How does culture impact the process of becoming a change leader?

For the purposes of this discussion the word culture is
Learned and shared patterns of thought and behavior characteristic of a given group, plus the material objects produced and used by that group.

What is the culture of the organization? Is the organization operationally focused or is it based on innovation?

What is the culture of the Project Management Office? Does your Project Management Office embrace a culture of innovation or status quo? Take the time to understand how the Project Management Office is viewed from the perspective of outside stakeholders as well as internally.

What type of engagement is it? Is it going to be a “Brave New World” or a “Rinse & Repeat” engagement for the organization? Remember, for some engagements there may be elements of both. When dealing with the resources and the stakeholders, always be mindful of this reality.

What is your event horizon as it relates to time of the engagement? The project had a start date and an end date. The end date often is the event horizon. This is where, as the project manager, you are trying to ensure that things are completed for that event sometime in the future. Large projects may have major milestones as event horizons, where organizations will decide on whether they continue forward or adjust. Another term for event horizon is runway – the amount of time the team has to complete the set of tasks. This may seem obvious, but you would be surprised how much runway can get wasted if the team is not focused on the end goal. Ineffective working groups can waste valuable time required downstream. Always be diligent with your runway. This is something that is often overlooked with peril. The event horizon represents a serious impact for organizations if they fail to acknowledge the risks associated with it. A short event horizon in innovative projects can lead, at times, to lack of execution discipline. A Formula One race car pit crew that is changing a complete set of tires in under 3 seconds is an example. For everyone in that crew, it is a Rinse & Repeat engagement, where shaving off seconds is the focus.

The event horizon in Brave New World engagements can be very challenging for all the stakeholders. Understand how long you have, and factor that into how goals will be reached and what culture is required to achieve those goals. The shorter the event horizon in an innovative engagement, the more adaptable and flexible all the stakeholders must be if they want to achieve the goals of the engagement.
What Project Management role is best suited for the engagement? Does this engagement need a Project Manager that leans toward a coaching style, or should this engagement be focused on a checklist style?

Here is a real-world example that I was involved with when I worked with the Ontario Government Ministry of Health years ago. It was a very large organization with an extremely well-established project management discipline and structure. I was one of three very senior project managers (PM) on contract, each of us working on one of three very different projects. Each one was a Brave New World project and required high levels of project management and subject matter expertise. All three of these projects were managed by project managers with the correct culture of Brave New World and looking for gaps for benefits. So far, the story is sounding like a success story even for a large organization. Sadly, the story is not actually an example of how to do it correctly, but how the organization needs leadership at the decision-making levels even with the right PMs available. The projects did eventually garner success, but here is why the success was hard fought with very few extra benefits gained: each project manager, including myself, was on the wrong project based on our respective subject matter expertise. Each project manager had a specialized area of expertise outside of just being a senior project manager. All three people were independent contractors, with the same pay level, in the same office with the same leadership team. However, our impact on the projects was limited due to us being on projects outside our wheelhouse for the required project engagement specialty. All three of us approached the leadership team to offer shifting each of us to the project that provided maximum value to all the stakeholders including ourselves. The way we were seated in the cubicle farm, we literally could have shifted one seat to the right, leaving the project on the desk we were going to. The leadership did not want to make the change for it was going to be disruptive to the paperwork process (there would have been no impact on the project stakeholders). It was truly a lost opportunity for the organization along with many extra hours of work by the three of us as we huddled after hours, sometimes over drinks, to help each other in the areas of our subject expertise.

As a Change Leader you often believe the issues will be the details of the tasks to complete the goals. Experience will show you that the people working on those tasks play a big part in the success. However, it is not just about their skills, but the attitude towards the tasks. People who need control and consistency will struggle with projects that are loosely defined because much is NOT known at the start. Conversely, people who thrive in the complexity of the unknown will struggle with the perceived micromanagement of an engagement that demands adherence to schedules and details. Same engagements can be solved with different people with the same skills, but with the appropriate culture to fit the problem being worked on.

When you are working with the people who just realized they are in prison, gently remind them the doors are NOT locked and that there are no guards at the door. Liberate them from their current boxed-in-thinking to a broader vision outside the walls of their current environment. Others have travelled the path and have proven it works. What is new to them is not new to others.

In Conclusion
When you are the Change Leader look around you to see who is working on the engagement with you from people above, beside and below. Then look at the organization. How are they wired and how do they measure success? This becomes important on how you resource your teams and approach solutions to engagements.
Speak and engage with the people where they are at and try to avoid engaging them where you need them to be. Guide them where you need to be. Be respectful of their working environment. Guide them on the realm of what is possible. To be fair to them, if they knew how to fix the problem, they would have fixed it already before they engaged you. Culture is the blanket that keeps them warm and comfortable. Some of your changes may be perceived as removing that comfortable blanket.
If you ignore their working culture, you do so at your peril.