11. Reference
Hillel: The foundation for Jewish Campus Life. (2012, March 10).
About Hillel. Retrieved from http://www.hillel.org/about
Katzenbach, J. R., & Smith, D. K. (2005). The Discipline of
Teams. (cover story). Harvard Business Review, 83(7/8),
162-171. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Kotter, J. P. (1995). Leading Change: Why Transformation
Efforts Fail. (cover story). Harvard Business Review, 73(2), 59-67.
Rosen, M. (2006). The Remaking of Hillel: A Case Study on
Leadership and Organizational Transformation. Retrieved
from: https://moodle.marylhurst.edu/file.php/3200/The_Remaki
ng_of_Hillel.pdf
Rosener, J. (1990). Ways women lead. Harvard Business Review,
Nov-Dec, 119-125, Reprint 90608.
Hi, my name is Kelly Butler. Welcome to my presentation on how to successfully implement change. We will examine a case study of the Hillel Organization and how Richard Joel, an outsider, was able to lead his organization through successful changes, and how his leadership and the steps he took, are very applicable.
Moving from past to present to future will bring inevitable change of all types and sizes. How a leader handles that inevitable change, will set the tone for the future and will play a factor in whether or not that change is a success. John Kotter, author of “Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail” (pp. 59-67), states there are eight errors that people make before, during and after implementing change. They are: Error #1: Not Establishing a Great Enough Sense of Urgency Error #2: Not Creating a Powerful Enough Guiding Coalition Error #3: Lacking a Vision Error #4: Under-communicating the Vision by a Factor of Ten Error #5: Not Removing Obstacles to the New Vision Error #6: Not Systematically Planning and Creating Short-Term Wins Error #7: Declaring Victory Too Soon Error #8: Not Anchoring Changes in the Corporation’s Culture (pp. 60-67) According to Kotter (1995), “fewer errors can spell the difference between success and failure (p. 67).” However, it is not just important for leaders of change to avoid making some, if not all of these mistakes. It is also important that leaders of change have the ability to keep others motivated and satisfied. According to Judy Rosener, author of “Ways Women Lead” (pp. 119-125), regardless of gender, leaders that are transformational and interactive- are a win-win for the organization and employees (p. 120). Rosener points out that it is important for effective leaders to: “encourage participation (p. 120),” “Share power and information (p. 122),” and “Enhance the self-worth of others (p. 123).” By executing change at least close to flawlessly with an effective leader at the helm, success can be within reach.
Background of Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life Originated in 1923 The largest Jewish Campus organization in the world and is located at over 550 colleges and communities Goals of Hillel: Ensure future of the Jewish community by welcoming Jewish students on campus and helping students combine Jewish tradition and their lives. Help Expand Jewish knowledge- through leadership skills, historical ties and volunteering Equip students to be the supports and leaders of tomorrow’s Jewish community Encourage Jewish students to take their own journey and define “Jewish” in their own way with the help of Hillel Importance of Hillel: College is one of the most formative periods of everyone’s lives. Hillel reaches out to Jewish Students during this period to help students continue finding meaning in Jewish life.
Before Richard Joel was hired, the Hillel organization was going through turmoil and needed a new International Director that would be able to bring a fresh vision to the table. However, Richard Joel was an outsider. He was not a Rabbi and he knew the challenges he faced before the first meeting with the executive committee (Rosen, p. 27). At the very first meeting, Joel was able to get the entire committee to open up regarding their experiences, their visions, their aspirations. Joel spoke with immense passion and relayed his vision with enthusiasm. He was able to win the trust and confidence from many of those members at the very first meeting and turn the cabinet around (Rosen, p. 28). Hillel became what it is today with the help of Richard Joel. Joel was aware from the beginning of some of the challenges he was going to be faced with, just not the full extent of each problem (Rosen, p. 28). He knew that Hillel’s reputation was failing, morale was poor, the governance structure was weak- local facilities were ran independently of the national and international movement, staff were under-utilized and college students- the main population they served- were under-represented (Rosen, p. 28). Because he was an outsider, Joel knew he needed help. He did extensive research before taking the position, and he found a champion that would help him along the way. Joel immediately reached out to Rabbi Bill Rudolph, not only for “institutional history” (Rosen, p. 28), but also for support for his visions.
