Impacts of Organizational Restructuring in the social brain and in teams.

1. Organizational restructuring and the social brain
Organizations can also becalled societies or communities, and they are“places” wherepeopleestablish social relationships.
These social relationships can either be formal (related with thehierarchical positionspeoplehavein theorganization and that
are purely professional or work related) or informal (related with therelationshipsthat peopleestablish at work, but that arenot
directly related with work, for examplethe organization’s sports or cultureclub, or thecloser and deeper bonds that people
establish with somecolleagues, that they havemoreempathywith, by a variety of reasons –thesamesoccer / basketball club,
thesamehobbies, living in thesameneighborhood, etc.)
When an organizational restructuring initiativeis taking placeboth of thesekinds of relationships – formal and informal - are
affected, and most of the timetheformal relationships aremorenegatively impacted that theinformal ones.
If we look insidethebrain, we see a huge multiplicity of connectionsthat areestablished between different brain areas /
regions, and also between the immensenumbers of neurons. Theseconnections show a big complexity, and so do social
relationships between people, that can connect with other peoplefor a variety of reasons. This places peoplein a complex
network of groups and affiliations –thecompany they work for, theprofessional association, thesportsclub, thetown they live
in, the religion they practice, themusic they listen to, thecar / motorcyclebrand / model they haveetc.
When organizational restructuring initiatives areoccurring, formal relationshipsaremoreimpacted, as peoplesensethat the
hierarchy dictates things that aregoing to threat survival, so peopleaffected increase thebonds with other people in a more
informal way – people can start spending moretimewith an informal support group to help them find a new job, insideor
outsidetheorganization, dueto theimmensefear of being fired from thecompanies they work for. Conscious thinking and
dedication to theassigned tasks start to bemoredifficult, and capacity to focus, pay attention to importantissuesfor thework
and business and to memorize are negatively impacted. This happens again for thesamebasic reason –SURVIVAL.
Sincethe part of the brain that “cares“ for our survival is very old, it connects thecomponents of thereflexivesystem
(Ventromedial PreFrontal Cortex, amygdala, Basal Ganglia, Dorsal Anterior CingulateCortex, etc.) in a way that our social
behavior is driven by instincts deeply rooted in there. Its so old agemakes it work so well, it’s processes areso routinized and
fast, that when a threat (such as an uncertainty like –will I work here tomorrow / next week / next month ?) in theenvironment
is perceived, our brains, bodies and ourselves react immediately –without consciouslythinking.
People will even avoid / moveaway from theformal relationships or situations thoseformal relationships will create/ cause, as
thoseare highly linked to social threats.
We know for someyears now, and thanks to the SCARF model, created by Dr. David Rock, summarizing important findingsin
cognitiveneurosciencedoneby neuroscientific researchers such as Dr. Evian Gordon, Matt Lieberman, and others, that impacts
on somesocial variables affect thebrain in the sameregions than physical threats or rewards, and that thoseimpactsare closely
linked to basic survival instincts.
In an organizational restructuring context it is very easy to impactnegatively oneor moreSCARF variables, and it’s challenging to
overcomethesituation.
Let’s see an exampleof things wrongly done.
When I was trying to convincea director to createa coaching and NeuroLeadership training in a company undergoing huge
restructuring with a lot of peopleleaving, he said that it would bebadly perceived as it would seem that we were “giving
candies” to people while taking “good food away” (dismissing people). To my point of view, it’s precisely in organizational
restructurings with hugeimpact, where a lot of people is leaving thecompany, that theseinitiatives aremoreneeded and
crucial, as the peoplewho stay need to be taken morein consideration, morecared for, in order for them to feel a bit safer, and
less stressed. This will allow them to set thegrounds to grow, develop, risk more, seemorealternatives and solutions, think
outsidethebox and expand their comfort zones.
Why? With a calmer brain you are ableto focus more, plan more, perform better, and consequently achievebetter results –and
be morecreativeand innovative –as you are ableto generate moreinsights.
It’s completely theoppositeof the“old school of management” –I don’t pay you to think, just to execute! This is a threat to
several SCARF variables – STATUS (reduces self-esteem and people’s self-value), AUTONOMY (themanager’s messageis : I want
you to do things my way!, thereforeindividual initiativeis punished), RELATEDNESS (creates a separation between peopleas the
relationship gets tense, peoplefeel they arenot part of thegroup or team, people will feel excluded as acting this way it’s not an
inclusiveway of engaging people) and furthermorelimits individual initiative, reducing / eliminating innovation as thecapacity of

2. obtaining genuinecollaboration from people is lost. If peoplehaveinsights and great creativeideas, they will not sharethem
with their managers, as thinking is FORBIDDEN!
To help improveovercomenegativeimpacts to SCARFvariables it is crucial for managers to know how theSCARF model works
and how to apply it to day to day work situations. Having training about theSCARF model with experiential roleplays for each
SCARF variable, as simulations, area good strategy for understanding other peoplemotor, sensoryand emotion related regions,
and by doing this you will begetting morepeopletowards thedirection thecompany wants to go. This is possiblebecausethe
Mirror Neuron System is crucial for empathyand social cognition. Peoplewill understand muchbetter theimpacts of their
behavior on other peopleand hopefully start to changeit, sincebecoming moreawareand seeing with their eyes and feeling
that behavior generates behavior, continuing doing things thatput peopleimmediately away, will cause negative business
results.
Now that you know this, do you want to foster creativity, innovation, engagement in your team/ businessunit / company?
It’s many times very easy and may bevery cheap!
Just be moresocial and inclusive, act thebest you can to not keep all theprivileges for the few peopleat the top (increasethe
fairness perception in people), be morearound people (be morerelational), ask their names and how arethey doing, care for
them, allow them to havemoreautonomy to think and perform, createinitiatives that will strengthen thebondsof thepeople in
formal relationships –for example wellness competitions (that will help peoplewalk more, exercisemoreand contributeto
weight loss for instance) across thecompany organized in teams, but the it is crucial that managers/directors/vicepresidents
and the CEO participate as well.
A final suggestion and somequestions for the leader’s self- reflection. When in doubt about the organizational restructuring
initiatives you aregoing to propose, ask yourself:“If I was affected by this, how would I feel?” and “is this a social initiative, or an
anti-social initiative?”, “Will it group or ungrouppeopletowards thecorporatevision, mission, strategiesand goals?”
Start becoming awarethat companies and businesses are SOCIAL, they aremadeof PEOPLE, not just machines and technology. If
theall valuablepeopleleave is thetechnology alonegoing to saveyour business?
I say that wewould all benefit if theapproach would beto see and deal with our organizations liketheBrain –a highly
interconnected organ with lots of different areas / regions, each with its role, crucial for survival, but that has a wonderful
feature – neuroplasticity – thecapacity to createnew and useful connections all thetime, to makeit work even better.
Think about it and see if a BRAIN (Better Results are Achieved by an Integrated Network) approach is just what youneed to have
an integrativeand inclusiveorganizational restructuringinitiative, that will havepeoplestill wanting to beplaying yourgame,
and help and support theresults you expect to achieve.
Try it, and let me know theresults, I will be delighted to hear them.
© Joséde Sousa
Chief Success Officer Y E S ! - You Ensure Success !
Connecting and developing great minds.
Lisbon, Portugal
email yes.youensuresuccess@gmail.com LinkedIn pt.linkedin.com/in/japsousa/
Mobile+351 91 846 2554, Skype japsousa1