Change in business is a double edged sword – it could become the turning point towards the company’s success or failure. There are companies that through small and large changes in their business goals and settings, were able to harness what the market needs and considerably improve in just a short amount of time.

On the other hand, change can also become the reason for a company’s downfall. They may have made changes on their business settings which actually made clients think twice about their services and products. In the end change has become the dagger for the company’s future.

The downfall and improvement of a company because of change does not happen without any factors. Although the employees have a significant role in improving the company, the leaders are the determining factors towards the company’s success or failure because of change. Employees are only considered as followers. They just do what they are told to do. This means that the downfall and improvement of the company due to change is not really their fault.

Leaders are considered as determining factors for success because it is only through the leader that the plans of improvement could be realized. Through their initiative and leadership skills, they are able to lead their employees to work better and properly implement changes.

Creating Plans and Implementing Decisions

Leaders during changes capture the spotlight not only because they become the forerunners of specific changes for the company, they are also independent minded individuals who has the ability to take risks in behalf of the company.

Leaders in large corporations often have to work directly with employees and certain decisions have to be done everyday. These decisions are not just based on the fact that they follow what was ordered from them but they make decisions because they know it’s for the best of the team and the company.

Sometimes difficult situations require creative answers. That will not be achieved if the leader will have to follow everything from the upper management. His knowledge of the individual talents of the employees will prompt the leader to make some crucial decisions to ensure productivity during changes.

There are employees who point to change as the reason for being unproductive. Although this is a good reason, it should not be the reason why employees slack at work. The leaders should make sure that everyone refocuses at work as soon as possible.

Handling Resistance and Problems

One of the leader’s basic responsibilities unique to change is to address resistance to the proposed changes. There are certain changes that may not be feasible to some of the employees. For example, a company change wherein they transfer to another city will not be good for those who are already living in the soon to be closed site.

The managers have to explain changes carefully to their employees. This is actually a difficult task since the employees do have some reasons why they resist certain proposed changes.

A good leader should understand the concerns of their employees as well. That is why it is important for the leader to become the voice of those who resist changes to the upper management and at the same time, the leader has to be the voice of the upper management to their employees. Through this practice, the exchange of information is accurate and those who resist will have a voice in the upper management.

During change, problems could easily arise because of the unfamiliarity of the employees to new practices and even environment. Leaders have to provide not only solutions to some of the concerns but also monitoring on the effects of the changes to the employees. This data is useful for everyone as this will provide a good idea whether the proposed changes of the upper management is feasible.

Upper Management Support

In a business situation, leaders are the managers and supervisors who work directly with employees. But their functions could be easily curtailed if the upper management does not allow them to. This should not be the practice of the upper management. The upper management should provide support as much as they can for their leaders as these leaders only dream about the company improvement through business changes.