The first error that many organizations make when any change must be made, is in the communication of how urgent a crises is becoming or already is. According to Kotter (1995), the first step is to get cooperation from individuals and motivate them to see the changes that need be done and transformations will begin “when an organization has a new head who is a good leader and who sees the need for a major change (p. 60).” Joel was that new head Hillel needed. He saw that he needed to rebuild morale and he saw beyond the conflicts others were staring at (Rosen, p. 29). By recognizing where they were at- “beaten up by the Jewish community (Rosen, p. 29), crumbling infrastractures, lack of community support- Joel was able to motivate the Hillel members that something needed to be done. One of the first things he did as director, was “change the name of the national office to the National Center…where ‘shared values reside’ (Rosen, p. 29).” Through this act alone, he was able to make it apparent that change needed to, and was going to, happen. He shared his visions openly and not only accepted but expected criticism. But just because leaders are able to create that sense of urgency, many leaders lose that urgency because they do not assemble a group with the proper strengths and supporting power that will be able to follow through on the changes and be able to show others that change is OK. Step two will be successful if teams can come together and “develop a shared assessment of their company’s problems and opportunities, and create a minimum level of trust and communication (p. 62),” and be able to face opposition head on. In his first year at Hillel, Joel was able to create a team outside of the cabinet, from his mentor Rabbi Bill Rudolph and David Bittker- the new chairman. One of the obstacles Joel faced, was the population of older men on the Commission. Joel, with the help of Bittker, was able to appoint “young, inspired, and intelligent (Rosen, p. 31)” members that were in tune with the needs of the population they were serving- college students. This implemented change allowed Hillel to face B’nai B’rith and eventually amend its constitution to allow others, including women, to join the Commission, not just Rabbis. Even though this team was small, they shared a powerful vision and were able to face future opposition. According to Jon Katzenbach and Douglas Smith (2005), authors of “The Discipline of Teams,” “the best teams invest a tremendous amount of time and effort exploring, shaping, and agreeing on a purpose that belongs to them both collectively and individually (p. 165). This was easy for Joel and his team to accomplish, because everyone was on the same page, they just internalized his vision differently, allowing each member to see where they fit into the overall vision.
Clear and confident communication is the foundation for steps three through five. Organizations may have a clear vision and strategies to achieve that vision in step three. However, many organizations and leaders fail to communicate that vision clearly and the strategies that will help everyone through the changes. If communication is successful, then the next hardest step, is the ability of leaders and organizations to empower employees to overcome obstacles and think outside of the box. Kotter (1990), stated that the best visions are ones that “says something that helps clarify the direction in which an organization needs to move (p. 63).” It is also important that the vision is not confusing and easy to grasp, rather than complicated. By having a clear vision, it can be much easier to avoid error #4- under-communication. Within the first six months on the job, Joel gave his first “State of Hillel” speeches. Joel knew that this was the most important speech of his career at Hillel, so he proved to the members that he deserved the job by speaking “the rabbis’ language fluently (Rosen, p. 31),” and clarified just how important the changes were going to be. Joel was constantly seeking feedback- both solicited and unsolicited. According to Kotter (1990), step four revolves around communication, because “without credible communication, and a lot of it, the hearts and minds of the troops are never captured (p. 63). Joel was successful at this stage because he immediately recognized and acknowledged the situation Hillel was in at his first “State of Hillel.” Joel held “State of Hillel” speeches every year after, seeing it as a chance to communicate a new theme of his vision and what was going to be accomplished. Joel later when on to create two annual conferences- one for lay leaders and one for staff- in order to keep people from becoming isolated. Through these conferences, he was able to “acquire new ideas and inspiration (Rosen, p. 33).” Step five occurs once organizations and leaders get their vision out there, more employees are going to become involved. The powerful guiding coalition that was started in the beginning of the transformation will not be enough. Kotter (1990), states that “too often, an employee understands the new vision and wants to help make it happen. But an elephant appears to be blocking the path (p. 64).” The elephant can be the organization itself, a person within the organization, or even the person themselves. Effective leaders are either able to remove these barriers or help empower individuals to overcome them themselves. One of Joel’s obstacles, or elephants, was accreditation of Hillel. He knew it needed to be done in order to gain back support of the public. Through the use of charismatic and transformational leadership- he was able to guide Hillel through the toughest challenge yet. Joel had the uneasy task of “evaluating directors of weak Hillels.” Rather than firing them, he was able to communicate with them and encourage them to resign. Joel was worried about the reactions, but was more focused on implementing his vision.
Clear and effective communication sets the tone for the implementation of change. If communication fails at any level, implementing change can also fail. Organizations that are successful, are able to not only give their employees the tools to improve through communication and empowerment, but are able to recognize the smallest of wins and the employees that are contributing to overall improvements. Leaders that create those short-term goals also help keep their employees motivated. According to Kotter (1990), organizations can fail at step six because “most people won’t go on the long march unless they see compelling evidence within 12 to 24 months that the journey is producing expected results (p. 65).” Short-term wins are actively made, rather than discovered along the way. When wins are pre-planned, urgency levels have a tendency to remain high. His first short-term win was changing the name of the national office. Joel was also able to succeed at creating short-term wins through the communication of his vision and the changes that he knew needed to be done. One obstacle he faced was funding. Through that communication, he was able to receive endowments annually and gave “out grants to local Hillel foundations (Rosen, p. 34).” These endowments and grants eventually led to the creation of Fellowship programs for college graduates. Hillel members were starting to see results. However, it can be easy to think that any win is the end of the road. Change is a never-ending process. Road blocks will keep appearing. According to Kotter (1990), during step seven, “leaders of successful efforts use the credibility afforded by short-term wins to tackle even bigger problems (p. 66).” Joel overcame the obstacle of gaining support from cabinet members. He knew that in order for Hillel to keep moving forward, he could never say change was done. For instance, many of the ideas Joel had were not new; the solutions for the bigger problems were right there. He just announced them with “great fanfare” so that the actions he was taking, were being known to everyone.
