Scenario – Raphael Lees: What Would You Do?
Raphael Lees has had many sleepless nights this month. At the end of last month, his manager informed Raphael that the company has decided to outsource the Office Services function, including mail processing, small package delivery, upkeep and maintenance of all copying equipment and office valet services all of which report directly to Raphael, currently. What that exactly means to Raphael and his team of 12 people is not really clear, but for the past 20+ days, there have been four management people—"suits" Raphael and his team call them—spending every day trying to learn what the team does and how they do it.
Raphael doesn’t know how many of his team may lose their jobs, including himself, but he and the others are worried. When his employees speak to him about what the company is doing, they talk about things like loyalty and providing a good living to people who have worked hard over many years for this company. Some bring up the fact that the union organizers who tried to hold meetings in a local restaurant a few years ago might be more welcome now.
Raphael himself has mixed feelings. He understands that the company will be able to cut costs through outsourcing since the office services company can do the work with fewer people and more automation, but he wonders at what cost. Surely, some of his people will keep their jobs and the others could be hired by the outsourcing company, but what about loyalty and jobs for this community? Yet Raphael knows that his job as a supervisor is to help his people not only teach others their jobs but to continue to perform their work in an excellent manner while all these changes are taking place.
You are Raphael. What do you tell your employees?
Workshop Description
Some people say that in business today, the only constant is change. Whether companies or institutions are growing, downsizing, acquiring other companies or being acquired, life for most business people is ever changing. In fact, many people believe that the rate of change is accelerating, and our coping mechanisms are being continuously strained. Whether you or your team are feeling overwhelmed by the amount of change or finding pockets of resistance to change which can undermine the desired result of the change, you can take steps to dealmore effectively and help others survive and thrive through change.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
This 2-hour Lunch 'n Learn Workshop will teach you:
- the nature of workplace change and how most people react to it
- how to deal with resistance to change
- how to help people become more resilient and better able to cope with ongoing, continuous change
