Strategies For Leading Teams During Change

Leading transformation isn't for the faint of heart. After guiding organizations through change, I've discovered these universal principles apply — Regardless of industry, size, or challenge. These 10 Commandments of Transformation are your guide: 1. Start With Why Without compelling purpose, transformation dies. Your team needs more than "what" - they need "why." Make it meaningful, make it matter. 2. Lead By Example You can't expect what you don't inspect. Transformation begins with your own behavior. Be the change before demanding it. 3. Communicate Relentlessly When you're sick of saying it, they're just starting to hear it. Use every channel, every meeting, every chance. Consistency creates clarity. 4. Honor Resistance as Feedback Resistance isn't obstruction - it's information. Listen before dismissing. Understand concerns to address them effectively. 5. Focus On Vital Few Trying to change everything ensures changing nothing. Choose your battles strategically. Concentrate energy where it matters most. 6. Celebrate Progress Small wins fuel big changes. Recognition drives continuation. Make progress visible to maintain momentum. 7. Build Coalitions No leader transforms alone. Champions multiply your impact. Cultivate allies at every level. 8. Balance Structure and Flexibility Plan thoroughly but adapt quickly. Rigid plans break under pressure. Agility enables success. 9. Measure What Matters Select metrics that drive behavior. What gets measured gets improved. Make success visible and trackable. 10. Sustain The Change Transformation isn't an event. Reinforcement prevents regression. Build systems that maintain momentum. Which commandment resonates most with your transformation journey?

We don’t resist change. We resist not knowing where we’ll land. Most pushback is rational. We hold on to what’s worked because the next step isn’t clear. If we don’t see the logic, If it doesn’t feel safe to try we stall. Every time. The job isn’t to “manage resistance.” It’s to de-risk what’s ahead. Here are 7 strategies that have helped my teams (and me) move through change faster: 1. Model it first → If leaders don’t go first, nothing moves. → We follow behavior, not slide decks. 2. Share the why, not just the timeline → Don’t wait for the perfect plan. → Share what’s changing, what’s at stake, and what we’re betting on. 3. Involve the people closest to the work → Real alignment doesn’t come from top-down decisions. → It comes from early input. 4. Make the first step feel doable → We don’t need the full blueprint. → Just a clear first move we can act on with confidence. 5. Train for what’s different → Belief ≠ readiness. → We resist when we don’t feel equipped. 6. Name what’s really going on → Resistance often hides fear or confusion. → Ask early. Ask directly. Don’t let it build. 7. Show it’s working and work hard on what’s not → Small wins build trust. → But trust grows faster when we’re honest about what still needs fixing. Most of us try to scale with complexity. But the real unlock? We simplify. That’s how we move forward - together. * * * I talk about the real mechanics of growth, data, and execution. If that’s what you care about, let’s connect.

Most change initiatives fail. And I learned it the hard way. I thought a good idea, purpose, and persistence  were enough to transform mental healthcare in Montana. I was wrong. When launching Montana's first psychiatry  residency program and first EmPATH unit,  I discovered what true change requires. This framework would have saved me years of struggle: 1. Establish urgency ↳ The status quo is more dangerous than change ↳ 75% of managers must feel this truth 2. Build a powerful coalition ↳ Assemble people with shared commitment ↳ Work outside normal hierarchy 3. Create a clear vision ↳ Simple enough to explain in five minutes ↳ Strategies that make the vision tangible 4. Communicate relentlessly ↳ Use every possible channel ↳ Model the behaviors you seek 5. Empower others ↳ Remove structural barriers ↳ Reward risk-taking and new ideas 6. Generate short-term wins ↳ Plan visible improvements ↳ Recognize those who contribute 7. Consolidate and build momentum ↳ Change the systems undermining progress ↳ Develop people who embody the vision 8. Anchor new approaches ↳ Connect changes to organizational success ↳ Ensure leadership embodies the transformation The hard truth about leading change? It's not about your brilliant idea. It's about how you systematically  dismantle resistance to that idea. Change happens in stages, not events. And skipping steps only creates  the illusion of progress. ==================== ⁉️ Which step do leaders most often skip? ♻️ Share if you're leading change in healthcare. 👉 Follow me (Eric Arzubi, MD) for more like this. ♥️ Post inspired by John P. Kotter's teachings.

