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.
Communication best practices
As with the previous benchmarking studies, the 2007 study included an
entire section focused on communications, including what works, what
didn't work and what messages need to be communicated about change. Below are
excerpts on communication from the
2007 benchmarking report.
Most effective communication methods
According to study participants, face-to-face methods of
communicating with employees about change were the most effective, and
included:
Group meetings and presentations Participants recommended group sessions that included the
opportunity for feedback and interaction between managers and
employees. Examples included forums, town hall meetings and small
group meetings.
Participant quote: “Presentations are a good way to communicate
because that’s the best way to make sure all participants have the
understanding and their questions have been answered.”
One-on-one coaching sessions and discussions Participants recommended one-on-one sessions to address
individual concerns and points of resistance among employees.
Examples included individual coaching meetings, informal personal
conversations and the use of “champions” within a group or
department.
Participant quote: “One-on-one discussions – although more
time-consuming, this allows full discussion of proposals and
understanding on both sides.”
See Dr. JJ Johnson, Prosci instructor and former
Fortune 500 executive, discuss best practices
in communication and what it means to change practitioners Time: 01:16 - Click to activate
Participants cited two preferred senders of change messages (Figure
A). For business messages related to the change, such as how the change
aligns with the organization’s strategy, why the change is being made
and the risk of not changing, employees want to hear from a senior
business leader (the person in charge). For messages related to the
personal implications of the change, including how the change will
impact their job role and “What’s in it for me?” or WIIFM, employees
prefer to hear from their immediate supervisor.
Figure A - Preferred senders of change messages
What to do differently next time
When asked how they would change their communication approach for the
next project, participants cited a number of changes they would make.
As in the 2005 study, the most common response was to communicate more
often. The top five responses included:
Communicate more often Increase the frequency of messages to ensure they are understood
and reinforced.
Engage managers and supervisors more effectively as
communicators Involve managers and supervisors more as the senders of messages
to employees and empower them with information to be effective
champions of change.
Participant quote: “Make sure that the supervisors are
champions for change – and championing the right messages; this
group can be both the most positive and negative influencers of
change communication.”
Make the communication plan a formal project deliverable with
appropriate staffing and resources Write a formal communication plan early in the planning stage
and assign dedicated staff members to manage and execute the plan.
Participant quote: “Attempt to lay out an overall communication approach that
integrates the project and change process together.”
Start communicating with employees earlier in the project Proactively communicate with employees as details of the change
project emerge to prevent rumors or early resistance to the change.
Participant quote: “Start communicating as soon as the need for change is
recognized.”
Use more communication methods and channels Understand all communication channels available and their value.
Incorporate additional methods to reach employees in unique and
effective ways.
Listing of communication methods
Participants used a variety of communication methods during their
change projects. Although the most effective communication methods were
cited earlier, the list below is included to help change management
teams brainstorm additional communication methods. This list includes
input from participants in the 2003, 2005 and 2007 benchmarking studies:
Billboards
Blogs
Brown bag lunches
Cascading communication trees
Demonstrations
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Intranet pop-ups
One-on-one meetings and coaching
Project fairs
Roundtables
Testimonials
Videos
For this tutorial, we are including a subset of the over 70
methods identified by participants in the
complete report
Summary
Communication is a critical component of effective change management.
Effective communication was cited as the number three greatest
contributor to success in the 2007 study. In addition to the topics
addressed above, the 2007 benchmarking study includes sections on:
Most effective ways to create two-way communication with
employees
Most important messages about change for employees
Additional messages for managers and supervisors
Frequency of communication
Complete listing of communication methods
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Did you miss the first special best practices tutorial? Read
about four critical #1 findings
from Prosci's 2007 Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking
report and see a video of Prosci President Jeff Hiatt discussing the
2007 study and its significance in the field of change management.
