What do a night at the Opera and Change Management have in common?
Last evening, my husband and I reminisced about when we could travel and some of the experiences we’ve had. In April 2017, we took ourselves across the seas, on a tropical island cruise to simply get away from technology. The evening before we embarked, we shouted ourselves to a night at ‘Opera on the Harbour’ to see the spectacular ‘Carmen’ performed on Sydney Harbour with the gorgeous views in full sight. I love this Opera and the story told, my husband was happy to indulge in the Spanish food and wine! After a full day of sightseeing, we sat joyfully eating Paella, enjoying the Sydney Harbour view and watching the boats floating on the water. However, the serenity was fleeting as we looked up to see that the weather had changed for the worse and was coming at speed. We couldn’t save our drinks or food as they were blown off the table!
This is change at its fiercest! One-minute beautiful sunshine and warmth, the next you are trying to find shelter with pounding rain leaking through the bleachers you should now be seated upon ready to enjoy the show. The start was delayed, hoping the rain would ease which it did but not enough to dissipate…Please take your seats…No umbrellas allowed!
The performers were wonderful and had done this before, some danced in bare feet, conscious that the raked stage would be even more slippery than normal, others donned clear water repellent ponchos, and they helped each other move into and out of the performance areas. We, the audience, sat in the rain, hoping for it to stop, which it did about 5 minutes before intermission. My husband and I had rain jackets and clear ponchos but that didn’t prevent our pants, socks and shoes from becoming soaking wet and the cold was setting in.
So, what to do at intermission…my desire to see the beautiful red Carmen dress was no more, all I could cling to was a program with a picture!
Get me out of here and back to warm showers and clothes. As we waited in the taxi queue, with at least 70% of the audience, we could hear the rousing chords of the second act start to play to those few dedicated remaining audience members and a pang of remorse embraced me, but only for a few seconds as I started to shiver with cold.
Yes, Opera Australia had advised us that the performance would go ahead in all-weather except lightning strikes, in a by-line. Were we prepared? Slightly, we attended in our dress jeans and had warm jackets to put on, others weren’t, they were dressed in their finery for a night at the Opera! Were we ready for the speed of the change? Not at all! We didn’t really understand the weather and how quickly it could change, so we were surprised and then hungry and thirsty, as the weather destroyed most of what we had purchased. Were we comfortable? No, we were not, we were very wet and cold; the driest place in the venue was the ladies’ toilet and that was starting to have a distinct aroma! Did we meet some nice people and have some interesting chats? Yes, do we remember any of them, not at all! Did we want to continue the discomfort and experience the show until the end? Not a chance! Escape as soon as possible and get back to drylands where we can feel safe and secure again!
This personal experience is often what change looks and feels like for many employees and why 70% of organisations are not successful in their change management strategies. They haven’t communicated and prepared the employees for the upcoming change and strategised the variables that may happen, which means the employees want to get out of the cold discomfort of the change and back to safe, dry and warm comfort areas.
If you want some help with your organisation and its change management program, make an appointment with Success Box to discuss your needs. They will structure a solution that really works!