Applications of Prosci's ADKAR Model
An overview of Prosci's ADKAR Model

Application 1: Making sense of change

Change is difficult and complex to understand. However, many in the field have provided techniques for breaking it down into phases to help make sense of change. In the early 20th century, the anthropologist Arnold Van Gennep first broke change down into three distinct phases while studying groups around the world and the rites of passage in those cultures - published in his 1909 work The Rites of Passage. Kurt Lewin (Resolving Social Conflicts, 1948) and William Bridges (Transitions, 1980) both developed the idea of three distinct phases of change, placing considerable focus on the difficulty individuals face in stepping out of the current state. Prosci uses this framework by defining the current state, the transition state and the future state - along with the implications of each of the states. By separating a change out into how things are done today (the current state), how things will be done (the future state) and how to move from the current state to the future state (the transition state), change can be more effectively managed as specific tactics can be developed for each of the states of change.

Prosci's ADKAR® Model takes the next step. It moves beyond states of change as a context - current, transition, future - and provides more definition about how one person moves through the change process individually. To move out of the current state, an individual needs Awareness of the need for change and Desire to participate and support the change. Successfully moving through the transition state requires Knowledge on how to change and the Ability to implement the required skills and behaviors. In the future state, that Ability is utilized and Reinforcement is required to sustain the change.

The additional detail that ADKAR provides to a general model of change is why it "just makes sense" for change management practitioners. Once exposed to the ADKAR Model, it becomes very easy to break down changes going on around you into the five building blocks and then examine each of the blocks in more detail. ADKAR gives more detail, at the individual level, for understanding the process of change. ADKAR lets you make sense of change at the individual level.

Application 2: Guiding change management plans

In Prosci's 3-phase methodology and Prosci's certification program, ADKAR is used to guide change management plans. Change management plans are familiar to most of us - a communication plan and a training plan are typical components, even when there is not a formal change management structure in place. Based on Prosci's research, there are five key plans that are part of an effective change management approach: Communication plan, Sponsorship roadmap, Coaching plan, Training plan, and Resistance management plan (read more about the five levers of change management). These five plans outline "what we are doing" from a change management professional's perspective.

ADKAR is powerful because it adds "what we are trying to achieve" to the equation. ADKAR is an outcome-oriented model - it describes the building blocks an individual must have to make a change successfully. As such, it prescribes the goal or result that a change management professional is trying to achieve when they develop a change management plan. For example, think about how these three change management plans relate to ADKAR:

• Why are we communicating? To build Awareness of the need for change or to provide Reinforcement to sustain the change.
• Why is sponsorship so important from senior leaders? Because it contributes to Awareness of the need for change and builds Desire to participate.
• Why are we providing training? Because individuals need Knowledge on how to change and Ability to implement the required skills and behaviors.

Any activity or intervention on the change management front should have as its focus one of the ADKAR building blocks. The "means" of change management are the customized plans developed when applying a structured organizational change management process. The "ends" of change management are the successful, individual transitions made by each employee whose day-to-day work is impacted by the project or initiative. In guiding change management plans, ADKAR answers the "what we are trying to achieve" question for the many activities that change management professionals undertake in support of a project or initiative.

Application 3: Measuring progress

Many times we are asked, "how do I measure if my change management approach is effective?" You can certainly measure change management activities - for example: how many times have we communicated, how many times have senior leaders shared why the change is happening, what percentage of employees have had small group meeting with their managers about the change, how many employees have been trained? But simply measuring activities does not let us know if the activities are having the intended effects.

This is where ADKAR can come into play as a measurement instrument. Since ADKAR describes the required elements of a successful change, it can be a powerful measuring stick to evaluate if change management activities are having the desired results. For instance, after a major communication effort focused on sharing the need for change and the individual and organizational motivators to support the change, we could conduct an assessment to evaluate the levels of Awareness and Desire. This type of assessment indicates how well our change management activities are being received by the employees who are impacted by the change.

