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Influencing Change - A Guide for Sellers, Coaches, and Supervisors

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When people or groups make a decision to purchase something, they go through the same decision cycle that an individual goes through to decide upon a personal change, or an employee goes through to change behaviors at a boss’s insistence.

Until now, our communication rules have assumed that when we kindly or persuasively offer others good information that could solve problems and achieve successful results, or coach them toward making a much-needed change, or even just pitch a product they sorely need, we can expect a positive reception. Obviously, if our communication partner (called Partner in this article) has a problem and we’ve got the true solution – and we do! We do! – they should take our advice. But they don’t.

We watch our Partners nod their heads in agreement with our clever suggestions, and promise to do something different, but then quickly return to their old less-successful behaviors.

DISCOVERING THE PROBLEM VS. SUPPLYING THE SOLUTION

When we offer our Partners seemingly obvious solutions and expect them to change, we are failing to take into account their need to make comprehensive systems decisions first. Indeed, our Partners need to recognize and manage all aspects of their presenting problem before they can make sense of our suggestions. But it's not so easy as we think.

Let me make up a silly analogy using an iceberg: we all see the tip; but if an iceberg engineer (I’m obviously making this up) needs to move the iceberg, he can’t until/unless he understands its size, shape, weight, as well as weather conditions, sea conditions, and its course of travel. Until the whole iceberg is measured and a new location is found, the tip ain’t movin’.

There is so much more to influencing choices than we initially recognize.

Of course, our Partner's presenting problem seems obvious to us, especially when we’ve been in business a while and have seen it all so often. But the full ramifications of the problem – all of the elements that it contains, all of the legs it has to-and-from the rest of the Partner’s environment, all of the beliefs and constructs that maintain the problem – are quite hidden.

And until or unless the client understands and resolves all of the elements that created and maintains the problem, she won’t know how to make a change. She might act differently for a bit when she intellectually understands the reasons to adopt new behaviors. But if the complete set of issues aren’t understood, managed, and accounted for, permanent change will not occur.

INFORMATION DOESN’T HELP PEOPLE CHANGE

Too often, sellers of change focus their drive toward change around rational, proven facts, generally accepted knowledge, or unique data – all of which I am labeling ‘information’. While information is necessary, and will be useful at some point later in the decision cycle, there is no way early on for people to know what to do with it. It’s akin to explaining to the iceberg engineer all of the dynamics of the moving crane before he’s sized up the components of the iceberg, the weather, or the sea.

It’s difficult to understand that accurate information is not enough to warrant change: people just end up resisting.

This problem shows up when buyers take too long to purchase. Or when people don’t heed our advice and continue on doing the same-old, same-old, complaining fervently of an unresolved problem. It seems curious for us to see their problem so clearly, and have a viable solution, and then be ignored, while the Partners continue to muddle along with the same problems.

But a note of caution: it’s not our job to understand or fix our Partner’s problems although we’d sure like to. It’s not our job to know what our Partner needs. The Partner must effectively manage all of the elements within their existent system before change can occur. Once they do this, as part of a facilitation process of painstaking discovery you can lead them through, they can develop all the necessary criteria for designing a unique solution; as support folk, we then just supply it. So much easier than us trying to create a solution based on a small segment of data.

I recently got a call from a young woman in a large recruitment company. She wanted to know how I would train 3000 people.

“What criteria are you using to know if they've been successfully trained?”

“We just want a training program. We're talking with several different groups, and want to know what you can do for us.”

“But all programs don't offer the same things, and your sales staff would learn different skills from each program.”

“Well, we want you to tell us what's different about yours so we know and we can compare.”

“But what are you comparing if you don't know your criteria?”

I then used Facilitative Questions to help her determine her success criteria. Here’s what she came up with:

1. differentiation from the competition;

2. loyalty and trust created from each interaction;

3. a ‘true’ consultative approach in which the seller helps the buyer understand and solve her own business problems;

4. consistent skills among all sales staff;

5. creation of value through each interaction.

Once we discovered the criteria, it became clear that Buying Facilitation would work for her. But until then, she wouldn’t have known how to discern one program from another since 'sales training' meant something unique to her that I had no way of understanding without making guesses.

SYSTEMS

Let’s digress here to underscore the importance of ‘systems’, which are the elements of the Partner’s company that must be managed before change can take place.

