Organizational Change:

Influencer, 4DX, and Crucial Conversations

The overarching principle I have learned from this course is that the asking institutions to try something new requires input of the person bringing change.  The requirements necessary are; pure motivation, leadership by example, enticing others to change, making and adjusting plans, and continuously communicating the vision of the mission.

I initially examined my personal motivations to determine how I wanted to change, and what I thought should be done to change my institutions.  The key theme of this stage is to know yourself.   Make sure the program is in the best interest of the organization; otherwise, the proposed change may fail or cause harm to students, teachers and the institution.

Secondly, this course required me to consider what influences and motivates people to change. In my institution, a public high school, teachers are not always motivated to change, due to the complex bureaucracy. A person that wants to make changes to the daily operational or instructional mode must not only convince teachers but Instructional Leaders. This portion of the journey examines how to accomplish that using the influencer model.

After determining influence, the person proposing change must determine the steps for implementing a plan. This plan uses the 4dx model that creates a planning and launch phase. As time progresses, the participants in the mission give feedback and help make necessary adjustments in order to achieve success.

Perhaps the most important part of the journey is the manner in which conversations unfold along the way.  Crucial conversation, training, and methodology must be built into the foundation of the project to prevent mission failure due to participants feeling disconnected. A leader must always be aware of mannerisms evinced, and the tone of voice he/she chooses to use when speaking to a collaborator or subordinate.  This will ensure success or failure of the project.