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Harvey Nichols: Five ways to influence change-resistant leaders

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Summary

After the resignation of Harvey Nichols' CEO following disagreements over the company's strategy, David Chislett offers five ways to influence change-resistant leaders. He suggests diving into the history of the company to call on the legacy of the founding fathers, finding outliers that have been successful in similar changes, projecting the worst-case scenarios of not changing and of implementing the proposed change, and re-framing the change to make it more palatable. He concludes that by doing due diligence and creating a better story, it is far easier to influence leadership into sharing the point of view.

Q&As

What caused the resignation of Harvey Nichols' CEO?
The resignation of Harvey Nichols' CEO was allegedly due to disagreements about the pace of change.

What advice does David Chislett offer for influencing change-resistant leaders?
David Chislett offers five tangible actions to influence leadership to take heed and implement change: dive into the history, find outliers, project the best worst case scenario of not changing, project the best worst case scenario of the proposed change, and re-frame the change.

How can a leader use history to influence change?
A leader can use history to influence change by calling on the legacy of the founding fathers and looking for entrepreneurial and disruptive behaviour in the past.

What is the "four pillars" model of creativity?
The four pillars model of creativity is product, people, process and press (environment).

How can leaders create a positive story around change?
Leaders can create a positive story around change by focusing on improvements, doing research to find examples of successful change, and reframing the change as an improvement to the core product of the business.

AI Comments

👍 This article is an excellent resource for HR professionals looking to implement change in change-resistant organizations. It provides clear and actionable strategies to help influence leadership.

👎 This article only scratches the surface of the complexity of change-resistant organizations. It does not offer any in-depth insights into the underlying reasons why change is resisted.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about five ways to influence change-resistant leaders. It was written by David Chislett in response to Harvey Nichols' CEO resignation over disagreements about the pace of change. The article outlines some tangible strategies to try and influence leadership to act on your advice and implement change.

Friend: That's interesting. What are the implications of the article?

Me: The article suggests that it's important to do your homework and find evidence that the proposed change will be successful. It also suggests that you need to be able to tell a compelling story about the change, by using historical references, case studies and projections. Finally, it suggests that you need to reframe the change in a positive way, so that it looks like an improvement, rather than a disruption.

Action items

Research the history of the organization to understand the legacy of the founding fathers and how it has evolved over time.
Identify outliers in other industries that have successfully implemented similar changes and use them as examples to persuade leadership.
Create projections to demonstrate the best and worst case scenarios of not changing and of implementing the proposed changes.

Technical terms

CEO: Chief Executive Officer. The highest-ranking executive in a company, responsible for making major corporate decisions, managing the overall operations and resources of a company, and acting as the main point of communication between the board of directors (the board) and corporate operations.
Covid pandemic: A global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) that has caused widespread illness, death, and economic disruption.
Agile: A set of principles and practices for software development that emphasizes collaboration, flexibility, and continuous improvement.
Entrepreneurial: Characterized by risk-taking and innovation in pursuit of profit.
Disruptive: A term used to describe a technology, product, or service that significantly changes the way a market or industry operates.
Transformational leadership: A leadership style that focuses on inspiring and motivating employees to achieve organizational goals.
Inclusive leadership: A leadership style that encourages and values diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Stakeholders: Individuals or groups who have an interest in the success of a business or organization.