Brandon W. Jones

Your employees are your biggest asset and they always will be because without them nothing happens. They greet your customers, ship your products, complete projects, and do all the other work that gets done. Because they are so valuable, you must get their buy-in when change happens in the organization. If your employees aren’t on board with the change, they will eventually leave. So how do you get them to buy-in? I have three suggestions to get them involved.

1. Ask for the employees’ point of view. Find out what your employees think about the current situation. Ask whether or not they are satisfied with status quo. Let them explain how they work within the current framework and get their feedback. As you learn their thoughts, you will gain valuable insight into how they think.

The more you get their thoughts, the more they will realize that their thoughts and opinions do matter to you. They will gain trust in your actions and words once they realize you value them. An additional benefit is that you will be better prepared to introduce changes in a way that won’t rub them the wrong way.

2. Explain the background and details of your reasoning. I have seen a number of leaders that will make a change and then order their employees to do it without any explanation. Those leaders struggle to get the buy-in from their employees. On the other hand, I have seen leaders that explain all the background as to why a change is happening, what factors led to the change, how the change will effect them, and when the change will take effect. This approach is very beneficial because when changes come about people always want to know the “Why?” behind the change. They want to know why what they have done in the past is no longer acceptable. As you explain your reasoning to them, they will begin to see the full picture and the change will mean more to them.

3. Identify the importance of their role in implementation. The final suggestion is to help your employees understand their role in the implementation. Let them know that they play vital role in the implementation. If they buy-in quickly and assist in the implementation, they will benefit as well as the group, team, or department as a whole. You must help your employees to know that without their help, the implementation will be a failure.

What others suggestions do you have to get buy-in from your employees? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below!