Fishing Nets & Fireworks: Orchestrating Change Management through Network Structures
Change management requires the artful orchestration of ideas, information, and behaviors across an organization. Implementing change successfully isn't just about having the right strategies in place but also about disseminating these strategies that encourage acceptance and adoption. Two significant metaphors for this process come from nature: fishing nets and fireworks.
Fireworks and Fishing Nets: Communication Patterns
To understand these structures, consider a firework display. A single flare rockets into the sky, then bursts, sending sparks in every direction. This explosive event can be compared to a single influencer disseminating a message across a network. The influencer's message spreads rapidly, captivating attention and reaching a broad audience. However, its impact is often brief – just like a firework, the burst is bright but transient.
Contrastingly, fishing nets represent a different pattern of communication. Picture the interconnected threads and nodes of a fishing net, each connection representing a point of contact in an organization. Messages spread through the network in a slower, more redundant fashion. This system is decentralized, with each node capable of repeating the message, ensuring its passage even if some connections falter.
The Superiority of Each: Context Matters
Both the firework and fishing net structures have their strengths and are optimally effective in different contexts. The firework structure, with its influencers, is superior for rapidly spreading information across a vast network. It is perfect for raising awareness or announcing new initiatives. Its bright burst ensures maximum exposure but lacks the persistence needed for in-depth understanding or behavior change.
On the other hand, the fishing net structure excels when complex contagions, such as intricate ideas or behaviors we want to spread, are involved. Its decentralized and redundant nature is perfect for conveying complicated messages requiring repetition and reinforcement. This is the key to change management, where the goal is to shift behaviors, not merely to disseminate information.
A Synergistic Approach to Change Management
Given their unique strengths, an effective change management strategy leverages both the firework and fishing net structures in a cyclic manner. Start with the firework structure to get the word out about the impending change. Capitalize on the broad reach of influencers to make everyone aware of what's coming.
Then, switch to the fishing net structure to deepen understanding and drive behavioral change. Reinforce the message through different nodes, create redundancy to ensure no one is left out, and allow time for the new behavior to be adopted.
Ultimately, orchestrating a successful program of change requires understanding the communication network's nuances and employing the right structure at the right time. With the dynamic use of the firework and fishing net models, organizations can facilitate a more robust change management process, ensuring both awareness and effective adaptation to new behaviors.
Identifying Fishing Nets and Fireworks
Monitoring and analyzing organizational communication flows can provide critical insights into your network structures. Your network's strong ties (fishing net) and weak ties (fireworks) can be measured using tools provided by Microsoft 365, specifically Microsoft Graph and Workplace Analytics.
Microsoft Graph
Microsoft Graph provides an API for extracting communication and collaboration data from the various tools used within Microsoft 365. Using Microsoft Graph, you can extract raw data about communication events, including:
Email metadata (including sender, recipient, date/time, etc.)
Team and channel messages in Microsoft Teams
Calendar events
File sharing and collaboration events in SharePoint and OneDrive
Extracting this data can provide a wealth of information about your network structure and how information flows within your organization. For instance, frequent and bi-directional email exchanges between two individuals suggest a strong tie in your network (part of the fishing net structure).
Workplace Analytics / Viva Insights
Workplace Analytics is a more specific tool within Microsoft 365 that analyzes collaboration patterns. It generates insights by using metadata from email, calendar events, and other digital collaborations. Here are a few ways you can use this tool:
Identifying key players (Influencers/Weak Ties): By tracking the volume and breadth of communication, you can locate individuals who connect with a large, diverse group of people (firework structure). These individuals may not necessarily have deep connections (repeated interactions) but act as bridges across different teams or departments.
Measuring Redundancy (Fishing Net): By analyzing communication patterns, you can identify groups of individuals who tend to communicate repeatedly among themselves, a pattern that suggests strong ties or a fishing net structure.
Uncovering Bottlenecks: If an individual or a small group is involved in a significant proportion of communications, this could signify a bottleneck. Such nodes might be critical in the fishing net structure, but over-reliance could risk resilience.
Detecting Isolated Teams or Individuals: You can also spot individuals or teams not well-integrated into the communication network. These are opportunities to build new bridges through fireworks or fishing net structures.
By strategically using the tools offered by Microsoft 365, you can measure communication flow, assess the strength of ties in your network, and identify areas for potential improvement in your change management strategy.
