“It’s not the strongest of the species nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” Charles Darwin (1809 ~ 1882)
In order to meet constantly evolving business demands, businesses seek employees who not only adapt to changes, but who initiate them. Unfortunately, studies show that most employers do not believe they have access to enough talent to meet their high demand! Over the past few years, for various reasons including the low unemployment rate, recruiters have had difficulty building the pipeline of people with the skills they need to be competitive in this everchanging market. This has catalyzed a movement to “grow people within” through more innovative training and recruitment programs that punctuate hard technical and soft skills alike. The increasing emphasis on the need for such as adaptability to change has implications for development programs and how they are executed.
Businesses Need Change Agents!
Adaptability to change is one of the most sought after qualities by businesses in the 21st Century. A study by Right Management (2017) revealed that a majority of HR Directors see the success of their business dependent on how well employees deal with unanticipated problems. By 2018, 91% of HR Directors said they will recruit candidates based on their ability to contend with change and uncertainty. (1)
- According to a 2017 iCIMS, Inc. study, adaptability is one of the top three soft skills recruiting professionals value most. (2)
- A LinkedIn Survey of Hiring Managers revealed adaptability to change was one of the top 10 most desired soft skills needed by employees among all levels, while 59% of US Hiring managers believe it is difficult to find candidates with the needed soft skills. (3) Another LinkedIn study found that low adaptability can cost US companies $31.7 billion dollars in lost productivity and recruitment costs. (4)
- According to NACE’s Job Outlook 2016 Survey, 60.9 percent of employers seek evidence of adaptability and flexibility on a job candidate’s resume. (5)
- The findings of a study on behalf of the Association of American Colleges and Universities speaks to the desirability of employers to have employees who are adaptable. A majority of employers (96%) give hiring preference to graduates who will contribute to innovation in the workplace since they believe “innovation is essential” to their organization’s continued success. They report that a candidate’s ability to think critically and solve complex problems is more important to job performance than the technical experience gained by their undergraduate major. Three in four employers say they want educational institutions to place more emphasis on critical thinking and complex problem-solving using evidence-based analysis. (6)
- The Economist Intelligent Unit’s study Growing Global Executive Talent, respondents said that the top three leadership qualities are “ability to motivate staff” (35%), “ability to work well across cultures” (34%), and “ability to facilitate change” (32%). Surprisingly, “technical expertise” and “bringing in the numbers” ranked just 11% and 10% respectively. (7)
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It’s easy to appreciate why those who are most adaptive to changes are considered among the most prized by employers! People who are highly adaptable to change see opportunities where others see road blocks. They take a progressive approach to assessing and solving problems, using evidence-based analysis to minimize bias in decision-making. They recognize nuances between different contexts, so as not to generalize and apply old solutions to new problems. Highly adaptable people use positive self-talk to motivate them and manage stress effectively. They employ empathy to facilitate interpersonal communication, manage conflict and navigate office politics effectively. They regulate their emotions, and challenge their assumptions, allowing them to re-appraise situations more quickly and change their view as situations change. They learn from mistakes and have greater job satisfaction. It is no wonder that the US Army commissioned a study on how to recruit more highly adaptable candidates in an effort to address the high cost of attrition. (8) Adaptability to change is a measure of how we think, a mindset that defines how we filter information to make order of the world around us. All of these qualities are that which successful businesses need in order to compete and drive innovation. The benefits to those who possess the aforementioned qualities extend beyond the workplace and into personal lives as well.
Adaptability is less about what we do and more about how we think. It is a mindset that determines our relationship to change, and the extent to which we embrace it or run from it. It refers to our “ability to adjust and accommodate to changing and often unpredictable physical, interpersonal, cultural, and task environments.” People who are highly adaptable are often described as cognitively and temperamentally flexible, resilient, and hardy, actively accommodating and adjusting to uncertainty and ambiguity even under duress. (8) It is not just an attribute to be practiced within the confines of one’s employment, but rather, an attribute that we can embrace and thereby experience benefits which manifest themselves on a full spectrum of life areas including personal well-being and enhanced personal relationships.
How much of a Change Mindset do you have?
