4 principles of effective and agile organization according to the Change Value Process

Why do some companies grow and others not? What principles and standards are followed by companies that are ahead of the competition? From the perspective of the Change Value Process, parallel development in three areas is important: Mentality, Communication, and Strategy. Our company and our clients achieve a lot because we use specific practices that work. Here are a few of them for the present day. Here are 4 out of 20 principles of an effective and agile organization according to the Change Value Process.

Rule 1:
Dare to negotiate and learn to manage resistance

One of the sources of success for large companies is a good product that can be mass-produced. An example is one of the best Polish companies with a turnover of 600 million

zlotys: Śnieżka. A powerful company that has preserved its family atmosphere, headed by the wise and prudent president, Piotr Mikrut. The general director of the Ukrainian company is Marek Pawluś, who has been successfully running Śnieżka on the difficult eastern market for many years.

I cannot share confidential information, but two very important areas that Śnieżka Ukraina started to implement with our support very effectively are: negotiations with a powerful distributor (a’la OBI) on the eastern market and introducing changes within the company, to which customers had to be prepared. In the negotiations, a key aspect was to strengthen the courage to conduct the talks on their own terms. To make it possible, we worked precisely on every sentence of the commercial presentation and on scenarios that might have happened in the talks.

An important element was also the preparation of interview scenarios with employees to prepare them for the changes that the company was preparing. The key is always clear, precise communication that reassures and at the same time opens up change. Without it, the rebellion on board is guaranteed. Thanks to the sense of decision-makers and the implementation of the Change Value Process standards, the communication of changes was carried out almost perfectly. Remember that the key is communication based on the so-called strategic empathy. So not excessive concern, worry, but understanding the other party and making sure that in cooperation they feel appreciated, understood and that they feel respected. So simple and so hard for many. This requires the development of Emotional and Social Intelligence.

Rule 2:
Find a niche where it’s hard to be different and stay fresh

This is one of the sources of the success of our client Aesco Group, which we support strategically, in marketing and coaching. It operates in an industry that is not obvious to many. The entry threshold is high because it is based on specialist knowledge, customer relations and sales abilities of salespeople. Mariusz Gołaszewski, CEO, with his business sense and experience, noticed a gap a few years ago that no one managed to fill. And the competition hasn’t been able to grow over the years.

In 2019, we helped the company enter from 3.2 million to 4.7 million. There are many sources of this success. One of the key, non-obvious sources is the freshness of the CEO’s vision. Thanks to strategic and coaching work, many new ideas were created, which allowed Mariusz to generate additional energy for further investments and decisions. Due to confidentiality, I cannot go into details, but the fact is that the sense of a new sense, the leader’s vision, has greatly influenced the dynamic development of the company. If the boss does not want, if the boss does not have the energy to reach for more, and at the same time does not organize the strategy and decisions so that the team understands, then there were no increases.

Rule 3:
Be aware of your differentiators and strengths

If we do not know ourselves why we are good, why we, as clients, would choose our company, it is better to close the business. The one who believes in the company and their product has an advantage. He has more courage to develop and is more likely to convince the client. That is why our company grows 10-50% year on year. Thanks to this, both me and our experts have worked for companies such as: Śnieżka, Samsung, Orange, Mercedes, Smyk and many others in recent years.

Our rates are among the highest on the market, despite the fact that we are not a big consulting company from the USA. Why? Because we are constantly building value that is appreciated by customers. Substantive value, value of the offer, image value and competitive value.

How do we do it? There are many methods for this. One of them is constantly asking yourself strategic and marketing questions. Since 2009, we have been asking the Institute questions:

• What are we characterized by?
• How do we stand out?
• What is valuable in our company and offer?
• What do our customers value us for?
• What is our competition valued for and what can we transfer from it to us?
• What do we value as customers in other companies from which we buy products / services and how can we transfer this to us?
• How do I enhance the value we give to the customer?

Thanks to this, we are stronger year on year. Here is a list of the current features of our company that create our value and image. It takes a lot of effort and time to get there and to maintain this quality. But it is necessary and well worth the effort. These are not all the distinguishing features. We keep some for ourselves, because they are confidential at the moment, available only to the team and graduates of the CVP Business School. Not every feature below will be valuable to every customer. The key is to look for those distinctive values ​​that your key customers value and that you can provide.

