Interview with: Peter Grist, Managing Director, Grist Pty Ltd

1. Interview with: Peter Grist,
Managing Director, Grist Pty Ltd
“Enabling people to change quickly
enough to keep up with changes in
society is one of the major challenges
Human Resources is facing today,”
says Peter Grist, Managing Director,
Grist Pty Ltd. “Many change initiatives
fail to change people’s behaviours, so it
is critical that organisations understand
how they can achieve the desired
outcome,” he adds.
Grist Pty Ltd is a sponsor company at
the marcus evans HR Summit 2017,
taking place in the Gold Coast,
Australia, 27 - 29 March.
What behaviours should HR
encourage? What makes the biggest
impact?
The behaviours will be somewhat
specific to each organisation and role.
We mainly focus on sales and service
type behaviours, and we find that
traditional face-to-face and phone sales
and services are changing rapidly
because of digitisation and information
being readily available online. Sales is
moving from being a subject matter
expert to being based on emotional
intelligence and connection with the
customer. The biggest lever the
organisation can pull to rapidly change
behaviours is the quality and quantity of
coaching and leadership being provided
by the leader.
How can quantitative analysis
create a unique change manage-
ment system?
The reason change initiatives fail is the
inability to change the behaviour of
people. We find that most organisations
have no measures whatsoever, no
quantitative analysis of the actual
behaviours they want to move away
from or towards. That is where we fill
the gap with our benchmarking and
assessment tools. Behaviours must be
assessed in a quantitative way both at
the leadership and customer-facing
level, to get real insight into how quickly
the organisation is moving towards the
desired behaviours.
How can HR unlock people’s full
potential?
A great coach is key. Someone who
creates self-awareness in the individual
to bridge the gap between where they
are now and where they want to be.
People start achieving their full potential
when they start coaching themselves
based on the experience they’ve had
with their leader or mentor.
The younger generation coming into the
workforce is very well-educated and
more resourced than any generation
before. HR must create learning and
development that is truly engaging and
delivered in a way so young people start
seeking it out themselves. In a learner-
centric organisation, people are
motivated to undertake the learning
themselves, with the guidance of a
coach. Organisations will not change
quickly enough unless they harness the
discretionary effort, extra skills and
knowledge that younger people have
about seeking out information. If we do
not harness these, we will be too slow
to keep up with the changes that are
happening through disruption.
What are the major obstacles to
achieving rapid change?
Most organisations struggle with legacy
systems and culture. The new agile
organisations and start ups that are
growing quickly have the advantage of
starting from scratch and creating an
agile business right from the start. For
large incumbent organisations to remain
competitive they must act like an agile
start up, however this is extremely
difficult given the investment they have
in systems and processes and en-
trenched ways of thinking and behaving
that are embedded in their culture.
The other major obstacle is that leaders
simply do not spend enough time with
their people and instead lose focus and
become more operational leaders.
People change when they have
conversations and experiences they
have never had before so if you want
them to change quickly, leaders need to
spend more time with them providing
coaching and development.
What should a change program
include in order to align behaviours,
culture and strategy?
The more time spent upfront engaging
people, including the customer-facing
people who will be asked to make the
changes, the less time will be spent
later on handling objections and
resistance. Most organisations underes-
timate how hard it is for human beings
to change habitual behaviours. What
seems like a great idea in the head
office can be hard work on the front
line. The more people are engaged
early, the smoother the change
management program will run.
Behaviours
must be
measured
in a
quantitative
way
Making a Change Management
Program a Success

2. T h e H R N e t w o r k –
marcus evans Summits group
delivers peer-to-peer information
on strategic matters, professional
t r e n d s a n d b r e a k t h r o u g h
innovations.
Please note that the Summit is a
closed business event and the
number of participants strictly
limited.
About the HR Summit 2017
The 13th annual HR Summit is the premium forum bringing elite buyers and sellers
together. The Summit offers chief HR executives and service and solution providers
an intimate environment for a focused discussion of the key new drivers shaping
corporate priorities and HR strategies. Taking place at the RACV Royal Pines Resort,
Gold Coast, Queensland, 27 - 29 March, the Summit includes presentations on a
range of topics, among which helping the organisation sharpen its customer focus,
developing outstanding leaders, redesigning structures for higher efficiency, and
creating an innovative culture.
www.hranzsummit.com
Contact
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Tel: + 357 22 849 313
Email: press@marcusevanscy.com
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About Grist Pty Ltd
Grist works with customer-facing organisations to define, measure and develop the frontline and leadership behaviours required to
attract and retain customers now and into the future. Our behaviour change programs are steeped in behavioural psychology and
backed up by data. We help you drive customer and employee outcomes by changing the sales and leadership behaviours that are
proven to impact results.
www.gristconsulting.com.au
About marcus evans Summits
marcus evans Summits are high level business forums for the world’s leading decision-makers to meet, learn and discuss
strategies and solutions. Held at exclusive locations around the world, these events provide attendees with a unique opportunity to
individually tailor their schedules of keynote presentations, case studies, roundtables and one-to-one business meetings.
For more information, please visit: www.marcusevans.com
Upcoming Events
Corporate Learning & Talent Development Summit (North America) - www.cltdsummit.com
HR Strategy & Innovation Summit (North America) - www.hrsummit.com
To view the web version of this interview, please click here:
http://events.marcusevans-events.com/hr2017-peter-grist