Without knowing the goals of the change effort that David outlines, I'm
not certain this may be relevant. However....
(1) Why aren't/weren't top staff included in some or all of the
implementation teams already put in place? You mention a tendency on the
part of top staff sometimes to "discount those who lack 'standing'," but I
suspect this inference should be tested: there may be a whole lot of
assumptions at play here -- on both sides -- that need to get drawn out in
a way that gets at some of the hidden conversations.
(2) Presumably the agency has customers. I would identify some key
customers and include them on the teams -- whether these teams are
all-inclusive or whether they comprise top staff only. In the presence of
customers, I doubt that some of the constraints you mention would hold.
(Perhaps some others would take their place, but that remains to be
seen...) In fact, I would bet that the teams would be energized beyond
what they could have imagined.
The point here is that, for any real change initiative to take root, the
conversation has to include all the stakeholders. In any organizational
change effort, whether in the public, private, or what-have-you sectors,
the external constituents (aka customers) have to have a seat at the
table. I'd also propose that these seats should not be reserved for state
occasions, such as formal change efforts, but should be kept warm
throughout the year, with customers holding forth "in the box" as though
they were part of the organization. For the truth is, they are.
Hope this is useful.
-- Ron Mallis 12 Chestnut Street Boston, MA 02108 617-723-8362 ron2785@eworld.com