Consult the majority oftextbooks on changemanagement, and you will beled to believe that change is arational process that can beeasily managed as we move fromone stage to another. Theprocess will be illustrated withGantt charts, or with critical pathanalysis demonstrating the corestages that must be carefullyprogressed in sequence.Although the authors are rightin outlining the way thingsshould be, the reality is thatchange methodologies do notlive up to simple, rationaldepictions of what really

happens. Of course we needmethodologies outlining corestages and activities, but theaverage trainer or internalconsultant may be hoodwinkedinto believing that following asimple structure is enough toensure that implementation is a reality. Guides, structures andoutlines give us a very basic level of understanding of howchange happens. Change may be partially driven by a structureand methodology, but its success is fuelled by how wellthe personalities, motivationsand egos of the key players inthe change team come togetherto make the change stick.

The change team is composed of the internal trainer andfacilitator, your sponsor or host,any external consultant and, ofcourse, the target or audiencefor the change itself. As internaltrainer or facilitator, you createthe climate and the workingrelationships that will enableyou to work through conflictswithin the team.

The change models wecommonly see frequently neglectto discuss the relationships thatneed to permeate the key actorsin the change team. These relationships need to be robustand able to handle failure aswell as success. As an internalconsultant or trainer, you will

easily identify occasions whenkey issues erupt in the changeteam, putting the success of theinitiative at risk. With this inmind, you set the ground rulesand create an environment inwhich you can work closely withsponsors, external change agentsand the targeted audience whowill be seen as the recipients ofthe change. To believe that thisprocess is unambiguous, andwithout conflict or stress,indicates immaturity within theteam. You should expect there tobe tensions and conflicts. Not every solution will be workedthrough in advance. Anysubstantial change initiative willalways involve imponderablesthat need to be reassessed,discussed and revisited. Considerany post-acquisition integration,or any re-engineering orleadership project.

It is essential that you assess theassumptions and expectationsthat are present individually andjointly within the change team.The psychological contract is theagreement shared between thekey actors. Often the contract isundefined, and never discusseduntil problems hit the project. Inmost cases, the psychologicalcontract resides at theunconscious level within andbetween the change partners.

Design

TRAIN the TRAINER • Issue 21

● Change strategies, and plansfor their implementation,need to have a degree offlexibility designed intothem.

● All the members of yourchange team (including theinternal trainer or theexternal consultant) need toshare a common set ofassumptions – culminating inthe psychological contract.

● The nature and scope of thepsychological contract andhow to arrive at a negotiatedsettlement.

● The key issues for resolutionin the psychological contract.

Key learning points

Author

Philip Atkinson is director of Learning Strategies Ltd, specialising in strategic, behavioural and cultural change. He

consults in the UK, Europe and the US; he has written seven business books and published many articles; he also speaks

at conferences and runs workshop sessions. His book How to become a Change Master: Real World Strategies forAchieving Change, Spiro Press, 2004, reflects many of the themes within this article.

Telephone: 0131 346 1276 • Website: www.philipatkinsonconsulting.com

TRAIN the TRAINER • ©Fenman Limited 2004

PsychologicalcontractingPhilip Atkinson

Do not work in a vacuum. People often resist changebecause they do not know the agenda you seek todeliver. Ensuring, as far as possible, that you can beopen in your dealings with others is really important.I regularly interview senior managers and top-teamplayers, and have to work especially hard to ensurethat the interviewees believe that anything said isconfidential to me and will not be expressedelsewhere. This issue may create problems for you asan internal consultant – simply because you may notenjoy the same seniority as those you interview. And,on occasion, the internal consultant has to ensurethat other strategic information disclosed to themremains totally confidential.

There are several characteristics that are typical of theinternal consultant-sponsor relationship whenworking through the change process. All rest onestablishing a fair and flexible psychological contract.The change team must share a high degree of faith,optimism and resilience. All must believe that thesolution will result in improvement and is possible,even if some stretching is required for success.