Studies show that people rate themselves higher in adaptability than they actually are. Adopting a “change” mindset takes practice and self-awareness. It is well worth the effort to assess how adaptable to change you are. By doing so, you can take steps to improve it, which can have a favorable impact on your quality of life in general. Consider answers to the following questions:
- How effectively do you talk yourself “off the proverbial ledge”?
- How do you respond when you fall short of your own expectations? Do you beat yourself up, give up or move forward?
- What do you tell yourself in order to stay motivated to work on your personal goals? Do you set reasonable expectations or do you sabotage yourself?
- Do you express your “knee-jerk response” with body language or words when presented with new ideas or do you take time to process them?
- Are you comfortable redefining your goals or values when presented with new information, even if it contradicts the messages ingrained in our minds from family, media and loved ones?
- Do people accuse you of being overly cynical, to the point of dismissing facts that support an opposing view?
- Do you routinely challenge yourself to step outside of your comfort zone for the sake of learning?
- When presented with a change you have no control over, do you think about the reasons the change came about and make an effort to empathize with the messenger of the change or do you resist it?
- Do you always follow the rules, or do you appropriately distinguish when it is the right time to “cut the red tape” and get the job done?
- Do you routinely reflect on the degree to which your opinions are based on facts or a belief of the way things “should be” instead of adequately assessing the way things “are”?
The answers to some of these questions may provide insight into your personal relationship to change, and your degree of adaptability. With self-awareness and practice, you can increase your adaptability to change. By adopting a change mindset, you can enhance your career and quality of life in general! For tips on how to improve your “change mindset”, optimize your adaptability and improve overall quality of life in and out of the workplace, visit http:missionllc.org.
Bibliography:
- Right Management Manpower Group. The Flux Report. Building a Resilient Workforce in the Face of Flux. January 2014. http://www.manpowergroup.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/The-Flux-Report_whitepaper.pdf.
- iCIMS Inc.. The Soft Skills Job Seekers Need Now. 2017. https://www.icims.com/sites/www.icims.com/files/public/hei_assets/pr-report-soft-skills%20Final.pdf
- LinkedIn Talent Solutions. Global Recruiting Trends 2017. What you need to know about the state of Talent Acquisition. https://www.slideshare.net/pedrooolito/linkedin-global-recruiting-trends-report-2017.
- LinkedIn, PWC. Adapt to Survive. How Better Alignment Between Talent and Opportunity Can Drive Economic Growth. https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/hr-management-services/publications/assets/linkedin.pdf
- National Association of Colleges and Employers. Job Outlook 2016. November 2015. http://www.naceweb.org/store/2016/job-outlook-2016/.
- Hart Research Associations on Behalf of the Association of American Colleges and Universities. It Takes More Than A Major: Employer Priorties for College Learning and Student Success. April 10, 2013. https://www.aacu.org/sites/default/files/files/LEAP/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf.
- DDI, The Economist Intelligence Unit. Growing Global Executive Talent: High Priority, Limited Progress. https://www.ddiworld.com/DDI/media/trend-research/growing-global-executive-talent_eiu_ddi.pdf?ext=.pdf.
- National Research Council. 2015. Measuring Human Capabilities: An Agenda for Basic Research on the Assessment of Individual and Group Performance Potential for Military Accession. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/19017
©Denise Scotti-Smith 2017. All Rights Reserved.
Additional Thoughts About Change in the Workplace
The more adaptable to change employees are, the more likely they are able to successfully grapple with some of the following questions that businesses contend with on an ongoing basis:
What technology can we leverage and what innovation can we employ? How can we respond to changing customer demands and competition? What processes can we change to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality? How do we inject innovative approaches to solving problems inside and outside of organization? How can we capitalize on diversity and build a pipeline of talent to fil anticipated vacancies and turnover? How can we do more with less? When companies ask themselves, improve our processes, and inject innovative approaches to solving problems inside and outside of our organization? How can we capitalize on diversity to build a pipeline of talent to fill anticipated vacancies and turnover? How do we do more with less? How do we leverage office politics to facilitate and manage change during a merger or acquisition?
Finding successful solutions to questions about how a company becomes competitive is ultimately dependent upon the extent to which companies are able to foster change successfully.
©Denise Scotti-Smith 2017. All Rights Reserved.
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