People and groups of people possess unique, internal elements, or ‘systems': they operate through certain beliefs; hold religious or personal or company values; collaborate with others (family, partners, vendors, colleagues) with whom they have another set of beliefs and values; work/live with rules, politics, and norms; have hopes and dreams, fears and regrets. In business there are often vendor or multinational relationships that alter the fact pattern. Indeed, all of us have very unique mind-sets, compounded when there are several people within the system, such as families or business colleagues. And these elements - which I'm labeling 'systems' - cause and create the Partner's landscape.

People/teams are generally unaware that their problems are a direct result of the mix of these very idiosyncratic systems issues. It's the system itself, in the precise way it exists, that has created the problem situation. Indeed, whatever is going on actually looks and feels ‘normal' cuz that's the way it's always been. It's only when a significant problem crops up that people look beyond the conscious-comfortable status quo.

As outsiders, there is no way we can address, manage, or alter those unique internal issues. We just see the results of the decisions made: there is no appropriate training program in place; the person is overweight and facing serious illness; the employee comes in late every day; 20 people are working from a server that handles 5 people.

A solution looks obvious to us; even when a needs-analysis is done it often looks like our solution would solve the problem (see newsletter #51 – Needs Analysis: who is it for?). But no matter how smart we are as outsiders, no matter how much we can see, no matter how right we are, we are still only seeing the tip of the iceberg.

THE TWO STAGES OF DECISION MAKING

Let’s start with one of my basic premises:

Information does not teach people how to make a new decision.

Since most of us use information transfer as a way to instigate change, let me offer you my rationale for the above statement: unless our Partners address their internal systems issues before seeking a solution, they face the prospect of upsetting any elements that hold the status quo together. In fact, there might be chaos if change is not managed appropriately.

In our iceberg analogy, that means until the engineer understands what he’s got to move where, understands the depth and mass of the ice, and understands the water factors, he faces possible destruction of the iceberg if he tries to move it with only knowledge of the tip.

So there is an up-front set of decisions that need to get made in order to consider doing something new, and a secondary set of decisions to determine an appropriate solution.

In the first stage of decisioning – the choice to make a new decision by managing all internal variables - there are three distinct, sequential phases that all people and teams go through and which must be resolved (consciously or unconsciously) before a final decision can be made. In fact, each of these phases are carried out (consciously or not) in every decision made, whether it's a simple or a complex decision, or a decision made by an individual, a group, a family, or a company.

1. What’s missing and how did it get missing;

2. How can we fix that with familiar resources;

3. What are the full range of internal variables that need to be recognized and addressed before a new solution can actually be embraced.

1. Where are we? What’s missing? - Recognizing, understanding, and managing the complex issues.

Our Partners must be able to examine the full extent of the elements of the problem and acutely recognize (I mean deeply understand) what’s missing that is creating the problem at hand. Does this sound simple?

How many of us, given all the time in the world to sit down and think, can actually recognize all the elements in play that have gotten us where we are, not to mention what might be missing from our potentially comfortable status quo?

Think of something about yourself that you don’t particularly like: your penchant for procrastinating? Your push to work harder rather than take time with your family? The way you speak to people sometimes or your inability to really listen if you’re distracted? Your forgetfulness?

We all have annoying habits or behaviors that we either try to hide, or wish we could fix. And even when we’ve tried to fix them, they don’t stay fixed. Why? It’s actually difficult from an up-close-and-personal standpoint to fully recognize, understand, or pinpoint all of the elements that have generated and maintained this quirk. It all just ‘is’, and has grown into comfort.

If seeing ourselves clearly is that difficult for us, how can we expect others to have an easier time?

Following this thinking, the main idea here is that only your communication partner – your client, your prospect, your employee – can know the full range of elements she is willing to address, not you. It is faulty for us to think it's our job to understand (so we can offer our solution?). Our job is to help our Partner understand by asking the facilitative questions that will direct them to their own solutions.

2. Fix problems with known resources – Seeking to fix what is already there, or find familiar vendors/sources of change management.

The next piece of the puzzle is that systems try to self-correct. Even when it’s painfully obvious that there is a problem that needs to be solved, the first place that people or teams go to fix it is internal: they end up going back to those same systems that created the problem, hoping for a different outcome.

