ESTJ – Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging

Here are the traits for this organizational character type:

Extraverted – focuses outward, responds to external stimuli

• Time to talk about what is going on during the change process.

• They want something to do as a part of the change process.

• Communication, communication, communication.

• They want to be heard – to have a voice in the change process.

• They desire action, getting on with it, keeping up the pace.

Sensing – concerns itself with actualities, attends to details

• Real data – why is the change occurring?

• Specifics about what exactly is to change.

• Connections between the changes and the past.

• Realistic pictures of the future that make plans real.

• Clear guidelines on expectations, roles, and responsibilities.

Thinking – depends on impersonal procedures and principles

• Clarity in the decision making and the planning.

• Demonstration that leadership is competent.

• Fairness and equitability in the changes.

• The logic – Why? What are the goals? What systemic changes will there be?

Judging – likes things spelled out and definite, seeks closure

• A clear, concise plan of action.

• Defined outcomes, clear goals.

• A clear statement of priorities.

• A time frame, with each stage spelled out.

• No more surprises!

Boiling this down into a plan

All of the above can be boiled down into these main points:

1. Be specific. What is the gap between what the compliance requirements are telling the organization you need to do, and what you are currently doing. What will this require in terms of time, money, and effort (your best guess)?

2. Provide a “Ben Franklin” thought process on both good and bad points. Make sure you aren’t sugar-coating anything and provide both points of view. If any attempts had been made in the past and failed, don’t forget to point that out. You need a realistic picture of any change the compliance plan will bring.

3. What are the priorities and timeframes for each compliance initiative?

4. What is the logic behind all of this? Remove any “qualitative” goals for quantitative ones. What are the defined, and measurable, outcomes and how do those tie to the priorities and timeframes?

5. What is the logic behind the path to compliance. They want to know your leadership is competent. However, leadership will want time to think and talk about what is going to happen and will want input in developing the plan. Giving them the logic behind the plan will help.