postons, CEO of Pathways Communications. "It could be a merger or acquisition, a turnover in senior management, the entry into new markets or the launch of new products. Or it could be downsizing or a major restructuring of the company."

This is where change management comes in: not simply a framework to prevent change deteriorating into chaos, but an entire psychological discipline. It manages the people, who are, after all, at the heart of all business. Boardroom decisions for major change -- new boss, new uniform, entirely new job, or no job at all -- inevitably affect individuals. As the organization changes so must the thinking and behavior of the staff.

Now, what happens when a company brand changes (often in conjunction with other changes) or even disappears following a merger or acquisition? "I think change management is absolutely critical," says Postons. "A lot of companies pay lip service to the fact that employees are important to the brand. But they are focused too much on the next ad campaign and the customers. Yes, the customer is king, but if employees don't understand the brand, the company is dead in the water."

Before you can begin to encourage staff to buy into a new brand, they must be allowed to mourn the end of an era. "You don't turn around and say 'Your brand is toast. Now get on with it!' " warns Postons. "They will not respect you for that. But you do have to quickly move forward to the future. You respectfully explain why you’re moving to a new brand."

Communication and consultation help to quell the concerns of employees. "Employees mustn't feel like they are losing their identity for no reason," says Tony Roberts, an expert on the change management panel of Executives Online. "It can't be done by management dictates -- 'We are changing.' Anything to do with the brand needs consultation with employees and customers to let them have their say."

Roberts recalls when he worked for Goodyear at the time it took over Sava, an Eastern European tire and motor parts manufacturer. Goodyear decided to change the brand name of the company's motor parts products to Goodyear. "We needed to win the hearts and minds of the Sava employees. We had to show them all the benefits, from investing in new equipment to improving their parking spaces.

"You also have to be up front and tell them what's going on. With change you have to communicate all the time, you should never miss a chance. And you should never lie or mislead people. If you do it once, employees will never believe anything you say again," suggests Roberts.

Craig Postons says communication must be loud and clear. "You really have to crank up the volume. Communication has to be 10 times more frequent and 10 times faster than you think. There's an insatiable need for information during times of change."

Communications can take the form of emails, websites, workshops and presentations, but the role of managers is central to the successful acceptance of a new brand. "This is the time to be in front of employees. It can be costly in terms of time. But most company leaders are paid to tell the story and get staff motivated," says Postons.

Role models are essential to drive acceptance of a new identity. "Some employees will inevitably feel manipulated," Postons continues. "If leadership is credible and seen to be open and believed than staff are less cynical. Where CEOs don't walk the talk then you shouldn't be surprised that change fails."

Allan Steinmetz, CEO of Inward Strategic Consulting, advocates a system of brand champions to demonstrate how a new brand translates into everyday working habits. "There should be a leadership council with representatives from all sections of the company. These people are not there to create the brand, but to be emissaries. In all my experience I have never had trouble in recruiting brand champions. It's amazing how passionate people can be about their brand and recognize the benefits of compliance."

Steinmetz also highlights remuneration and rewards for reinforcing a new brand identity and encouraging change in employee behavior to fit the new brand. "People need to know what the brand means for their behavior and personal performance. You need to tie performance management into the brand. Recognition and rewards must be relevant."

"If you hook people's performance and evaluations into the brand it is amazing what they will do," Postons observes. "I don't believe enough companies understand about hooking the brand into HR policies and processes. The brand is as much about HR as marketing."

Fortunately for companies, brand changes can help to underpin change as much as undermine it. "If the brand is clear and simple to staff," Postons concludes, "if it is clear what the promise is and how they can fulfill their part in the brand and be properly rewarded for it, then a change can really motivate people. A new brand can be the rallying cry: 'Hey, we're taking this mountain. Who's coming with us?' "

[1-Sep-2003]

Edwin Colyer is a science and technology writer based in Manchester, UK.


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