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At some point, almost all businesses will need to embrace change. It could arrive in the form of an updated IT system, a fresh direction for the marketing team, or the need to follow new legislation. Part of this process will involve considering how to introduce the necessary changes without affecting employee productivity. Informing the employees who will be affected and ensuring they understand what will be expected is crucial, but there are other ways to ensure the transition is successful.
What Strategies Can Businesses Use to Successfully Introduce New Policies and Procedures?
Seek out a professional service to help implement the policy
As per the HSE, businesses have a duty of care to their employees, and part of that involves developing ‘a policy to deal with drug and alcohol-related problems…’. For companies that choose to implement a testing program, getting advice and using workplace drug testing kits from a specialist is essential. Matrix Diagnostics can help companies to establish a new policy that works and ensure that reliable results are delivered in a timely fashion.
Explain clearly what the change will involve
The more time that managers and leaders spend explaining a new policy, the easier it will be to activate the change. Through meetings, emails, and handouts, managers should explain what is happening and why in a straightforward way. Staff also need to know what will be expected from them at each stage and what will remain the same. Making the policy available as a handout or a poster ensures that people can easily view the sections that are relevant to them. As a result, there should be fewer compliance issues.
Ask for feedback from the team
Once everybody knows how the new policies will be put into effect, they should be given a chance to offer their opinion. Whether feedback is gathered during private in-person sessions or through questionnaires, the insight of people on the ground is valuable. Employees may have concerns that have not been considered or insights that improve the rollout of a new policy. Giving people a platform to share their views also ensures that any doubts or queries can be tackled at an early stage.
Train staff to work with the new procedure
Complex changes can involve alterations to daily working practices and that means employees will need additional training. It’s rarely the case that providing a sheet of written instructions is enough, but in-person training in a new practice or piece of technology can help people to adjust and cope with their new responsibilities.
Monitor the progress of each new policy
Whether a company has quantifiable data or it needs to measure progress using a different type of metric, it’s important to observe the results of any change. This could involve considering the goals of the change and what realising those would accomplish, compared to the previous situation. Consider where productivity has been increasing and where it is lagging. This is useful in terms of evaluating what headway has been made and whether any adjustments are needed to get things moving in the right direction.
