4 Common Leadership Roadblocks in Change Processes: Part 3
Even with a clear vision and strong early momentum, organizational change can lose its way over time. Competing priorities, leadership transitions, and shifting external pressures can cause equity goals to fade into the background. We call this roadblock Drift: when good intentions remain, but the focus and follow-through that sustain change start to fade.
In this third installment of our four-part series on leadership roadblocks, we explore how Drift shows up in equity work, and what leaders can do to keep change efforts on course.
Drift
A college launched a campus-wide “inclusion task force” made up entirely of junior staff and student volunteers. Leadership praised the initiative, but did not define a clear scope of work or allocate a budget to support it. The task force eventually fizzled out, leaving participants tired, disillusioned, and frustrated by the lack of progress.
Equity efforts often begin with a lot of energy, but without a clear connection to the organization’s existing systems and structures. Instead, they’re treated as a special project: separate from core operations, not explicitly part of anyone’s job, and lacking clear next steps.
Leaders may see a committee as advisory, while members assume they’re empowered to act. A consultant’s recommendations may be solicited but not implemented. This roadblock can combine with bottlenecks when, for example, the person who receives the recommendations does not share them with other stakeholders who should be involved with next steps. And because equity work often asks for new ways of doing things, these efforts can be especially vulnerable to drifting in the absence of intentional design.
To avoid this roadblock, treat equity work like any other strategic priority. Build it into your existing systems, like project management tools, staffing plans, work plans, and budgets. Establish roles, timelines, and communication channels. If someone asks, “What’s the next step?” or “Who’s responsible for moving this forward?” the answer should be easy to find.
- A roadmap with defined phases and milestones, and a plan for ongoing evaluation
- Equity goals integrated into existing tools and processes, like budgeting, hiring, performance review, and others
- Roles clearly delegated to responsible parties, with enough flexibility to weather organizational changes
Drift is common, especially in busy organizations with many demands on leadership and staff. But losing focus doesn’t have to mean losing progress. By regularly reconnecting to your original goals, celebrating milestones along the way, and building accountability structures that outlast any one leader, you can keep equity work moving forward.
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In the final post of this series, we’ll look at Perfectionism: how the drive to “get it right” can hold organizations back, and what leaders can do instead.
