Earlier this year I wrote about some of the challenges that come with success. Another challenge that that can be harder to deal with is the changing roles of people in the organization. This is especially true for account services for traffic and project management. In small organizations, there are just not enough people on staff to have specialized roles for each function. So, the studio manager and a couple of staff members end up wearing many hats. These include those client interface functions that would typically be part of an account management group, and also the internal functions, like traffic management and project management, that would usually be part of an operations group.

As an organization grows, it's easy to add a couple of more people in this 'blended' role but there is a tipping point where the convenience of doing things the same old way is swamped by the inefficiencies resulting from 'switching hats' all the time. Now comes the hard part. In theory, the answer is to create a new organizational structure with specialized roles such as account manager, traffic manager, art director, etc., and then re-assign staff to these new roles. But it's not that easy. The first challenge is matching skill sets and career goals with the new roles. For example, a good traffic manager requires a unique set of skills that is very different from that of an account rep or an art director. You may not have people whose skill sets truly fit the new roles that have been established which could lead to some hard decisions about staff. A second challenge, which is more insidious, is in actually making the switch to a new role and not just taking on more responsibilities. For example, a person moving into a traffic management role may have had a lot of customer contact in the past. They may have actually been responsible for contact with particular marketing or product organizations. It's easy to fall into the trap of taking on the new responsibilities, but not letting go of the old, familiar way of doing things. So on paper, the organization looks different, but in reality many thing are being done the same way they were in the past. So, what's the solution? There are five things in particular that can help with this organizational transition:

  • Create a vision for the new organization that includes a clear org chart and definition of goals
  • Create complete and meaningful job descriptions for all organizational roles that are very clear about the responsibilities associated with each role
  • Modify or create process documentation that clearly associates the new roles with specific tasks in the process
  • Develop a change management and communication plan that includes not only your organization, but also your clients. This is especially important for creating new communication channels with clients.
  • Establish a policy for managing communication outside the process so staff have a means of redirecting those requests and communications that continue following the old pattern

  • Change is difficult, even if it's a result of positive growth. Take a look at your organization's strengths and gaps, and put together a solid plan to move to a more effective future state. And if you need help with the details or the big picture, like job descriptions and skills assessments, Cella is here to assist along the way.