We invited ACMP member Lydia Tay to share a little about herself with our change management community.

Lydia Tay

Tell us about yourself.
I’m a Change Management Coordinator supporting the successful delivery of IT projects for UBC’s Faculty of Medicine. A native Brit, I started my career in corporate communications in London and moved to Vancouver in 2011. Since then, I’ve developed my experience in recruitment, human resources and employee engagement, and discovered a passion for enabling change in complex organizations.

How did you get into Change Management?
I had some awareness of the critical role of change management from my experience in human resources, but it was a course that I took during my MBA at UBC that taught me the structures and best practices to actively support change. After taking the course, I made a conscious decision to direct my career towards change management, and was fortunate to land at the Faculty of Medicine.

What are you working on?
I’m currently working on a project to transform videconferencing at the Faculty of Medicine. This is important for the organization, as we teach medical students across the province via videoconference according to the needs of the Distributed Medical Program. Our administrative staff are also dispersed across clinical sites, university partners and research units, and so improving their ability to meet virtually is very impactful.

Do you have any recommended change management books / resources to share?
I admire the work of Renée Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim. Although they are best known for Blue Ocean Strategy, they have also authored some excellent articles on managing change. I particularly like Tipping Point Leadership, which outlines a four step process to overcome the ‘hurdles’ encountered by organizations undergoing change. A colleague also recently introduced me to their article: Fair Process: Managing in the Knowledge Economy, which I also recommend.

How do you like to spend your time outside of work?
I divide my time outside work volunteering with the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), completing my part-time MBA and running the seawall. I’m sporadically training for my first triathlon, despite being a very shaky cyclist!