Finally, at the start of any project it is useful toprepare a checklist for marking against eachindividual phase of the work. To construct such a list,you may wish to review the terms associated with thepsychological contract. Client and internal consultantshould approach each meeting in a positive andenthusiastic manner, and aim to receive the sameenthusiasm from those with whom they interfacethroughout the contract of work. That will provide

your client with a sense of comfort, and of trust inyour ability and capability to deliver a well-thought-out, well-organised and well-planned solution thatwill be compatible with their expectations.

In the real world, changeis not a sequenced,logical process

References

1 Edgar H. Schein, Process Consultation Revisited: Building the Helping Relationship, Organization Development series, Addison-Wesley, 1998.

2 Chris Argyris and David A. Schon, Organizational Learning II: Theory, Method, and Practice (Second Edition), Prentice Hall, 1995.The unreality of rationalchange models

Confidentiality and trust

The change team – mutually supportive

Establishment of rapport between the sponsor and yourself …

must be the first objective for you both

“”

Psychological contracting

TRAIN the TRAINER

References to this date back to theearly work of the OrganisationDevelopment movement in the1970s, with the work of EdgarSchein1 and Chris Argyris,2 evaluatingthe success of change initiatives. The factor most likely to lead tofailure is the internal trainer orconsultant and others failing to flesh out all the issues beforecommitting to an implementationplan. If you pre-empt problems, you will ensure that all issues arethought through, problems areanticipated and solutions areinstalled before the project is giventhe green light.

At the start of any project, youshould do all that you can to create a positive psychological contract with the client. This not a formalagreement, documented and signedin the same way as a service-levelagreement. Rather, it is an understanding between the sponsoror client and yourself, as internalconsultant, about how you will worktogether on jointly achieving theobjectives tied in with the project.The psychological contract is a

living agreement about howpriorities will be achieved throughworking together. It is aboutdeveloping a joint agreement towork together as a seamless team. As the relationship evolves, thecontract will change. It is not, andnever should be, a formal documentstating precise responsibilities.

Establishment of rapport betweenthe sponsor and yourself asconsultant must be the first objectivefor you both, so that you feelcomfortable with each other. If there is more than one internaltrainer or consultant – or sponsor or client – involved, this willobviously take longer to accomplish.Time must be allowed to establishrapport. The relationship must besolid and durable. If you are theinternal consultant, always identifythe primary contacts, the primary or sole client and the primary or sole external consultant. Establishclearly what is to be delivered byboth parties. This can prevent latermisunderstandings and ensuresupport for the project.

An essential part of the process isgaining insight into the history ofkey problems. Central to this is yourcollecting information and data. Test

for history. Much can be learnedfrom the past. Has a similar projectever been undertaken? Askquestions. Are events and situationsrecurrent? Has the issue been workedon previously, with little or nosuccess? (This is something thatrequires particular attention andresearch.) Why did previousimprovement attempts fail? Whoworked on the issue before? Was itan internally or externally resourcedproject or task?

Collect as many symptoms of theproblem as possible. This can be veryinformative when trying to identifysome of the root causes. It can alsobe very useful in identifying thedecision-makers within the client’sculture – which may be very differentfrom the culture the internal

consultant is in. You must discussand agree with the client whomthey will be working with. Is it oneperson or more? If more than one,the primary contact must be clearlystated and communication must beestablished between all parties.What is the credibility, experienceand ability of those with whomyou will be working? How longhave you been involved with thecompany? With the situation? Forhow long will the resources beavailable to you?

Before proceeding to the nextstage, make sure that you do havea psychological contract, anagreement about what is involvedin your role as the internalconsultant, and also about whatthe sponsor is actually committing.This contract is two way. It is aboutrelationships, and about the trustand integrity of all parties. Anyinternal consultant should ensurethat they and the sponsor are inagreement over each party’s rolesand responsibilities, including alsothose of every other individualinvolved in the project. Roles,responsibilities, desired outcomes,timeframes and resources must beclearly defined and confirmedbetween the two principal parties

– yourself as internal consultantand the sponsor.

