he ability of your organization to hire, develop and maintain quality employees and combined with your ability to transform your organization into a "market sensing" device will be the most important factors that will impact your success in the future. As a manager and a leader within your organization, here are some suggestions you can implement to meet the market demands of the new millennium.

Dealing with Change: BUILD and MAINTAIN Trust.

• Creativity and innovation that results in a benefit to a company occurs in an environment of TRUST and EXCITEMENT. Poorly handled changes of any nature described above undermines that trust. Most individuals within organizations complain that there isn’t enough communication within their organization. Ever notice how much LESS communication you need when you trust someone?

• Change is an essential part of life within organizations, so it is CRITICAL manage change well. If you must, hire experts in the psychology of change and follow their advice from start to finish in your "project". Select changes carefully and be committed to completing the project. Be realistic about the resource requirements for the project. Fully implement them before moving on to the next big change. Incomplete projects are the bane of corporate life. They are de-motivational, waste time and energy and destroy credibility (remember the trust thing?). We’ll have an article on this topic in an upcoming issue.

• Before making a major change (regardless of whether is a structural, management, or process change), be honest about what the change really offers your organization and be realistic about the costs to productivity and moral within an organization. For instance, many "structural" changes are made to accommodate one manager or "side step" another. If the new "structure" doesn’t enhance the working life and contribution of the individuals in the structure (or process!), it’s being done for the wrong reasons.

Support and Develop your Resources