Many organizations fail to recognize that, in order to ensure that any change they make remains in effect and short-term wins are always on the horizon, the change must also infiltrate the culture of the organization. When employees and leaders embody the changes made, the more likely that change will stick. According to Kotter (1990), “change sticks when it becomes ‘the way we do things around here’.” One of the ways Joel was able to receive buy-in from Hillel directors for the accreditation, and succeed at step eight, was to create a pilot program first that would “help alleviate the anxiety many Hillel directs were experiencing about the process.” Joel showed that this change was do-able, and that it would be important to the overall new vision of Hillel. Through this change alone, the culture of Hillel changed from isolation to appreciation and motivation (Rosen, p. 36). This accreditation process helped create a “common language and vision of what each local Hillel should be striving for (Rosen, p. 37).” and eventually, “the way things are done around here”. Towards the end of his term, there was a report that was released regarding the Jewish population and how “52% were marrying non-Jews (Rosen p. 39).” Joel created a national task force to find out the impacts of this study and to examined how Hillel was interacting with college campus. He “seized the opportunity to make Hillel more visible (Rosen, p. 39).” It is from this study that Joel’s vision was coming to an apex. He followed the results of that survey and started “guerilla marketing” that would bring more awareness to the Jewish population. In his last State of Hillel address in 1992, Joel stated that “finally our agenda is being heard by the Jewish community; indeed, it is being adopted by that community (Rosen, p. 40).” Had Joel not changed the culture within Hillel’s organization, he would not have been able to reach out to the community.
Richard Joel faced many obstacles and he could have easily fallen off the path to success. However, Joel was successful for many reasons. He was a strong director because he spoke with confidence; he had a vision that he backed up with a purpose and a plan; he always remained true to that vision and made changes that were in alignment; and he turned the energy of poor morale into pride. Joel’s weaknesses of being an outsider and facing resistance were easily overcame. He built a team that would stand by him and he learned how to overcome the barriers he faced by proving to others that he had the leadership skills to rise above. With the help of the cabinet and his team and through their ability to “work together toward a common objective, trust and communciation follow (Katzenbach and Smith, 2005, p. 169).” Without that trust and communication, success for Joel would have been hard. The success that Joel had can easily be implemented in other organizations. Sure, experience is a plus. But just because someone has the experience does not mean they have the skills to be an effective leader. It is also important for leaders to have a vision, communicate and empower.
Richard Joel was successful at each step of change that Kotter mentions. Joel communicated clearly and continuously, created a team that supported his vision and aided implementation, empowered others to overcome the past and move forward, and showed people that outsiders are just as strong as insiders. Rosener (1990) states that “fast-changing environments also play havoc with tradition. Coming up through the ranks and being part of an established network is no longer important. What is important is how you perform. Also, managers in such environments are open to new solutions, new structures, and new ways of leading (p. 125).” Joel embodied this statement because he was an outsider. He performed with charisma and finesse, and he had a different point of view that brought in new solutions to the problems Hillel was stuck at. Joel had problem-solving and decision-making skills, which according to Katzenbach and Smith (2005), are useful for teams to be able to move forward (p. 168). Joel was an effective leader. Most of the changes he made stuck, and he moved Hillel into the future. He leaves behind a legacy of accreditation, empowerment, communication, pride and visibility. He was effective because he “encouraged participation (Rosener, p. 120)” through his State of Hillel speeches and visiting Hillels; he “shared power and information (Rosener, p. 120)” with his cabinet members through his constant communication, and he “enhanced the self-worth of others (Rosener, p. 123).” by empowering people to join forces both within and outside of the organization and by calling on members to restructure the organization.
Hillel: The foundation for Jewish Campus Life. (2012, March 10). About Hillel . Retrieved from http://www.hillel.org/about Katzenbach, J. R., & Smith, D. K. (2005). The Discipline of Teams. (cover story). Harvard Business Review , 83(7/8), 162-171. Retrieved from EBSCO host . Kotter, J. P. (1995). Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail. (cover story). Harvard Business Review , 73 (2), 59-67. Rosen, M. (2006). The Remaking of Hillel: A Case Study on Leadership and Organizational Transformation. Retrieved from: https://moodle.marylhurst.edu/file.php/3200/The_Remaking_of_Hillel.pdf Rosener, J. (1990). Ways women lead. Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec, 119-125, Reprint 90608.