• our clients achieve tangible, visible results
• our experts have worked for companies such as Śnieżka, Orange, Samsung, Smyk, Mercedes, Metlife, NestBank, Alshaya
• we focus on results, not theory, knowledge
• is based on a proven, unique methodology: Change Value Process
• our experts have 14-30 years of experience in their specialties
• we combine psychological and business competences
• we have the best world standards of knowledge and competence in the field of psychology and business
• we have the best global marketing standards
• we created popular free courses: 60 seconds for manager, 60 seconds for myself, 60 seconds for sale
• we have one of the largest online stores with many video and audio products in the field of psychology, business psychology
• we systematically implement innovations (we were the first in 2010 on our market to have an online platform with many video recordings, we were the first and only to introduce free courses based on autoresponders, e.g. 60sekundmanagera.pl, and in 2009 we were the first to introduce integral methods to the coaching school, such as TLT, the Graves method, in 2020 we introduced the CVP Business School, the only such program in Poland
• we have an efficient, loyal team with a developmental attitude towards challenges
• we have strong, structured values ​​that guarantee a work ethic, confidentiality and a sense of security
• we have an image coherence of websites and offers, which shows our attention to quality and details
• we have the richest offer on the market: from therapy, through coaching, psychological counseling, Leadership Mindset workshops, CVP Adviser School, CVP Business School, to strategic consulting for companies
• we have 3 valuable books by Adam Dębowski
• our main expert, Adam Dębowski, is invited to the media: TVN, Forbes, Gazeta Prawna, Polsat, TVP

4th rule:
Be agile, develop workers mentality

Times of change and crisis teach a different approach in communication and cooperation. The times of dynamic changes verify all gaps and flaws. That is why it is so important to ensure the highest quality of each activity.

To make things even more efficient, I invite you to learn and implement the following principles and values, which the CVP method calls the golden principles and values ​​of agile leadership, management and work . This manifesto has matured in our organization for a long time, and now is the perfect time to publish it. It is also the result of talks with over 30 employees, managers, board members, entrepreneurs who are coping better in a crisis thanks to these rules

Principles and values ​​

Let’s take care of the work standards that have always worked, and at the same time we should develop new, improved ones that allow us to operate more efficiently. We should repeat these principles and values, which we consider important in change, to give a clear signal of what we care about. What is acceptable and what is not. Everyone has to answer the following questions:

• What is the most important thing at the moment?
• What to focus on today / this week / in the month?
• What is unacceptable?

Let us value each other

Working in change requires more effort than usual. Notice what others are doing well. We can appreciate it by thanking them for what they have done. We can praise them saying: great job, you did it very well. We can also ask: I admire what you did, how do you do it? I’m curious, I’d like to learn it.

Mental IOS

Let’s use the approach we call “Mental IOS” – ie Initiative, Responsibility, Independence. In times of change, it is extremely important that, regardless of position:

• showed initiative more than before – they were looking for solutions, not focusing on problems, but on ideas that can quickly support the team, projects, company
• took greater responsibility than before – they did not shift the blame or responsibility onto others, but tried to make decisions
• acted on their own wherever possible – to lighten the team and superiors.

The principle of 3DO and 3OD

• DO press – don’t ignore, don’t leave the action for later. Let’s accelerate what can be done more efficiently.
• TO run – let’s not stretch things over time. Either we make decisions that we finish and not do a given activity / project, or we decide to finish. It is important that topics and designs do not hang in the air. The more suspension, the more the mind gets tired, and in times of change, the fatigue is even greater. Let’s avoid it.
• DO grind – whenever we have a moment, let’s try to improve, improve our activities and procedures. Times of change verify every gap and errors. This brings out all the defects that were not so noticeable before. Let’s improve:
  • a way to conduct meetings – to make them shorter, faster and in a better atmosphere
  • efficiency of meetings – to make decisions more efficiently
  • way of communicating, conducting discussions
• OD let go – you don’t always have to push, demand. Sometimes it is worth letting go, slow down, follow what is happening. It is not always easy to decide whether to push down or let go. But it is worth talking about and learning about it
• OD start – balancing effort and relaxation is crucial. When we take distance, the mind catches space and clarity. Without it, we make many mistakes. Lots of people need to learn to rest. It is not easy for them. They constantly think, analyze. You need to be able to rest physically, have a vacation, but most of all, learn to rest mentally, slow down your thoughts, be more mindful. We say in CVP: We are less tired of doing things than the way we think about them. Therefore, without mental training, the quality of thought and therefore of action will deteriorate and deteriorate.
• OD hide – The ability to work hard is important. The ability to discover effortlessly is also very important. It is about creative cooperation, exploration, openness and creativity that allows you to connect facts and dots. Discovering allows you to constantly learn and inspire from many people, from many industries.

