Organizational Change: Human Skills

Previously, I’ve been talking about conceptual and technical skills for change.  This time I’d like to talk about the most important skills necessary for organizational change, namley human skills.  This is described as the ability to work as a group and to build cooperation within the team. Human skills are concentrated on working with people.

A leader with highly developed human skills is aware of his/her own attitudes, assumptions and beliefs about other individuals and groups.  They know themselves. They have done the work on themselves.  Therefore they can lead others into who they are becoming and it is here we create real organizational change.  Organizations that have ignited employees are on fire, they excel in every way.

Human Skills

Leaders with developed human skills create an environment where employees feel:

• safe
• secure
• motivated
• open attitude
• ability to express opinions
• a courage to speak the truth

To create motivation is also a leadership skill.  Motivational leaders formulate tasks in an exciting and attractive way, to create a vision that employees can pursue. Motivation and change comes hand in hand.  Vision and clear objectives are key ingredients.  Other factors that contribute according to Angelöw (2010):

• knowledge and information – improves motivation when employees can access information
• belief in one’s ability – the importance to feel confidence that I can make this happen
• security – employees must feel secure and not threatened by the change

Source:

Angelöw B (2010) Framgångsrikt förändringsarbete : om individ och organisation i förändring, Stockholm: Natur & Kultur

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