Changing Management Policies for new Technologies

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Changing Management Policies for new Technologies
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• CEENet ANW
• Chisinau, October 2004

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Goals of this Session

• Understand how we relate to change
• Provide a framework for Managing Change
• Leave here with more questions than answers

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We are not the only people to have thought about
change

• God grant me the serenity to accept the things I
  cannot change,
• The courage to change the things I can,
• And the wisdom to know the difference.
  Reinhold Niebuhr

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We are not the only people to have thought about
change

• Change is as inexorable as time, yet nothing
  meets with more resistance. Benjamin Disraeli

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We are not the only people to have thought about
change

• If you don't like something, change it. If you
  can't change it, change your attitude. Don't
  complain. Maya Angelou

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We are not the only people to have thought about
change

• We cannot change anything until we accept it.
• Condemnation does not liberate, it
  oppresses. C. G. Jung

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We are not the only people to have thought about
change

• Change is the law of life, and those who look
  only to the past or the present are certain to
  miss the future. John Fitzgerald Kennedy

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?

• Do you detect a theme here?

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Some basics

• Change is not only inevitable, it is constant
• It is only our perception of the Rate of Change
  that seems to speed up or slow down
• We cannot manage change, we can only manage our
  response to change
• We alone control our response to change

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The Environment

• For humans, change is contextual
• What is our context as Network Managers in
  Eastern Europe and Central Asia
• Geo-Political
• Socio-Political
• Economic
• Technological

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The Environment

• Geo-Political
• Recent change in political organization
• Breakup of Soviet Union and Yugoslavia
• Reorientation of the Eastern European Socialist
  states towards the West
• Now part of the EU
• Communications and transport infrastructure
  largely follows post-war lines of communication
• Change is already well underway with the
  reorientation towards the EU

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The Environment

• Socio-Political
• The Compass no longer points to Moscow
• Self Determination is the new keyword
• Regional is replacing National in our
  thinking

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The Environment

• Economic
• We are increasingly unable to remain financially
  isolated and independent
• The West seems to own the IP core and the East
  seems to own the edge.
• The new economy is capital intensive and
  reduces operational costs
• Reduction is the services economy
• What is the cost/price of foreign Capital?

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The Environment

• Technological
• Entry level requires installing the State of the
  Art
• Go slow and catch up is not feasible
• But, if your plan is only to follow, you can
  never catch-up
• Some alternatives to Cisco, et. al.
• Linux based routers, etc.
• But, this approach typically tries to replicate
  the commercial technology, not extend it

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The Environment

• Technological
• Microsoft owns the desktop applications and is
  trying to own the network
• Standards level the playing field
• But, for hardware, this favors countries with
  high-tech/low-cost manufacturing infrastructure
• Anarchy is also alive and well
• P2P Technology
• Gaming
• VoIP (Skype)

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The Human Element

• As leaders, we tend to want stability in the
  system
• Few leaders in the dominate system start
  revolutions
• But, history is not made by quiet people
• We have an investment in keeping things the same
• But, the world, and the very nature of the
  universe conspires against us
• How do we embrace change without sacrificing our
  ourselves?

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Finding Direction

• Look at the way your system is organized
• Is the focus on the management
• For your success?

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Finding Direction

• Look at the way your system is organized
• Or, is the focus on the customer
• For their success?

Users Customers
Customer Service Sales
Sales Service Management
Sales Director
Sales Director
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Finding Direction

• May I suggest
• If you allow your users/customers needs to define
  your direction and goals
• You will have aligned your organization to
  change,
• rather than being oriented to oppose it
• Provide your people
• The freedom to manage on their own
• And the freedom to fail
• Which gives them the freedom to learn

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Frameworks for Dealing with Change

• Separate yourself from the change
• Intellectual and emotional distance
• Fear drives poor decisions
• Build a framework for analyzing the change
• For example

• Name this change
• What is different about this
• How will this impact the users
• What are the benefits
• Etc.

• Describe, the change in detail
• What is the same
• How will it impact you and your staff
• What are the negatives

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Frameworks (Continued)

• Or maybe try writing down the purpose for this
  change
• To
• What is the task, the actual change that is
  taking place
• In a way that
• What are the objective benefits of this change
• So that
• How will this help your users and customers to be
  more successful in their jobs

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Frameworks (Continued)

• For example
• To
• Provide full-time Internet connectivity and VoIP
  software and for each student living in campus
  housing

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Frameworks (Continued)

• For example
• In a way that
• The costs of maintaining a campus phone system
  will be reduced
• Phone usage costs will be cut sharply
• More students will be able to have phone services
  in their room

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Frameworks (Continued)

• For example
• So that
• Students will be able to contact friends, family
  and school staff more easily from the comfort of
  their rooms
• Students will save money over the use of
  pay-phones and mobile phones
• Improved communications will help students better
  interact with peers and faculty to improve
  learning

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Frameworks (Continued)

• Then
• Clearly define the following
• What is the exact order of events that you will
  need to follow to implement this change?
• What tools and services will you need?
• What capital equipment will you need?
• What skills will your staff need?
• What are the potential dangers in this plan?
• What can go wrong?

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Value the Things That Get In Your Way

• Respect your enemy
• Understand and find the value in things that
  prevent you from doing what you want to do
• Slow is good
• Patience pays off
• Learn to live with frustration
• You will get better results

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Value the Things That Get In Your Way

• Why is there never enough time to do it right
• But, always enough time to do it again?
• Work done right, stays done
• Work done wrong fades quickly

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Make change part of your routine

• Take time each day to learn or do something new
• Do not let yourself get too comfortable
• Keep up with the changes in our industry
• Magazines
• Conferences
• Journals
• Web sites
• Etc.

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Alter Your Staffing Resource Model

• Traditional staffing was to enable immediate
  response to any request
• In other words, failure proof
• Too expensive!
• People are not kept busy all the time
• Shift to a Just in time model
• Do more with less
• Increased morale from increased responsibility
• Reduces risks of failure

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What if you are the object of change?

• How do you deal with cuts, downsizing, etc.
• Objectively look at the benefits to your
  customers
• See this through their eyes
• Will this benefit them?
• Recognize the inevitable
• It is often better to be the first to go than the
  last
• Be the master of your own destiny
• If the change is for the general good accept it
• Fight for transition benefits instead of fighting
  the change
• Have faith in your own abilities

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Final Word

• Do not believe everything you think!