How to create meaningful change in the workplace
Making a change is a process, people even build careers around it.
Throughout my varied career, I’ve noticed one consistent truth: there is always room for improvement. Ideas for solving problems come easily to me, but it is only relatively recently that I’ve learned how to turn those ideas into meaningful changes. While there are many variables and no one-size-fits-all approach, I believe the following steps are essential for making a meaningful change at work:
Identify the issue clearly
To make a meaningful change, you must understand what you are trying to solve. It’s too broad to say that meetings are ineffective or too long or that a process needs to be improved. Why? You need to unpick the issue.
In 2024, we began to recognise that R&D sessions could be more effective, but we needed to identify the issue - which turned out to be multiple-faceted. We reminded ourselves of the intended outcomes for R&D and explored ways of measuring whether or not we were meeting those goals.
From here, we had a list of what we were trying to achieve with any future changes.
Use data to make informed decisions
Collect data before and after implementing your change to investigate the need for change and measure its impact. A simple survey works, but think about questions carefully: you don’t want to (unintentionally) only collect information that supports your hunch. Ask questions that challenge the idea that there is even an issue in the first place.
In working to improve R&D, we made sure we had questions that would allow our ideas to be challenged. We needed people to be able to tell us what was already working well - which was more than we thought!
Given my teaching and scientific background - I thought I was good at asking questions. Nevertheless, we highly recommend trialling your questionnaire with a small group first to ensure the questions are easily understandable and the answers collect the type of information you’re hoping for.
Luckily, I was around my colleagues when they started to complete the first version of the questionnaire; questions were interpreted in ways I hadn’t foreseen and it was clear our questions were not as easily understood as we thought - this let me know I needed to go back and refine.
The data collected proved invaluable for shaping our ideas for changes and solutions.
You need team buy-in to support sustainable change
Check if others share your concerns.
Are colleagues on board with the need for change?
You can get a feel for this by simply chatting to colleagues, and making sure you can back this up as part of your data collection. This data is vital when talking to decision-makers to allow you to make a change in the first place.
Learn from the Past
Some of the most valuable feedback along this process of change was from Josh, our MD. He advised that we spend time investigating what has been tried before at Brightec: what worked, what didn’t and why? Chat with the veterans of where you work to avoid reattempting failures from the past.
History taught us that we didn't want to change the structure of R&D, but there was still room for some new ideas.
Click here to read more about the iterations of research and development days at Brightec.
Use your findings to persuade decision-makers
Present your data and insights to decision-makers! Have a plan of exactly what you will do, when, and if anyone else will be involved. Make the decision easy for those in charge. And be ready for feedback to refine your ideas again.
Collaboration is key to making successful changes at work
Don’t try to make changes alone. At Brightec, I have found my accountability buddy in one of our senior engineers, Nick. We paired up off the back of what we learned during a Strength Finders training session. We are almost opposites in our strengths so when we work together we get things done well. By dedicating half an hour a fortnight, we are making company changes, even when we feel like our day-to-day roles mean we don’t have time for side projects.
Stay open-minded and don’t forget to collect data
Your initial idea is likely to continue to evolve, so remember to stay open-minded...
The future success of your initial ideas still depends on your willingness to adapt to feedback. That initial idea may look very different by the end of the process!
It's essential to prove that the changes you made were successful. You put a lot of work into getting this far, enjoy confirming that your changes have made a difference with post-implementation data.
Looking for something else?
Search over 400 blog posts from our team
Want to hear more?
Subscribe to our monthly digest of blogs to stay in the loop and come with us on our journey to make things better!