Of course that’s insanity, but until they at least make the effort, they won’t consider a solution outside of their comfort zone. Our training doesn’t work? Let’s tweak it. I’m overweight? All I have to do is stop eating ice cream every day, and I’ll start today – uh, tomorrow.

One of the problems we have as change agents is that we actually believe people or clients want us to help them change at the moment they come to us to fix their problem. They are only attempting to get ideas to use so they can fix their own problem.

3. Manage all internal variables so no chaos will occur through change – pinpointing the actual ideas/people/initiatives/decisions that would need to buy-in to any changes.

It’s only when people truly understand that they’ll need a solution that’s unfamiliar – possibly uncomfortable, unfamiliar, uncontrollable - that they sit down to truly make sense of all of the issues they need to manage in order to make a change that won’t wreak havoc on their status quo.

Until or unless all of the internal criteria that created and maintain the problem are recognized, and a route is designed in which they can manage an efficient change progression throughout their system, people won’t change. That means having the prospect address relationship, financial, people, historic, branding, belief, and (especially) political issues - whatever they see as elements within the larger system that maintain the current fact pattern. Let me say again, that as an outsider you will never fully understand what is going on. Your job is to support your partners through their own discovery and solution creation.

NEW JOB

The jobs of sellers, coaches and supervisors must now shift to include a decision support model. The Buying/Decision Facilitation Method is a method that leads people through the components of their decisions so they can recognize the elements they need to address and resolve. Our roles are to be neutral navigators who chart the course of discovery.

This will bring the following results:

1. what needs to get changed will be recognized and acknowledged quickly.

2. decisions get made with all elements included and our Partner knows she has all answers for her solution;

3. all decision partners are brought into the problem/solution within a few hours/days of the initial phases of discovery. In that way they create their own solution and have no resistance;

4. the seller/coach/supervisor is seen as a true advisor, and any competition is dispensed with.

5. the relationship between Partner and change agent becomes loyal;

6. pitching and presenting is minimized, as the solution comes from the Partner and seller/coach just supplies it.

We’ve been trained to have answers, to uncover ‘pain’. But we can share the job with our Partners: they have the detail; we have the overview. Between us, we’ve got the whole picture.

Help your Partner change and have a full set of resources. Be the navigator that supports them. Don’t have the answers, have the questions. Trust your partners to do their own changing. Your job is to serve, and supply the appropriate solution when they discover how to manage their own change.

Interview: Jo Stewart-Rattray, Award Winning Top Executive, International Security and Risk Management Authority and Vice President ISACA

QUALIFICATIONS

• Masters of Education Studies – Psychology
• Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
• Certified Information Security Manager (CISM)
• Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT)
• Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC)
• Certified Social Engineering Prevention Specialist (CSEPS)
• Registered 27001 Lead Auditor
• Certified Professional (Australian Computer Society)

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

• Member, Australian Computer Society, Certified Professional
• Co-opted member, ACS SA Branch Executive Council
• International Vice President, ISACA International
• Chair, Leadership Development Committee, ISACA International
• Past President, ISACA, Adelaide Chapter
• Ambassador, Women in Innovation & Technology
• Professional Member, Australian Information Security Association
• Member of the Australian Institute of Management

AWARDS

• National ICT Professional of the Year (iAwards 2011-2012)

EXPERIENCE

See RSM Bird Cameron

Jo has 24 years experience in the IT field, some of which were spent as CIO in the Utilities space, and 16 in the Information Security arena. She underpins her information technology and security background with her qualifications in education and management.

She specializes in consulting in information security issues with a particular emphasis on governance in both the commercial and operational areas of businesses. Jo provides strategic advice to organizations across a number of industry sectors including banking and finance, utilities, automotive manufacturing, tertiary education, retail and government.

Jo is the Chair of both ISACA's International Leadership Development Committee and its Security Culture Taskforce. She is past president of ISACA's Adelaide Chapter, and she was sworn in as International Vice President of ISACA in June of this year at the Association’s Annual General Meeting in Washington, DC.

ISACA is a professional body with some 95,000 members in 180 countries around the world, and represents professionals from the assurance, governance and security disciplines.

She was appointed to CIGRE's international working group B5.38 and worked with the group to assess information security risks in power system operations within SCADA systems and the implementation of appropriate security controls.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:25:
Jo, you have a strong history of significant global impact in security, risk management, governance, and senior executive leadership. Thank you for sharing your considerable expertise, deep accumulated insights, and wisdom with our audience.

