I guess I have always been a bit of a ‘change junkie’. I love the feeling of adrenalin surging through me when I’m staring into the face of an exciting future project and can barely wait to get going. In equal measure, I can feel frustrated by the all too often wise words of caution from some around me, who may see the process of getting to this new destination fraught with danger. I’m a glass half full type of person and am lured into the change by a confident expectation that this future place will be so much better than the current state of affairs! In many ways it has served me well in my career to date, where life for people using health or social care is rarely what is should be and the agenda for change is just so compelling.

However, we all have a very different relationship with change; some love it and focus on the future, some hate it and focus on the past while some simply ‘go with the flow’ focusing primarily on getting through today. For many it brings out strong emotions, because change involves not only embracing the new, but also letting go of the old. My personal experience has shown me that managing change well is a vital leadership skill. The term leadership itself implies facilitating some sort of continual movement from one place to the next. As a result, there are endless leadership books and courses on what is referred to as change management. At the heart of most lie the twin principles of communication and involvement, which when done well definitely oil the wheels of change for any organisation.

However, as I get a little longer in the tooth I’m beginning to wonder if there is not a lot more to it. I believe it is very simplistic to think that organisational change either happens or doesn’t happen depending on some senior management decision. I think change is all around us; it happens whether we want it to or not, or to quote an ex work colleague of mine “change is the norm”. If we take a look at the natural world as a reference point, nothing ever stays the same, in fact it is in a constant state of motion. The seasons change, the tides ebb and flow, the sun rises and falls, the clouds scuttle across the sky, the flowers bloom and die and so on. We are in truth constantly living in the midst of change and of course are also changing ourselves – a quick look in the mirror confirms that one for me! The question I think we need to ask ourselves is are we trying to resist it or are we learning to ride it well and even shape its direction? When we learn to ride change well, we find that we are able to influence the direction more easily. Moving a stationary object from one place to another is a lot harder than directing one that already has momentum behind it.

I therefore think that one of the key roles of leaders is to bridge the gap between how things are now and the desired organisational future, so that people can successfully make the needed journey. Part of this is done by communicating a compelling vision and effectively engaging those involved. But I also believe that part of this is about acknowledging the reality of ongoing change within and around us, learning to work with it and taking advantage of its momentum. Leaders have a role in modelling and building a culture where everybody is supported to ride the tide of change well because it doesn’t stop for anyone.

Lucy Hurst-Brown