The Bridges Transition Model PDF

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THE BRIDGES’ TRANSITION MODEL Bridges’ transition model is a high level, three stage model of individual and psychological transition. It is a model that helps a business or person with organizational change. The strength of this model is that it focuses on the transition to change. It’s this transition that’s often uncomfortable for people, leading to resistance. We know why people are resistant to change and with that knowledge, and this model, we can remove that resistance. The Model was developed in 1991 by William Bridges in his book Managing Transitions: Making The Most Of Change. The model focuses on the concept of Transition rather than of Change, a concept originally developed in a previous book by the same author, published in 1980 with the title Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes. The idea of focusing on the Transition rather than on the Change is not just a wording question, but rather devises an entirely different approach to Change Management. Change is the external event or situation that takes place: a new business strategy, a turn of leadership, a merger or a new product. The organization focuses on the desired outcome that the change will produce, which is generally in response to external events. Change can happen very quickly. Transition is the inner psychological process that people go through as they internalize and come to terms with the new situation that the change brings about. Empathetic leaders recognize that change can put people in crisis. The starting point for dealing with transition is not the outcome but the endings that people have in leaving the old situation behind.

Transition Management Process Transition management in organizations addresses the inner psychological process that people experience during change. Successful transition management involves these steps: - Communicating with the organization about why the change is needed. - Collecting information from those affected by the change to understand its impact on them. - Gaining their investment in the outcome.

- Doing an audit of the organizations’ transition readiness. - Educating leaders about how the change will affect individuals in the organization to manage the transition effectively. - Monitoring the progress of individuals as they go through the three stages of transition. - Helping individuals understand how they can positively contribute to the change and the importance of their role in the organization.

Difference between Change and Transition Change is the external event or situation that takes place: a new business strategy, a turn of leadership, a merger, or a new product. The organization focuses on the desired outcome that the change will produce, which is generally in response to external events. Change can happen very quickly. Transition is the inner psychological process that people go through as they internalize and come to terms with the new situation that the change brings about. Empathetic leaders recognize that change can put people in crisis. The starting point for dealing with transition is not the outcome but the endings that people have in leaving the old situation behind. Change will only be successful if leaders and organizations address the transition that people experience during change. Supporting people through transition, rather than pushing forward is essential if the change is to work as planned. This is key to capitalizing on opportunities for innovation and creating organizational resilience. Change will only be successful if leaders and organizations address the transition that people experience during change. Supporting people through transition, rather than pushing forward is essential if the change is to work as planned. This is key to capitalizing on opportunities for innovation and creating organizational resilience. This shows that change is an event, but a transition is the process that you go through in response to the change.

Change is often implemented to make things more efficient, safe, or easy. Although these reasons are meant to benefit the organization and performance, employees often turn out to be the biggest obstacle. According to the Bridges Transition Model, they don’t have to be. In this model of change, Bridges helps to clarify the personal aspect of change management, showing employees as supporters rather than obstacles. Bridges’ Transition Model identifies three stages people go through as they gradually enter and accept the new organizational landscape. The model mainly focuses on psychological change during the transitions between each stage. It’s all about critical psychological realignments. Bridges Transition Curve People are nervous and emotional in the first transition stage which is that of ending or letting go the old way of working. People give importance to it and after short time the curve takes sudden dip, and it becomes normal as time goes by. The next stage is neutral zone which is core of this model, and it has big space for people to get adjusted to new realities. The third stage starts, and people are learning new things, adopting to change so they are excited about the new beginning. That’s why the importance time is bigger in the curve as compared to the first stage. After a certain point the curve moves down, and it becomes normal with the passage of time.

The Stages of Transition Transition is a psychological process that individuals go through, including as part of organizations. The key to change management is not necessarily the result, but in particular the way people let go of the past and accept the new situation. Guiding people through this transition is essential to ensure that everyone accepts the change. The transition begins when people leave the past behind. Everyone goes through the process of change at their own pace. Some are quicker to let go of the past and more excited about the new beginning. The process itself, however, is the same for everyone: creating new processes.

William Bridges identified the following three transition stages, each of which the employee must be guided through for the change to be successful: ▪

Ending, losing, and letting go

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The neutral zone

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The new beginning

Stage 1: Ending, Losing, and Letting Go Transition starts with an ending. This is paradoxical but true. This first phase of transition begins when people identify what they are losing and learn how to manage these losses. They determine what is over and being left behind, and what they will keep. These may include relationships, processes, team members or locations. It is a highly emotional phase, where people need to be guided through these powerful emotions to avoid being overwhelmed. Communication about how their skills and knowledge will be transferred to the new activities is key in demonstrating the value of change and mitigating the impact of the more powerful negative emotions. Fear, anger, denial, uncertainty, frustration are just some examples of the negative emotions that employees might feel, and that can constitute a roadblock onto the Transition. The focus needs to be on mitigating the effects of these emotions, rather than avoiding them fully. For example, Fear can be managed by helping people understand the positive outcome that the change can bring. Similarly, all other emotions need to be acknowledged, recognized and

understood. Which is why it is important, in this phase, that support channels are established for the employees to reach out at need (through mentors, counsellors etc.). Listening to what people feel is critical to be able to intervene and manage the process. Things that a manager can do to ease the transition to a change: ▪

Clearly explain the purpose of the change

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Respect and appreciate emotions

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Clarify the benefits of the planned change

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Clarify exactly what will change and what will remain the same