:00:45:
Congratulations on your recent significant award. Can you tell us more about it?
"....In August of this year I was named the Australian ICT Professional of the Year....When I was asked by a colleague if I minded if they nominated me, I agreed and quite frankly I didn't think I would hear any more....You can imagine my absolute surprise when I received a call from the committee saying that I had won the award. I was really blown away by it...."

:01:42:
What was the reaction from your family from receiving this award?
"....I have been fortunate over the years — my husband has been exceptionally supportive of my efforts....Also close colleagues were also blown away...."

:02:27:
What valuable lessons can you share from ISACA's research initiative on 'Creating a Culture of Security'?
"....One of the most valuable lessons for me was about not judging a book by its cover. You can find the champions of a culture of security in all sorts of places, not just at the top of an organization...."

:04:35:
What are the main thrusts around your work on COBIT 5.0 that will be of value to the audience?
"....It's looking at COBIT as not just the framework itself which of course is the platform, it will be a strong framework on which a series of lenses can be applied depending on what you do in the IT or Information Security space...."

:06:07:
What are important takeaways on your work on ISACA's Business Model for Information Security (BMIS)?
"....BMIS gets rid of the silos in organizations because it takes a cross-functional approach to information security....My important take-away from this is that there is something in BMIS for everyone and it's absolutely worth a look at...."

:07:42:
Please share your goals as the Chair of both ISACA's International Leadership Development Committee and its Security Culture Taskforce.
"....The Security Culture Taskforce was formed to specifically develop and publish the research on creating a culture of security....The completed goal was to publish that document and also to get this piece of work out into the world....The Leadership Development Committee was formed last year in 2010 and it's in place to encourage ISACA members to volunteer at the international level....It's about making the experience worthwhile from both sides of the fence. We are also looking to identify high potential future leaders of the Association....It's always a work in progress...."

:12:44:
I guess there would be a lot of crossovers with other Societies. I'm sure there are lots of members of both Societies. Do members of ISACA collaborate with the Australian Computer Society?
"....Absolutely. That's one of the things in my role as International Vice-president I have ensured....It's fair to say that we do have a fairly strong relationship with the Australian Computer Society...."

:14:51:
What do you hope to contribute as International Vice President of ISACA?
"....One of the important things for me is furthering the connections that I've already fostered within the Australian and Oceania regions....One of my roles is to work closely with our President's Council....I'm also very active in promoting ISACA and forming those relationships with other professional bodies...."

:17:22:
Can you briefly describe your work and outcomes with international working group B5.38?
"....CIGRE is an organization with its focus on large utilities....What we produced was what CIGRE calls a technical brochure which is actually a very large guide with many pages on the security on electricity substations. Very rewarding piece of work which allowed me to work with a multi-disciplinary, multi-national group of professionals...."

:18:51:
Can you outline important lessons from your work in the Utilities space?
"....I learned so much from my engineering and telecommunications colleagues during that time that I'm still grateful for today. It actually piqued my interest in securing that kind of environment so it's a little bit of a passion. It's not something I work in all the time, but it is something I really enjoy..."

:20:26:
When you did your work with the Utilities space were you working with government agencies as well?
"....In Australia, until about 6 – 10 years ago they were always government owned. Now we have a combination — some are privately owned and some are still government owned, so that creates a whole raft of issues when it comes to crisis or emergency management. The Australian government has recognized that and have put in place some safeguards around critical infrastructure....There is understanding of critical infrastructure protection and I was involved in part of those programs which was about information sharing in those environments...."

:22:42:
What are your top five governance tips?
"....Never under-estimate the human factor when you are putting governance posture in place....Ensure that there are good policies in place that are as unambiguous as possible. Ensure that the policies that have been developed are disseminated to the appropriate staff, contractors and temporary staff — whatever is appropriate to your organization....Information security or IT must be aligned with the overall corporate strategy....Information security awareness has to be an ongoing program and not a one-off event....If we are talking about information security governance, it’s got to be a commitment from the top...."

:26:55:
Please overview your certifications and the value they bring to your work and your clients?
"....The certifications that I have show my clients that I have a strong understanding of the core body of knowledge that relates to each of those credentials. Holding the certifications also shows that I have an on-going professional development program in place...."