Periodically throughout the lifecycle of a change, ADKAR can be used to gauge how well employees are making their own personal transition. And, in the end, it is each individual's successful transition which results in the project delivering results and providing value to the organization. As a model of successful individual change, ADKAR is a powerful instrument for measuring change management progress.

Application 4: Diagnosing gaps

Prosci's ADKAR Model is also an effective instrument for understanding why a change is not occurring. Since it describes the essential building blocks of successful change, ADKAR can also be used to understand why a change is not happening. Is the change failing because of a lack of Awareness of the need for change? Is an individual not adopting the change because there is no Desire to participate? Is lack of Knowledge, Ability or Reinforcement stopping the change process?

In Prosci's methodology and Prosci's certification program, an ADKAR assessment is used to identify the barrier point. The barrier point is defined as the building block in the ADKAR Model that is not sufficient for the change to take place. By using an ADKAR assessment, an ADKAR profile can be created showing which of the building blocks is the barrier point - the first element with a score below "3". Below are some graphs illustrating the identification of a barrier point:

Once you understand the root cause or source of the gap - the ADKAR missing element that is impeding change success - you can then develop the right corrective actions to help the individual make the change.

Application 5: Developing corrective actions

Trying to develop corrective actions without understanding the root cause for change failure is a problem. First, it is difficult to pick the right corrective actions if you do not understand why the change is not succeeding. The adage "it takes a heap of swings to hit a nail in the dark" is applicable here - unless we know why a change is not working, we don't know what to do to remedy the situation.

Second, it can be discouraging to employees if you pick corrective actions that are not focused on the right ADKAR building block. If an employee is not making a change due to missing Reinforcement (for instance, they feel that there is no benefit to staying with the new way of doing their job) and the change management team simply provides more training (a Knowledge intervention), the employee will simply become discouraged. If an employee is concerned about whether or not they have the skills to be successful (Knowledge is the barrier point), but the team focuses on more communication about the need for change (an Awareness tactic), the employee will get frustrated and might become even more resistant.

Since ADKAR describes the "ends" - it also helps us to select the correct "means" if a change is not working. ADKAR provides guidance on how to help an individual move forward in the change process once we understand which of the ADKAR elements is the gap.

Application 6: Enabling managers and supervisors

The final application of ADKAR moves beyond the work of the change management resource or team. Benchmarking research tells us that an employee's manager or supervisor is a critical component of the change process. Employees look to their immediate supervisor for direction and information relating to a change. Managers and supervisors are identified as a preferred sender of change messages. Their relationship with direct reports means that they have a considerable amount of influence on an employee's decision regarding a change. However, many great managers and supervisors have a hard time when it comes to leading their employees through change. Leading change is, in many ways, a new and unique competency that some managers and supervisors have not had a chance to develop.

Prosci's benchmarking research indicates five distinct roles for managers and supervisors in times of change:

1. Communicator
2. Advocate
3. Coach
4. Liaison
5. Resistance manager

Furthermore, results from the 2009 benchmarking study indicate that the roles of "coach" and "resistance manager" are the two that pose the greatest challenge. One of the most effective tools that organizations can provide to their managers and supervisors to help them become great leaders of change is an understanding of how employees experience the change process. Said another way, teaching managers and supervisors Prosci's ADKAR Model helps them bridge the gap between "great leader" and "great leader of change". Learning the ADKAR Model and how to use it with direct reports is one of the first steps to building personal change management competencies for managers and supervisors.

Learn more about the ADKAR Model and how it is used in Prosci's book - ADKAR: A Model for Change in Business, Government and our Community. Learn what contributes to each ADKAR factor and what tactics are available to help move individuals successfully through change. Order as paperback or MP3 audiobook.

• Module 1: ADKAR - why it clicks
• Module 2: Awareness and Desire
• Module 3: Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement
• Module 4: Applications of ADKAR

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