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Communicate a lot

Stage 2: The Neutral Zone The second step of transition comes after Letting Go is the Neutral zone. This stage is the core of the change process. People go through an in-between time when the old is gone but the new is notoperational. It is when the critical psychological realignments and repatterning take place. This is the time between the old reality and sense of identity and the new one. People are creating new processes and learning what their new roles will be. They are in flux and may feel confusion and distress. The neutral zone is the seedbed for new beginnings. It is likely to be the time when productivity is at its lowest and your employees most tempted to give up and turn their back to change. This is perfectly normal. When changes are implemented, people tend to resist because they feel they might have a higher workload, they might be slower because of new process steps and feel less productive. Again, these are all emotions that need to be listened to. It is also critical to constantly provide people with feedback on the wider context, as well as on their performance within the change process. This will allow them to see things differently and understand that their fatigue will go away as the change process progresses. This is the zone where the transition happens if managed correctly. People are able to understand that instead of being subject to the change, they can become positive actors and transition to a new beginning.

The measures that managers can take to facilitate the change are: ▪

Quickly respond to feedback

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Offer training or other forms of help

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Show the benefits of the change

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Handle any issues that arise

Stage 3: The New Beginning Beginnings involve new understandings, values and attitudes. Beginnings are marked by a release of energy in a new direction – they are an expression of a fresh identity. Well-managed transitions allow people to establish new roles with an understanding of their purpose, the part they play, and how to contribute and participate most effectively. As a result, they feel reoriented and renewed. The last stage is exactly linked to this newly perceived “ownership” where people accept that they can be part of the change process, and transition fully to the new reality. The main aim here is to reinforce the change results, keeping the objectives clear and the pace to achieve. Creating a system of consistency, which includes training, appraisals, incentivesand rewards, is a great way to reinforce the process as a whole. It also recognizes the individual contribution to the results of the process as a whole, which is a very relevant step to accomplish.

To build a strong foundation for the future, there are a few more things the manager can continue to do: ▪

Work on a sense of meaning

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Be consistent in behavior, communication, and decision making

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Show successes that the change has brought

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Celebrate results and milestones

Why to use Bridges Transition Model /Advantages of Bridges Transition Model •

This model explains transition experience by employees, so it helps to understand how people feel and how they react to changes taking places at organization. In this way, practical solutions can be found for employees who are struggling with change initiatives.

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The model is very optimistic and offers pathway to successful transition from old ways of working to new realities.

Limitations and Disadvantages of Bridges Transition Model •

The scope of this model is narrow because it just focuses on human transition, and it does not consider other factors that are also important to consider managing organizational change.

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The model is too abstract, and it fails to provide with a solid and strategic framework that can be applied to have comprehensive change strategy at organizational level.

Change Driven by Competitive Challenges In a rapidly changing environment, it’s essential that organizations respond quickly to stay ahead of the tide. The Bridges Transition Model can be applied to various parts of the change. The most important competitive challenge for organizations is that they must change continuously. Constant change means that organizations in general and employees must be very flexible when it comes to handling the status quo. In other words, organizationsmust be in an endless state of change.

Change is driven by the following factors: 1. Globalization The most common factor that drives organizations to change is globalization. Globalizations means that businesses have to become able to learn, collaborate, and manage diversity and complexity. 2. Profitability The necessity and desire for businesses to grow in terms of revenue puts a lot of pressure on organizations. Businesses use creative and innovative ways to reach new customers and develop new products or services. On a larger scale, businesses look to increase revenue through mergers, acquisitions, or joint ventures. This also helps with other competencies, such as the ability to integrate and combine different organizational processes.

3. Technology When it comes to technology, the challenge businesses face is to make efficient use of it. Organizations have to be smart about their choices. Not all options will actually add value. In the future, businesses have to develop a strategy to make technology an important element of the productive aspects of their operations. Managing Business Intelligence is also part of this. That’s where the Bridge Transition Model can be applied to facilitate change as well. 4. Intellectual Capital Successful organizations are business that are the best at attracting and developing individuals capable of leading a global business. A business that responds quickly to both its customers and all the opportunities technology has to offer. The challenge for businesses is finding, recruiting, developing, and retaining such talented individuals.

Bridge's Transition Model Productivity and Emotions The focus on the Transition will also improve commitment by employees, and encourage loyalty in the long term, through better performance and an increased team spirit.

Conclusion The Bridges Transition Model helps organizations and individuals understand and more effectively manage and work through the personal and human side of change. The model identifies the three stages an individual experiences during change: Ending what currently is, The Neutral Zone and The New Beginning. This model can be a great tool in the hands of an appropriate leader, as it allows to foster a truly supportive mode in dealing with Change. Its focus on the emotions involved in the change process is great both from awareness as well as a result point of view. Its key limit is that, unfortunately, we do not always have the time to manage and direct a full Transition. Despite the best intentions, there are many cases when Change just happens. In these cases, however, the model still provides a formidable framework to put in place tools and processes to manage the negative emotional baggage and allow for support modes to at least equip some employees through the Transition.

References: 1. Dima, G., and Skehill. C. (2011). Making sense of leaving care: The contribution of Bridges Model of Transition to understanding the Psycho- social process. 2. WanmingZhai, H Xia, C Cai, M Gao, X Li, X Guo. Journal of Rail (2013) – Taylor and Francis. 3. Sally Peters – Transitions to school- International research policy, policy and practice. (2014)....