:28:59:
Jo, can you profile your extensive history and valuable lessons you wish to share from each of your top three leadership areas?
"....Don't expect everyone to have the same standards and concepts of time and urgency as yourself....Let people do their jobs without breathing down their necks....Never underestimate the human factor....Never judge a book by its cover....Look for the champions...."

:39:46:
Have you encountered what I would call unconscious bias in your career and how did you overcome it?
"....This is not always the case and it is not the case in all organizations or all walks of life but I have certainly found it over the years....Oftentimes it's unconscious, but it can be ingrained and it can be systemic in organizations where they don't recognize that what they are doing is actually a form of discrimination so it is a problem....There are lots of questions you have to ask yourself: "Am I prepared to continue to fight for it? How far would I go with this? What is the impact going to be? Is it worth the impact or the consequences of the impact?"....For early career professionals, women do have to be prepared that it's not the equal playing field that we would like to think it is, in some cases – in other cases, yes it is...."

:43:42:
Do you think it will happen in our lifetime that we're going to see this or do you think it's going to 50 years before we see a flat playing field?
"....It has been enshrined in legislation so we have won part of the battle....Now it's getting it accepted in the corporate sense which has got nothing to do with the legislation. This is about developing new social norms and we're talking about creating that kind of culture....It is longitudinal — it's not going to be something that is going to happen overnight and women have to continue to want to fight...."

:44:49:
Jo, tell us about your most difficult challenges and the valuable lessons you wish to share?
"....One of the greatest challenges that I've had is actually getting people to understand what information security really is about. Lessons to be learned — I need to collect stories and anonymize those stories in order to help educate markets...."

:48:49:
How will you accomplish your three top goals in your current position and how will you measure success for each of these goals?
"....Goals: To build a highly successful practice....To people it with the very best that I can....To exceed my clients’ expectations....Measurements: profitability....staff retention and cohesiveness of staff....customer satisfaction...."

:51:11:
Describe some areas of controversy or much discussion in the areas that you research and work.
"....There is a great deal of controversy about what is culture and how do we build a culture that is appropriate to our organization....How much is technology and how much is culture in the IT and IS type businesses — that's another area of controversy. I have a theory that in information security it's 80% about the people and 20% about the technology....One of the areas of much discussion currently is cloud....The other area of controversy or much discussion I think is the use of social media in the corporate environment...."

:57:14:
Why should IT professionals and executives join non-profit associations?
"....I believe it's a way of enriching your understanding of the industry sector in which you work. It's a sensational way of networking with people....You generally have access to a core body of knowledge as well....There's also the credentialing and that sort of stuff....Quite frankly it's about giving back to the community that has given you so much...."

:58:30:
What specific challenges and opportunities should IT practitioners and businesses embrace today and in five years?
"....Consumerization of IT....The issue of BYOD (bring your own device)....Security on the inside, not just the perimeter....We live in a outsourced, offshore, cloud-provided world and we need to make sure we know who has access to our data legally through those means...."

:01:02:15:
Do you think the concept of singularity will happen in the next 50 years?
"....We see it with the younger career aspirants in the workplace. They are sitting right next door to their colleague but send them an email or they text them. What concerns me is that we are losing the art of one-on-one interplay; the human to human interplay disappears and more and more is done through a different interface....There's always that issue when we talk about downloading the conscious into a computer system....but where does the moral or ethical stuff come into it....I certainly see that more and more we are relying on an interface and it’s becoming just part of the way people do stuff...."

:01:06:06:
What are your thoughts on computing as a recognized profession like medicine and law, with demonstrated professional development, adherence to a code of ethics, and recognized credentials?
[See www.ipthree.org and the Global Industry Council, http://www.ipthree.org/about-ip3/global-advisory-council]
"....I really think we are seeing it more with a lot of organizations....I think that regardless what you do and how you do it, professionalism is about the people themselves and the values that they hold as professionals...."

:01:09:01:
From your extensive travels and work, please share one or more stories (amusing, surprising, unexpected, amazing).
"....Sometimes out of the worst experiences the best things come...."

:01:14:36:
If you were conducting this interview, what 3 questions would you ask and then what would be your answers?
"....If you had to pick out one event what was the turning point for you in your career?....Can you take out your crystal ball and predict what will happen in the IT world in the next 5 to 10 years?...."

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