When all of the above has beendone, proceed. If the processunderlying the psychologicalcontract is not completed, bewareof future misunderstandings,conflict and abrasive relationships

This psychological contract extendsover the whole range of activitiesof the change project. Whenentering the consulting process,you should determine what dataare to be collected, and fromwhere. You must not make

assumptions about the state ofreadiness of the organisation tochange. Your culture and that ofthe sponsors may differ radically,even though you both work in thesame organisation. What type ofdata will you decide to collect? Isthis fundamentally a quantitativedata-gathering activity? Do youhave the tools and techniques toensure that the data-gatheringprocess is objective and fair? Canyou design any requisite relevanttools – such as questionnaires,attitude surveys, leadershipprofiles, cultural reviews, andcustomer-service questionnaires?

TRAIN the TRAINER

At the start of

any project, you should

do all that you can

to create a positive

psychological contract

with the client

“

”Confidentiality crisisWhen working on change interventions, we also focus ourenergies on examining the change-leadership capability of seniormanagers. In this instance, Edward was the internal change agent,and the relationship with the client, Bob, evolved into that offormal coaching. The coaching focused upon Bob’s lifestylechoices, his future in the wider business and his relationships withothers. Out of the blue, Edward received a phone call from Bob’smanager, Peter. Edward was told, in no uncertain manner, that hewas required to attend a meeting with Peter and should beprepared to discuss Bob’s progress. Edward politely stated that the nature of the coaching work with Bob was confidential andthat he felt he could not disclose information, apart from themost general kind. Peter, well known for his dogmatic approachand focus on control, then demanded to meet Edward to talkthrough Bob’s development plan specifically. Finally, after furtherantagonistic approaches, Edward felt he had to withdraw fromthe coaching work. In the meantime, Bob had been put underimmense pressure by Peter to disclose the content of thediscussions, which was extremely sensitive. There was no optionbut to walk away from the intervention. Peter’s curiosity andneed for control stood as a major barrier for any developmentwork to which Bob wanted to commit personally.

The major learning point here is that there will be times wheninternal consultants will be put under pressure to discloseinformation given to them in confidence. Internal consultants and trainers must demonstrate integrity and adhere to theirvalues. Be under no illusions; this reality permeates many organisations, and the internal consultant needs to demonstratesome strength of character and bravery in order to maintain theirintegrity and confidentiality.

This is an agreement that focuses upon makingassumptions and expectations clear to all parties. The purpose of the contract is to tease out those issuesthat have been unstated. The psychological contract is a means of moving from a general commitment towork on the project to specific stated and concrete expectations. Ultimately, the psychological contractgathers clarity that unites and binds all parties toagreed ways of working together. It usually involves the following:

● Agreement on desired outcomes and objectives –general, specific, and evolving – as the projectprogresses.

● An outline of the specific role of each of the actorsin the programme and of how you all contribute tothe overall assessment process.

● Measures and metrics to evaluate whether theprogramme is proceeding at the required pace.

● Assessment periods – their frequency and keymilestones, and associated activities.

● Time expected to be devoted to the project from theperspectives of all the actors in the process – frombeginning to end.

● Expected percentage of available time to be devotedper week to the project. For instance, is the projectfull time or part time? For what proportion of theweek are you expected to work on the project?

● Confidentiality and secrecy agreements during andafter the completion of the project.

● Licensing agreements regarding the use of specifictools and techniques.

● Deliverables agreed by all parties.

● Use of external resources – such as training inputsexternal to the organisation.

● Agreement on how you and the external changeagent will work together.

● Training and development time for yourself.

● Resources available.

● Access to key players who will ease the transition.

● Support from senior managers to open doors whenresistance to change is high.

● Financial and budgetary constraints.

● Access to the change team and to the projectsponsor and client.

● Standards of behaviour.

● Means for resolving conflicts.

Your role in the early stagesof the consulting cycle

The psychological contract