Let’s keep your balance and balance

The first two rules put more effort on our part, so we need to take care of ourselves and others more than before. Therefore, let’s remember together:

• Let’s talk to each other more often. Let’s not get busy, let’s not gossip, but share what’s important to us. Communication in times of change is most important.
• Let’s listen to each other. Let us give ourselves more attention, mindfulness, patience.
• Let’s support each other. Let’s think about how we can help other people on the team and other departments. Let us ask them: How can I help you? Do you need help with anything?
• Let’s not get angry internally, because it causes stress, panic. It is worth for us, like the best athletes, such as Adam Małysz, to control our thoughts, especially in situations of time pressure and momentum.
• Learn the methods that the best actors use in stressful situations: practice deeper breaths many times a day. It oxygenates the head and body and relaxes us.
• Let’s take care of ourselves. While supporting others, we also need to take care of healthy selfishness. If we feel that there is too much on our head.

Let’s learn and introduce agile collaboration methods

It is worthwhile for us to test various ways to make it easier to work with:

• Let’s be flexible – we don’t get attached to the past, patterns that may need to be changed. If something has worked so far, it may not work anymore. You have to flexibly adapt to changes.
• Let’s hold meetings about leading meetings – e.g. once a week for 5 minutes, once a month for 15 minutes, once a quarter for 30-60 minutes. Together, let’s consider how we can improve our meetings, the way we set up, plan, make decisions
• Every day, every other day or at least once a week, e.g. on Monday morning, let’s make 15-30 minute meetings about the applications that each person has from the previous days and the plans that each team member has for the next days. Sometimes 1 minute is enough for everyone to discuss what is up and down for him.
• Let’s check how creative meetings will work for us (once a week, month, quarter), which will be focused on brainstorming, new ideas and even innovations. It is worth exchanging new solutions.
• Let’s check how strategic meetings will work for us (once a week, month, quarter, once every six months), which consist in looking into the future for several-dozen-dozen months. It is worth looking for market and industry trends at such meetings. It is worth analyzing non-obvious things that may escape in the excitement of everyday work, and which will surprise the market and the competition.
• Think innovative, out of the box. The time of changes, and even a crisis (as soon as the greatest threat is mastered), is the time to create completely new solutions. The bigger the crisis, the bigger the changes. The future will never be like the past again. The winners are those who adapt to changes, but most of all those who create new changes. Let us ask ourselves: What can be done differently? What has stopped working and what needs to be recreated? Which game rules are no longer applicable?

Remember the universal principles of strategic psychology and CVP

Everyone is different, but each person has their own emotions and everyone has moments of weakness. The goal is to support him at times when he cannot cope. Each of us may have a time when reality is beyond our control.

The process of change, crisis, on the one hand, each goes in its own way, but often consists of similar stages. Each of the stages may last for a different period of time in every human being. We call them the 8 Stages of Human Evolution in CVP:

• Lack of awareness of the problem – there is shock and denial – the person is unaware of the change that is happening
• Awareness of the effects of the problem – aggression or withdrawal occurs – the person has a need to complain and shift the blame onto others
• Awareness of the problem – there is apathy / suspension, and even depression – the person has a need to complain, talk
• Awareness of the causes of the problem – there is a desire to understand – the person looks for information, knowledge and answers to the question: why did this happen
• Searching for solutions – there is acceptance of what was and the willingness to change – the person is looking for new directions
• Testing solutions – there is a desire to make changes – the person checks what exactly to do
• Change – Returns to normal or begins a new stage of change
  • Create new rules
  • Create new values ​​
  • Making new decisions
• Teaching others – there is a desire to pass on your experiences to others

I wish you the creation of agile, modern and effective organizations that combine focus on profits and development with human values. Thanks to this, we can build a competitive advantage, strong brand, innovation and financial growth. Thus, we can be more business, professional and mental resilience to crises, and better adapt to changes.

Adam Dębowski
CEO and co-founder of the Institute of Change Leaders