Leading Through Change: Ana-Marija Marić's Workshop for Managers and Leaders
In an era marked by rapid transformations and ever-evolving landscapes, the ability to navigate change with grace and insight has become an invaluable skill for both individuals and organizations.
Meet Ana-Marija Marić, a distinguished Culture, Change, and Management Consultant with an impressive two-decade track record in the field. As the founder of AMM CONSULTING and the pioneering ACMP-certified change management professional (CCMP) in Croatia and the broader region, Ana-Marija brings a wealth of expertise to the table. Her journey has been defined by a relentless pursuit of understanding the intricacies of change, optimizing organizational efficiency, and fostering profound transformations.
Ana-Marija, with your workshop "Understanding and Embracing Change – The Mandatory Skill of Today," you're undoubtedly providing valuable insights. How can the concepts and strategies you'll be sharing be effectively implemented within a company to drive positive organizational change?
As you know, we live in an ever-changing world. We witness change daily, in both the external and internal environments of our organisations – we have to learn and work with new technologies, we have younger and in many ways different generations slowly becoming the dominant workforce of today so we need to adjust our management approaches and styles, we have to adjust internal processes to move faster and smarter toward our business targets, but also many other things require from us to change the way we see and do our work.
Therefore, to be and remain successful in these challenging times, organisations need to, first, understand and embrace change, and second, know how to structure and manage it expertly. Many struggle with both. And, as the name of the workshop suggests, the workshop will primarily be dealing with the first, because successful changes start with leadership buy-in.
Understanding and embracing change is the very first step managers and leaders of today need to take if they want their teams and organisations to thrive in the years to come - this workshop provides them with the opportunity to do just that.
Change can be challenging for both individuals and teams within an organization. Who is your workshop specifically designed for, and how do you ensure that the content resonates with diverse audiences, considering their unique perspectives and roles?
For change to be successful, people of different levels of authority and responsibility within an organisation should ideally be included in the change process, as they all collectively contribute to both the culture and performance of their organisation.
By including different people from all organisational levels, we ensure that different perspectives are taken into consideration when structuring and managing change in an organisation, but also that potential obstacles and resistances are identified and addressed early on in the process.
Nevertheless, it all starts with organisational leadership, as they will set the tone and approach to be taken. Hence, this workshop is designed primarily for people in managerial roles and with decision-making authority within their organisations.
In the workshop, they will participate in some interactive exercises to challenge their present views and approaches to change.
Attendees of your workshop are undoubtedly looking forward to gaining practical takeaways. What outcomes can they expect from participating in your session, and how can they apply these insights in their day-to-day professional lives?
As the main outcome, people who decide to attend the workshop can expect to better understand what change is and how the process of going through it looks for both the company and individuals affected by the change.
As they will actively participate in individual and group exercises - and rest assured, it will be an interesting 90-minute session we will have - they can expect to also gain a practical experience of how change feels and what effects it generates.
For some, it will be an eye-opener, for others it may be a milder experience, but all participants will be enriched with a personal experience and a somewhat modified view of change.
This is where the magic starts happening - once we understand the change itself and the change process, the methodology to follow (which unfortunately we will not have time to address in the workshop) will be an easy tool to use.
It is the start of the perspective and mindset shift that we aim for in this first step. I am confident that the majority of participants if not all, will start seeing and possibly doing some things differently when they return to their organisations after the event.
As a seasoned Culture, Change, and Management Consultant, you have vast experience in guiding organizations through transformations. How do you personally approach change and manage to stay adaptive and resilient amidst the dynamic landscape of today's business world?
Change is rarely an easy process to undergo, but it doesn't have to be as painful as many, unfortunately, experience it to be.
This is the key message I always wish to convey to organisations and people willing to listen, and something I always remind others of, but also myself when needed.
That is why it is so important to understand change and understand the process and stages people affected by it go through. Because, when you understand it you know that some things and emotions we experience in the process are normal, expected even, and that they will pass, and once they pass and we succeed to start moving along the upward part of the change curve we start seeing the desired outcome on the horizon.
When it comes to me personally, I am no different than other people affected by change at some point in their personal and professional lives. I also enter resistance stages every now and then or procrastinate with some things that are new, unfamiliar or even feel scary for some reason, but having embraced change as a normal event in my life many years ago and knowing the change process inside and out, I can move through the change process more quickly and with much less pain.
In addition, I always address issues openly and directly, when in touch with something new and unknown I try to equip myself with as much information as possible, I keep learning new things and keep building my skills, when in fear of something I try to challenge myself, and finally, I always set high goals for myself which make me keep pushing the limits of many accounts.
As you contemplate the significance of embracing change in today's world, consider joining Ana-Marija Marić at the Best Stay Event, November 29 - 30 in Zonar Zagreb.
Here, you can immerse yourself in her insights, engage in transformative discussions, and gain practical strategies that will empower you to steer your organization toward a future filled with opportunities.