Speaker: Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D., Vice President & CFO – Valparaiso University
Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D.: Hello. My name is Mark Volpatti and I'm the vice president and chief financial officer for Valparaiso University.
What are the 4 principles of change management?
Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D.: The four principles of change management are people, evidence, communication and time. People: people are at the heart of any change management decision because change usually affects individuals and groups. Leaders need to engage people early in the process to have the necessary buy in and acceptance in order to make the change occur and this requires evidence, the second principle. It is necessary to go beyond opinions, isolated incidents and personal anecdotes. Change requires data to make informed decisions and leaders need to use credible evidence from various sources to promote the change that's needed. Third is communication. George Bernard Shaw once said the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. As leaders, we sometimes think we have communicated because we made an announcement or sent an email and thought that all employees now know the information that's been received ,and are in the know. We need to ensure that we communicate to all employees through our various mechanisms within our organization. And fourth and last is time. While we usually think change in transformative terms, the reality is that change takes place incrementally, occurring over longer periods of time. Therefore change does not occur overnight but takes time.
How did you implement these principles when Valparaiso University launched its new strategic plan?
Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D.: Valparaiso University is going through significant change. A new president, new direction, new vision. The strategic plan is very much a grassroots effort. The president provided the vision, but it was the faculty and staff that brought the ideas and the initiatives forward, allowing for buy in and acceptance of the people early in the process. And the plan is very much evidence-based. We're using benchmarking data from national databases, identifying best practices from peer and Asper institutions and are consulting with industry-specific organizations. And we have continually communicated where we are in the process with various stakeholders. For our board, is part of every quarterly agenda and for employees, we have sent periodic communications via email. We've held held town hall meetings and we include how the planning process and the committee work is being updated quarterly. We realize this change will take time. The plan is a five year plan and will take every minute of these five years to fully realize the change needed to move out to its next phase as an institution of higher education.
How do you get employee buy-in for change your organization plans to make?
Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D.: how to get employee buy in for change. It goes back to communication: keeping people informed, especially as to the why. One key question is always, how does this change align with our core mission, vision and values? The more the change is congruent with the core values of the organization, the more people can be behind the change. Now there becomes this energy of wanting change to occur. Many of us take positions at organizations because we believe in the mission. This is even more true in the nonprofit world. As Valpo is implementing its plan and trying to make changes, in many ways we went back to our core mission in creating initiatives that promote our value proposition as a faith-based institution that ranks highly academically. Therefore it's linking communication and how the change will enhance who we are fundamentally.
How can organizations build a capacity for change into their company culture?
Mark Volpatti, CPA, Ed.D.: Building capacity for change? Collectively people, evidence, communication and time represent the interdependent ingredients of change. Engaging people early in the process and relying on their expertise and experiences help promote the buy-in necessary for change to occur. Having the necessary evidence to advance data-informed decisions provides leadership credibility and substantiates the need for change. Finally, a strong commitment to communication and an understanding of the amount of time needed to make change part of the fabric of the organization will provide the solid foundation for successful change management. As the leadership guru John C. Maxwell reminds us, change is inevitable. Growth is optional. So the change we've talked about (people, evidence, communication and time) can contribute to fostering such growth within our own organizations.
