Success Story

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About the company
Since the opening of Dubai Internet City (DIC) eight years ago, the United Arab Emirates’ first free trade zone has grown rapidly. DIC is a regionally unique and innovative new technology park that serves as a strategic base for companies trying to expand into the emerging Middle East and Indian markets. With nearly two million square feet, DIC is the first, and currently only, free economic trade zone within the United Arab Emirates. Since opening, the business park has expanded to include two new facilities, Dubai Media City and Knowledge Village.

Because DIC operates with exclusive economic policies and affiliation with the Dubai government, businesses opening offices in the park qualify to receive ownership, taxation, and customs-related benefits. Emerging regional economies and a business-friendly government make DIC a very attractive place for many companies, including Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, and Nokia.

TECOM Investments, a subsidiary of Dubai Holding and DIC, manages the real estate operations, industry enablement, and commercial development of the business park. DIC’s growth has brought significant change opportunities to TECOM. In fact, TECOM employees work through constant change, often needing to implement new changes even before previous actions are fully in place.

What was changing?
DIC’s rapid expansion meant an unprecedented number of new buildings under construction, resulting in a significant backlog of applications for office space. It’s TECOM’s responsibility to manage this growing demand, along with the staffing and daily operation of DIC.

Natalie Sejean, Change Manager with TECOM, keeps a close eye on the impact of rapid growth at TECOM. “At the rate things have changed in Dubai, employees have felt the challenge of keeping up. In addition, they face the universal problem of having very little time to really understand and discuss these changes,” she says.

The fast growth in the park has required even faster restructuring within TECOM. Reporting roles shifted along with job responsibilities, leaving employees uncertain and insecure about what role they’d play in creating a better future for the company. It also revealed a need for more open communication about dealing with change at DIC and TECOM.

Because TECOM employs a wide and culturally diverse group of people in hundreds of positions, notes Sejean, “There’s no such thing as a ‘standard’ employee here. We needed a way to speak to everyone.”

Sejean wondered how such a diverse group could find a common foundation to work from and a common vocabulary to discuss the issues they face day to day. What skills would be most helpful in preparing a large staff to adapt to constantly changing situations and continuing growth?

TECOM already had in place a successful, in-house, half-day training course to assist managers in implementing change. However, the company soon realized it needed a more practical training curriculum for its diverse employee base.

Sejean recalls, “We wanted something enjoyable and fun. What we didn’t want was a program that felt heavy or hard to implement. We don’t need to complicate the process of what we’re trying to accomplish.”

Ahmad Bin Byat, former CEO of TECOM, recommended to Sejean the book Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, M.D. He had found answers to change management challenges in the book and suggested to Sejean that the book’s principles could be applied to TECOM’s obstacles.

What did they do?
Sejean found the solution she was looking for in an interactive training program based entirely on the story of Who Moved My Cheese?. The Gaining Change Skills Training Program is based on universal and simple principles, and Sejean saw its immediate relevance to TECOM’s organizational obstacles.

For example, the program has a unique focus on the individual and equips employees with actual skills they can use to deal with change at work and at home. Sejean knew that the many workers relocating to DIC from around the world could benefit from this program even outside of work.

She recalls, “The ‘fun’ element of the program was a big attraction, but the final decision to go with the Gaining Change Skills training really rested on the change skills it teaches. This is what we wanted for our employees – something they could use every day.”

A Spencer Johnson Partners training consultant conducted several one-on-one training sessions with Sejean over the phone. Sejean received certification to facilitate the Who Moved My Cheese? Gaining Change Skills Training Program in June 2006, and held her first training session, consisting of fifteen individuals from various levels and departments throughout the company, shortly afterwards. These fifteen individuals became Change Agents within TECOM who work to build a common language and a corporate culture more prepared for and receptive to change. To date, nearly 500 TECOM employees have been trained.

What results have they seen?
“Feedback from the employees already trained has been extremely positive,” Sejean reports. “They are reacting positively to the key message that change will happen, but that they as individuals can determine how well they manage themselves in present and future changes.”

She adds that conversations have become easier and communication is more open than in the past. By sharing common goals and language, employees and management find that understanding and agreement about change comes more naturally.

She says, “When we, as a company and as individuals, really understand what is changing and what our role is within that change, we actually can work alongside change rather than against it. Having the right skills to deal with change helps people make better decisions, not only on behalf of the company but also for themselves.”

By noticing the smaller changes around them, as the training encourages them to do, TECOM employees feel more prepared for the big changes on the horizon. They are more focused on being proactive and trying new methods to get better results. And, they are moving beyond fear and resistance–once common reactions to the word change.

In short, the simple principles of managing change, found in a modern-day parable about mice and cheese, has helped provide TECOM with a competitive advantage and a set of change management tools employees can truly embrace. Says Sejean, “Everyone loves it!”