Using the Socratic Method in Moments of Organizational Change
People are usually resistant to change when it arrives as a surprise. Resistance is especially true when that change comes from an external source and directly impacts how a person works. As a leader, if urgency prioritizes over communication, you’re at risk of being seen as the “dictator” who makes waves with unmeasured changes.
Leading through a significant change.
As a leader, you make significant decisions about your organization’s path forward. In a fast-paced, rapidly evolving environment like the technology industry, it’s necessary to make changes frequently to maintain a competitive edge. Whether deciding to roll out a new product, change an existing workflow process, or create a shift in your team’s GTM plan, you will experience few scenarios in which you need universal buy-in and agreement that change is a good thing. Fast!
Strategic leadership use of the Socratic Method will help because the core root is communication and understanding. The core of the Socratic Method is to address objections and opposing opinions by proving logically that your perspective is correct and inherently valid. If logic can prove the hypothesis you’ve asserted—that this change is the best path forward for your team—is it worth others arguing?
One of the most critical aspects of change management is to ensure that you have buy-in across the organization. Leveraging the Socratic Method can help create a consensus that making the change is the best path for everyone.
What is the Socratic Method?
The Socratic Method, in textbook terms, is “cooperative argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and draw out ideas and underlying presuppositions.”
Taking its name from the well-known Greek philosopher Socrates, the Socratic Method likewise works to determine truths fundamentally. It does so by providing structure to a conversation, forcing everyone to think critically about an assertion or a change.
The steps in the Socratic dialogue method are:
Assert a hypothesis about a perception, argument, or belief
Seek evidence that supports that hypothesis
Raise questions that challenge the hypothesis
Debate those questions versus the evidence
Determine whether the hypothesis is true or false based on the challenge assertions and questions raised
Apply the teachings and act accordingly
The dialogue in the Socratic Method serves to examine the hypothesis itself and the openness to change of those involved. The people involved in your Socratic forum will reveal what stage of readiness they are at with their argumentative points.
Pre-contemplation
People are not yet ready for a change in pre-contemplation and may not be aware that a change is necessary. Therefore, discussing changes will likely catch them off-guard, making them resistant to new perspectives and differences.
Contemplation
In the contemplation stage, people know that there’s an issue with the status quo. They may recognize that a change needs to occur, but they aren’t necessarily aware of what changes need to happen or how soon they should transpire.
Preparation
Once contemplation is complete, preparation begins. At this stage, people know that a change is necessary and are taking steps toward developing that change.
Action
Action is the phase where change happens. Processes and behaviors are changing and working toward completing the goal. While people may occasionally lapse to earlier methods, they're still taking steps forward to make the change permanent.
Maintenance
Maintenance is a phase where action has occurred. People have been able to sustain new habits or processes for an extended period. - operational planning is now in place.
Termination ( If successful)
Termination is the last stage of change, where everyone involved WILL NOT evert to the previous status quo. The new method has become standard.
Based on the amount of resistance in the conversation, you’ll have a clear sense of how much resistance you may encounter during organizational change.
_______
The purpose of Socratic Method dialogue is to nurture people from pre-contemplation or contemplation to preparation and action ahead of a change, which makes maintenance and termination more achievable in the long term.
Launch Your Own Socratic Forum
When you’re initially implementing a change, gather your department heads and organization leaders to discuss the new workflow or product in a Socratic forum. Present your hypothesis to this group and allow them to express their concerns and raise opposing viewpoints. If you can maintain an objective perspective and discuss the logic behind your decision, you’ll likely persuade these leaders that your change will benefit them and their teams as well. Once you’ve announced the change, encourage these leaders to hold similar forums with small groups of their peers and to direct reports to explain these changes and the logic behind them.
You cannot expect your organization’s leaders to feel completely comfortable in a Socratic debate for the first time. Therefore, encourage your leaders to prepare their “case for change” in advance with company goal alignment as the first slide.
We get it. The open forum where others can challenge your “change” is tricky, especially when you need to change at a velocity.
We’ve also seen what happens to a technology company that runs towards a culture where questions are welcome and encouraged.
The result is that everyone gets on the bus. (the bus of much-needed change). No passengers are dragging their feet or pressing the brakes. (change with velocity)
How to nurture a culture of questioning (and why it's a good thing)
To improve your company culture and reduce resistance to operational changes, you need to foster a culture of exploration. Plenty of leaders claim they maintain an open-door policy and welcome questions about their decisions but have you ever walked through the door of an individual who dictates change rather than validities the need for change?
A genuine culture of questioning requires that you maintain the same level of accessibility and openness for every team member at every level. For example, holding open office hours and regular town hall meetings lets your team approach you directly, whether they’re senior members with impressive titles or recent hires getting the lay of the land.
To continue nurturing that culture, show a genuine interest in your employees’ perspectives and ask them about their feelings towards work. If they see that you have taken steps to remedy the issue, they are more likely to give you their trust and loyalty.
If you find change management difficult in your organization, consider engaging OnDemand leaders. Their services can help determine an implementation communication plan, develop factual talking points, logical rebuttals to objections, and moderate a discussion using the Socratic Method, engaging your team at crucial moments in the change-readiness cycle.