How do you take a resistant team and guide them through a successful transformation? I led a team that went from evaluating programs to developing them—a complete transformation. At first, there was a lot of pushback, but by understanding their concerns and using a thoughtful approach, we made the transition work.   ---Here’s what I learned--- 🔸Resistance isn’t about the change—it’s about fear of loss. Through candid one-on-one conversations, I discovered the team feared losing their expertise. 🔸Facts don’t inspire change. Stories do. Rather than overwhelm them with reasons for the shift, I shared stories. Emotional buy-in through storytelling sparked curiosity. 🔸Small behavioral nudges lead to lasting change. We didn’t push the team into full-scale program development right away. Instead, we used small steps that eased them into the transition. This made the change feel natural, not overwhelming. 🔸Your biggest resister can become your strongest advocate. I focused on the team’s informal leader—the person everyone trusted. Once he embraced the change, the rest followed. 🔸Embrace failure as a stepping stone to success. We reframed setbacks as learning opportunities. By openly discussing challenges and solutions, we created a culture where innovation thrived and fear of failure diminished. 🏡 Think of change like remodeling a house. Exciting, but full of unexpected snags. In business, it’s the same—something always comes up. Plan for it. Expect it. 💡 Key Lesson: Resistance isn’t a roadblock—it’s part of the process. Expect pushback and guide your team with strategic nudges. What unexpected challenges have you faced when leading change?

Most change initiatives don't fail because of the change that's happening, they fail because of how the change is communicated. I've watched brilliant restructurings collapse and transformative acquisitions unravel… Not because the plan was flawed, but because leaders were more focused on explaining the "what" and "why" than on how they were addressing the fears and concerns of the people on their team. People don't resist change because they don't understand it. They resist because they haven't been given a compelling story about their role in it. This is where the Venture Scape framework becomes invaluable. The framework maps your team's journey through five distinct stages of change: The Dream - When you envision something better and need to spark belief The Leap - When you commit to action and need to build confidence The Fight - When you face resistance and need to inspire bravery The Climb - When progress feels slow and you need to fuel endurance The Arrival - When you achieve success and need to honor the journey The key is knowing exactly where your team is in this journey and tailoring your communication accordingly. If you're announcing a merger during the Leap stage, don't deliver a message about endurance. Your team needs a moment of commitment–stories and symbols that anchor them in the decision and clarify the values that remain unchanged. You can’t know where your team is on this spectrum without talking to them. Don’t just guess. Have real conversations. Listen to their specific concerns. Then craft messages that speak directly to those fears while calling on their courage. Your job isn't just to announce change, but to walk beside your team and help your team understand what role they play in the story at each stage. #LeadershipCommunication #Illuminate

Most leaders fail during major transitions. Here’s how to avoid it. I once watched a leadership team crumble during a major restructuring. Top players quit. Execution stalled. The CEO froze. Most leaders fail in moments of transition: → New ownership → Restructures and pivots → Big hires and team shake-ups When uncertainty hits, people freeze, protect their turf, or quit. The best leaders? They speed up trust, remove friction, and keep execution on track. Bill Campbell, the legendary coach behind Apple and Google, taught top CEOs how to lead through uncertainty. His 1:1 leadership principles built some of the greatest teams in the world. But his true measure of leadership? "The Yardstick. Measure your own success by the success of others." The best leaders don’t focus on proving themselves. They focus on elevating the people around them. So what if we applied Bill Campbell’s 1:1 leadership principles to change management? Here’s how👇 How to Lead Through Change Using Bill Campbell’s 1:1 Principles: 1️⃣ Speed up trust or lose your best people In times of change, silence breeds fear. Meet 1:1 with key players immediately, ask: “What’s working?” “What’s broken?” If they don’t feel heard, they’ll start looking elsewhere. 2️⃣ Shift from proving to empowering Most new leaders overcontrol. And lose their best people. Instead of dictating, ask: “What’s one thing to double down on?” Give ownership, not orders. 3️⃣ Kill friction before it kills execution Change creates silos and bottlenecks. Fix it by forcing peer accountability: “What’s the biggest blocker from another team?” “How can we solve it together?” Great leaders don’t just run departments. They align execution. 4️⃣ Re-sell the vision every 2 weeks During transitions, people forget fast. Repeating the vision isn't redundant. It's leadership. Every 2 weeks, reinforce: “Where we’re going.” “Why this change matters.” “How each person contributes.” 5️⃣ Make innovation a daily habit Uncertainty breeds fear. And fear kills creativity. To keep teams proactive, ask: “What experiment should we run this month?” “If you had full control, what’s the first change?” Execution-first teams outlast uncertainty. ↓↓↓ Do this, and your team will execute through any change. What’s the hardest part of leading a transition? Drop your experience in the comments. ♻️ Repost so your team sees this. ➕ Follow for more leadership strategies.