Make an example
When you’re driving any type of change, you need to leverage the wins you achieve as much as possible. They might not be the most profound, foundation-sculpting victories your company will ever achieve, but they still matter.
By promoting small victories throughout your organization, you’re solidifying the idea that the vision will work, and it will pay off for everyone in the end.
“You sort of brag about what somebody else has done, and you do it from the top,” Wathen says. “For example, one of our businesses early last year bought a batch of equipment from a bankrupt competitor at a bargain price. Everybody in the company has now heard that story, along with a request that they try and find the same kind of deal. So you give examples and see who else in the company might have some similar ideas.
“That is one of the ways you reinforce things in a diverse company. You have folks doing some great things, having some good ideas, and there is a lot to be said about copying those ideas. Plus, it makes you feel good if you’re the person whose ideas are being copied.”
Moving forward, TriMas has the operational structure that Wathen and his leadership team want. The company has a strategic plan for each business, and the board is on the same page with the leadership team. Up next for the company, Wathen wants to develop a process to find talent and match the right people to the right jobs. He calls it a “people planning process.”
Change management is an ever-evolving process that you need to constantly monitor. You have to make sure that everyone in the organization remains tuned in to your vision, but you also have to make sure that you’re going back and revisiting your vision, and leave the door open for revisions as needed.
“Once a year, you step back and think about your key strategies, what are the projects you’re going to do,” Wathen says. “You don’t have to constantly redesign the business, but you stick to the basic things you’re going to manage, and those go to the top of the list. There are probably a lot of other things you’d like to do, but those don’t make the list right now.
“It’s easy to say you’re going to keep it simple, but you have to employ some tactics to make it happen.”
How to reach: TriMas Corp., (248) 631-5450 or www.trimascorp.com