Common sense still makes sense for 'Positive Change'

Title: Mobilising People for Positive Change

Author: Sharon Ho-Sang

Reviewed by: Mel Cooke

Sharon Ho-Sang's 76-page Mobilising People for Positive Change is testament to the often underrated fact that common sense still makes sense, enough sense to be put in a book to guide change agents. And it is testament to the often unstated fact that common sense is all too often uncommon among said agents of change, who often take a 'my-will-be-done' approach to instituting changes in organisations.

So what she says in the slim volume that contains 'a number of practical approaches and solutions to help managers to successfully adopt change strategies' is not especially complicated; in fact, it is downright simple. However, just as one of the Ten Commandments says, 'Thou shalt not kill, and that is simple enough, actually translating the commandment into a set of workable laws is a different matter entirely, where four words becomes expanded into tome after tome of fine print.

So in the introduction to the seven-chapter book, Ho-Sang writes, "It is important to note that the level of employee satisfaction determine the success of an organisation" (that should have been 'determines' and there are a few grammar glitches that are simply inexcusable. The chapter about 'Resistance' begins 'the worse thing that can ever happen to a leader').

And it is this care for employees, while in the pursuit of quantifiable goals, that is at the core of her first book.

The chapters themselves are a turn of pages through the change process, 'Move To Change' being challenged by the 'Myths of Change', followed by 'The Process of Change' and employees putting up 'Resistance', 'I Cannot Keep Up With All These Changes!' Then come 'Laying the Foundation', 'Reach New Levels' and 'Keep Up the Beat'.

A number of quotes

Each chapter is preceded by a number of quotes (my favourite is Karen Kaiser Clarke's 'life is change. Growth is optional. Choose wisely' before 'Move to Change'), but more specific to the Jamaican situation are the quotations from Soctiabank boss Bill Clarke, LoJ founding president Danny Williams, and JMMB's Diana Burgess. Again the simple is important, as Williams says "One of my strengths is being able to communicate well with people. Every Monday morning I had meetings with the entire staff and I told them what was happening.". That sounds like a good way to set the tone not only for the day, but the week.

Then Burgess says "I believe that a big initiative is a bad idea. You need to have little successes going on around the company continuously, rather than one big bash of change." Again, not very complicated (and we do say "Every mikkle mek a mukkle"), but a timely reminder to those who are in charge who often want to change a caterpillar into a butterfly without waiting on that cocoon to open.

And throughout the book Ho-Sang urges the necessary gentleness and patience, saying in 'Resistance' 'executives, avoid the 'take it and love it' attitude.

If you force change on people, some will resist and some will rebel.So Sharon Ho-Sang's first book, 'Mobilising People For Positive Change' is a constant reminder to managers to keep a touch of humanity in the balance sheet. It is clearly written, in straightforward language and is effective development on sometimes all too uncommon common sense.