Change Management Learning Center
Sponsored by Prosci
2007 Best Practices in Change Management
Special tutorial series
More than 400 project leaders and change
management practitioners representing organizations from 59
countries share lessons learned and key success factors in
Prosci's 2007 Best Practices in Change Management
benchmarking report. This release marks Prosci's 10th anniversary
for change management research and 5th longitudinal study. The
70 page report is full of useful tips and findings that you can
put to use immediately. This
special tutorial seriesprovides glimpses into the
data and analysis from the 2007 report.
Four critical #1 findings
The 2007 report is full of lists illustrating the most important
activities, biggest mistakes and top suggestions for what participants
would do differently on their next project. Below are four critical #1
findings from the
2007 benchmarking report.
See Jeff Hiatt, Prosci president and founder,
discuss the 2007 study and its
significance in the field of change management Time: 01:12 - Click to activate
Study participants identified five areas as the greatest contributors
to overall change management program success:
Active and visible executive sponsorship Consistent with the findings from Prosci’s previous four
studies, active and visible executive sponsorship ranked as the
number one success factor for change management programs, with
participants citing this factor four times more frequently than any
other area. Participants cited the need for senior business leaders
to be accessible, knowledgeable about the change, committed and
involved. Active and visible executive sponsorship included:
Proactive identification of key stakeholders to build a
sponsorship coalition
Direct communications with employees to build awareness of
the need for change and to share the organization’s vision and
objectives
Visibility and accessibility throughout the entire project
Editor's reflection: The
effectiveness of the sponsor in fulfilling their role gives
a solid prediction of whether or not the change will be successful. Sponsors must be active and visible, much more than
merely signing checks and sending a 'project launch' email.
Change management practitioners fulfill a key role in
helping sponsors understand and perform their role. The
sponsor sections of the 2007 Best Practices in Change
Management report provide specific actions and checklists
that make 'sponsorship' more concrete.
Greatest change management obstacles
Study participants identified four main obstacles to the overall
success of their change management program:
Ineffective change sponsorship from senior leaders Participants cited ineffective change sponsorship as their
primary obstacle, specifically stating problems with:
Inactive or invisible sponsors
Sponsors not at the right level (not high enough in the
organization)
Poor alignment among key stakeholders resulting in a weak
sponsor coalition
Wavering sponsor commitment (especially on longer projects)
Conflicts of interest between key business leaders
(managers’ objectives were not aligned with the change)
Little or no access to the primary sponsor by the change
management team
Unwillingness of the primary sponsor to manage resistance
from other managers
Mixed priorities and projects competing for limited
resources and funds
Lack of knowledge by senior executives around their
sponsorship role resulting in poor leadership of the change
The manager sponsoring the change was replaced or left the
position mid-stream resulting in poor continuity and reduced
support and involvement
Editor's reflection: Interestingly, but not surprisingly, sponsorship shows up
again as a #1 on a major list. In the previous two
studies, resistance from front-line employees was cited as
the top obstacle. The movement of sponsorship ahead
of resistance (which was number two on this year's list)
signals a recognition of a cause and effect relationship
between the authority and credibility provided by effective
sponsorship and reaction by front-line employees - either
supportive or resistant. As above, the specific bullet points contribute to bringing clarity to the role of 'sponsoring
change'.
What to do differently on the next project
Looking at their overall projects, participants evaluated what they
would do differently on their next project. The findings focused on
three areas:
Better engagement of senior leaders as change sponsors
Utilization of a formalized change management approach
Implementation of a more robust planning and project management
process
1. Better engagement of senior leadership
Participants stated they would engage senior leaders earlier and more
proactively to:
Ensure buy-in and alignment around the project
Obtain sponsorship at the right level in the organization
Enable senior leaders to participate actively as effective
sponsors
Study participants would have created a sponsorship plan and provided
more sponsor education and coaching around managing change. They cited
the need for a strong sponsorship coalition that was aligned around the
vision and objectives for the project. They also stated the need for
more frequent communications and resistance management with stakeholders
earlier in the project to ensure a consistent message and to build
commitment for the change.
Editor's reflection:
Sponsorship again leads another critical list - what
participants would do differently on their next project. The
three areas were interesting in their own right -
highlighting the leadership, change management and project
management elements of successful projects. The specific
actions of the sponsor are further defined in the sponsor
activities section of the report.
Biggest changes in change management over the last several years
Change management, as a discipline and field of study, has undergone
many changes over the last ten years. In the 2007 study, participants
were asked to identify the biggest changes they had seen. The top trend
identified by participants, by nearly a three-to-one margin, was a
greater appreciation for the importance of and need for change
management. The most frequently cited trends were:
A greater recognition of the need for change management Overall, change management practitioners have seen a greater
interest in change management including a better understanding of
why change management is important for project success. There has
been a greater emphasis on managing the people side of change, as
well as a higher profile for change management within the
organization.
Participant quotes:
“The recognition that planned, intentional and resourced
change management is a critical success factor for producing
change outcomes.”
“A wider acceptance that it is necessary and vital to
success.”
“Change Management is being seen as a business imperative
now and not a nice-to-have.”
Editor's reflection: The 2007 study was the first that
collected specific data on the evolution of change
management, and the result was not surprising. Prosci has
seen the growth of change management over the last several years in
the interest and demand for our research and training
programs. Interestingly, participants did identify several
negative changes over last several years, including the risk
of 'change management' becoming a fad.
Summary
Sponsorship, sponsorship, sponsorship. While many who are marginally
familiar with change management tend to focus on communication and
training, the research shows that sponsorship is again the most
important contributor to projects meeting their objectives. People in the
organization look to senior leaders for signs of commitment to the
change. The authority and credibility created by effective sponsorship
is impossible to replace. The challenge, as a change management
practitioner, is to get sponsors engaged and fulfilling their role.
Suggestions for getting sponsors engaged:
Prosci's 4-6 hour sponsor session is the most effective way to
get executives and senior leaders moving. One of Prosci's instructors brings
their own experience as a former executive to the session to expertly address what change
management is, why it is important and what the sponsor's role is.
The session also includes a new Change Portfolio Analysis so
sponsors are exposed to data from real projects that they care
about.
Email a Prosci training analyst or call 970-203-9332 for more
information.
The best practices report itself is a powerful resource.
Practitioners have found great success in providing the report to senior
leaders with several key sections highlighted for reading - namely
overall contributors to success, biggest change management obstacles,
and the sponsor roles and activities section.
During the actual project, the change management practitioner
must be the coach of their sponsors. They should prepare specific
action plans, write key communications and check in to ensure
sponsors are remaining visible and active.
