PARTNERS IN CHANGE:PARTNERS IN CHANGE:HOW FOUR FOUNDATION HOW FOUR FOUNDATION COLLEGE MANAGERS COLLEGE MANAGERS MADE A DIFFERENCEMADE A DIFFERENCE
Conference Presentation – 2006 TEM Conference, Sydney Hilton
Darlene Sebalj, Susan Hudson, Jan Ryan & Juliet Wight Boycott
Partners in Change
DARLENE SEBALJPhD Student, University of Newcastle
Former College Manager, College of Science Technology and Environment,
University of Western Sydney
SUSAN HUDSONProject Manager, Office of the DVC (Corporate Services)
Former College Manager, College of Arts, Education, & Social SciencesUniversity of Western Sydney
JAN RYANCollege Manager, College of Business
(Previously known as the College of Law and Business)University of Western Sydney
Partners in Change
University of Western Sydney
• 7th largest University in Australia• 35,000 + students• 6 teaching campuses – spread across
Greater Western Sydney• 1 January 2001 – 3 “member” universities join to form one unified UWS• 3 separate cultures had to merge• Birth of a new organisation
Partners in Change
The Four Colleges:
• Academic structure of 4 “super” Colleges led administratively by a College Manager
• 4,500 – 10,000 student enrolments• Contained between 4 and 7 Schools and 1 and 5 Research Centres• Budgets of between $23M - $50M• Based across 3 to 6 teaching campuses • Consisting of between 45 and 100+ administrative and technical staff• Initial 12.5% admin staff reduction target
Loss of Networks
Competition for Resources
Lack of Common Policies &
Procedures Positioning & Power
Struggles
Low Staff Morale
Environmental Turbulence & Uncertainty
Difficulties in Achieving Set
Objectives
Poor Communication with Key College
Stakeholders
NEED FOR AN ALLIANCE
Partners in Change
LARGE-SCALE ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE ENVIRONMENT
Partners in Change
The alliance amongst College Managers was founded on:
• A strong work ethic
• Personal and collective integrity
• A commitment to resource efficiency
• A commitment to administrative best practice
• A commitment to the well being of each College and their staff
• A commitment to the success of the “new” UWS
• A good sense of humour
• A strong element of TRUST
Partners in Change
Benefits of the Alliance:
• Provided an organisational voice
• Built our organisational profile and strength
• Significantly improved our bargaining and negotiating power
• Provided a platform from which to lodge collective strategies and initiatives
CommunicationChannels
Underlying Values &
Principles
Supportive Environment
Staff Engagement
Standardised Processes &
Practices
ALLIANCE
Staff Development& Empowerment
Partners in Change
The Alliance – Core Strategies:
Partners in Change
Clear and effective communication in a change state:
• We deal far better with change when we have information on what is going on
• Honest, forthright communication is essential
• In times of change, people are hungry for information
Alliance Core Strategy – Develop Communication Channels
Partners in Change
Create ways to communicate:
• Identify areas of disconnect and work on reconnection by establishing key consultative groups
• Meet regularly with your staff
• Establish forums
• Identify areas of potential trouble and establish rapport with all relevant stakeholders
Alliance Core Strategy – Communication Channels
Partners in Change
The value of consultation:
• Creating network
• Ensuring consistency of information
• Dealing swiftly with problems
• Providing a forum for lobbying opportunities
• Providing avenues to avoid pending disasters
• Providing opportunities to bridge the disconnect
Alliance Core Strategy – Communication Channels
Partners in Change
“...the most critical ingredient of any change effort is leadership and managing
change is fundamentally a people issue…” (Karp, 2006, p. 4)
People ARE the organisation
Staff Engagement
Alliance Core Strategy – Staff Engagement
Partners in Change
• The individual is central to accepting or rejecting change
• It is crucial to articulate the vision and provide rationale for the change
• Manage interactively – ensure open, 2-way information flow
• Walk the talk – nothing beats face to face
• Empower your people
• It is important to ask……“What do you think?”
• Cultivate quality relationshipsAlliance Core Strategy – Staff Engagement
Engagement in a change state:
Partners in Change
Providing a supportive environment:
• Create staff development opportunities
• Create Group opportunities to enable sharing of stories
• Provide an environment to validate experiences and allow staff to value their contributions
• Create Individual opportunities to provide an opportunity for staff to develop and grow in the new environment
Alliance Core Strategy – Supportive Environment
Partners in Change
How did we pull this together?• By developing a culture of openness in
a consultative environment
• By creating strong relationships – TEAM formation
• Respect for each other
• Sharing of ideas
• Recognising the individual
Partners in Change
The Four Change Dimensions:
. .
PERSONAL INTERPERSONAL
MANAGERIALORGANISATIONAL
Partners in Change
How we changed:
• Personal - we formed a collaborative alliance based on non-territoriality, integrity, mutual support and a common vision.
• Interpersonal - we mirrored our alliance principles to our staff, strengthened by our communication strategies. We walked the talk.
• Managerial - we used a participative model as we developed standardised systems, processes and common practices. Fostering staff engagement and a supportive environment.
• Organisational - we optimised each College’s administrative structure, resource distribution and alignment of best practice.
Partners in Change
The ALLIANCE formula:
Assess the need for an allianceLink up with suitable alliance partnersLiaise, connect and build your allianceInform each other at all timesArticulate the alliance’s strategyNetworkCommunicate your strength in numbers Enjoy life… celebrate!
Remember to…. have fun !!
PARTNERS IN CHANGE:PARTNERS IN CHANGE:HOW FOUR FOUNDATION HOW FOUR FOUNDATION COLLEGE MANAGERS COLLEGE MANAGERS MADE A DIFFERENCEMADE A DIFFERENCE
Conference Presentation – 2006 TEM Conference, Sydney Hilton
Darlene Sebalj, Susan Hudson, Jan Ryan & Juliet Wight Boycott