Key roles in change management -
putting the 'gears' in motion
In our previous tutorial, Prosci and the Change Management Learning Center released
an article that looked at who was involved in managing change. The
first module
presented the model below and showed how projects risk potential failure
when change management is thought of as only the responsibility of the
change management team or resource. This tutorial presents some key
points to remember and research-based materials that are useful in
preparing each of the gears for their respective roles in managing
change.
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Who is involved in managing change?
Change management requires each of the 'gears' in the
picture to fulfill their specific role. A change manager can
facilitate assessments, create a change management strategy
and develop change management plans, but they are
not the
only ones involved in managed change. The other groups
involved in managing change include:
- Project team
- Senior leaders
- Managers and supervisors
- Employees
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Before you begin, recognize that you are asking each key player to make a
change
Before we look at each group, there is one important point to be
made. When you are asking a senior leader to fulfill the role of
executive sponsor, you are asking them to do their job differently.
Likewise, when you ask a front-line supervisor to fulfill the role of
coach and support a change initiative, you are asking them to do their
job differently. An important insight here is that when you ask one of
the key players in change management to fulfill their role in change management, you must also
manage this as a change.
Put on your ADKAR glasses and think about this change from an ADKAR
perspective. Each of the key players needs:
| Awareness
of the role they must play to make change successful |
Have you shown why change management is critical and why
the person is important in making change management
successful? |
| Desire to participate in and support their new role in change
management |
Have you created a compelling case for how important
managing the people side of change is to making changes
successful? |
| Knowledge
of how to effectively fulfill their role in managing
change |
Have you educated the person and provided enough
training on what the role is and how to fulfill it? |
| Ability to implement the required skills and behaviors to
effectively manage change |
Have you provided the job aides and where to get
support? Have you provided the opportunity to practice? |
| Reinforcement
to sustain the change management role |
Have you put mechanisms in place to ensure that the role
is fulfilled on each new change, to reward successful
application? |
Sometimes, individuals working to introduce change management into
their organization are surprised that it is not welcomed with open arms.
Often times, this is because they have failed to actively manage the
change of applying change management. For example, research shows
that the number one cause for resistance is not knowing why a change is
being made. So ask yourself, have you made a compelling case for
why change management is needed?
Managing the change (i.e. "applying change management") requires you to
use both individual and organizational change management approaches -
the same way you would use both of these disciplines to manage the
change associated with other new processes, systems, technologies or job
roles.
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Change management
Change management team members or practitioners need to
understand the change management process and the methodology
they are applying. They must also be prepared to engage and
coach the others required to make change successful.
Self-paced resources:
To begin, all of Prosci's change management materials
come from our research. The
2007
Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking report
presents lessons learned and best practices from 426
participants from 59 countries. The methodology developed
from the research is available in a hardcopy
Change Management Toolkit (with CD-ROM) or online
Change Management
Pilot. Both include ready-to-use templates, assessments
and checklists for scaling your change management strategy
and building your plans. Training options:
Prosci and the Change Management Learning Center's
foundational program is a three-day certification program
that teaches the basics and the application of our
research-based change management process. Participants apply
the process, tools and templates to a project they are
currently working on. They return to the office with a
jump-start and a change management strategy presentation.
This program is available either at one of our
open-enrollment Public Sessions held in Colorado or at
your location. Email a Prosci
training analyst or complete the form below to find out more
about training offerings. |
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Senior leaders
The biggest gap we see with senior leaders, when being
asked to fulfill the role of sponsor of change, is not knowing exactly what
sponsoring change looks like. Many times, good leaders will
do some of the activities naturally. Change management then
can be contexted as a way to provide structure and
additional research to the task of leading change.
Self-paced resources:
Prosci's experience is that many senior leaders do not
have tremendous amounts of time to read materials. For this
reason, we typically recommend providing the
2005
Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking report
and highlighting a few sections - including the executive
overview (pages 6-8), sponsor key activities and mistakes
(pages 18-19) and the detailed list of sponsor activities
(page 23). Training options:
Prosci and the Change Management Learning Center have
delivered dozens of executive briefings on the role of the
sponsor during change. These 4 - 6 hour sessions cover the
principles of managing change and convey the key roles
senior leaders can play. The session is highly interactive
and requires senior leaders to complete assessments and
worksheets to fully understand their role and how the
changes they are looking to create really impact their
organization. |
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Managers & supervisors
There are many 'great managers' who are ineffective
during times of change. The biggest cause is that no one has
taken the time to show them how to be a great manager during
change. During change, supervisors must play the role of
communicator, coach and resistance manager. The change agent
is responsible for preparing them for these three roles.
Self-paced resources:
There are two primary resources for managers and
supervisors. The
Change
Management Guide for Managers and Supervisors is a guide
for coaching front-line employees. In this toolkit, managers
and supervisors are taught how to coach employees and use
the Employee's
Survival Guide to Change with their direct reports.
Training options:
Prosci and the Change Management Learning Center offer a
one-day coaches program that looks at the process of change,
how individuals experience change and the three roles
managers and supervisors play during organizational change.
The session includes a number of breakouts and worksheets to
help apply the concepts that are being taught. |
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Employees
Employees are the ones who have to change their
day-to-day operations when an organizational change is
introduced. It is their speed of adoption, ultimate
utilization and proficiency that drive the ROI of the
project (these three factors are covered on Prosci's webinar
on the ROI of
change management).
Self-paced resources:
The
Employee's Survival Guide to Change is a paperback
designed to help employees succeed during change. It is a
quick read and
includes answers to frequently asked questions and a section
devoted to taking control of change. The book is best used
as part of a program facilitated by supervisors.
Training options:
Prosci and the Change Management Learning Center do not
offer training for front-line employees. Our research
suggests that the most effective 'gear' for dealing with
these employees is their immediate supervisor, so we work to
enable these supervisors to engage their direct reports.
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Project team
The project team is working to create organizational
change through processes, systems, technologies, job roles
and behaviors. Change management is a key component of
making these changes occur effectively, quickly and ensuring
they meet their objectives.
Self-paced resources:
Change Management:
the people side of change provides an introduction to change
management concepts and how it supports project success. It is a
quick read and written to build a foundational understanding.
The
2005
Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking report
is another valuable resource, reading like a checklist of what
is needed to effectively manage change.
Training options:
When working with clients, Prosci
and the Change Management Learning Center has seen value in
putting project leaders through the 3-day change management
certification program so they have a full understanding of what
change management means and how it supports their project work.
Many of the Change Management Learning Center's free, one-hour
webinars provide a
solid introduction and foundation in change management
principles and techniques.
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Creating awareness of roles in managing change
As you are working to create an awareness of the different roles in
managing change, there are several keys to remember. First, make sure
that you are speaking in the language of the person you are talking
with. You need to relate change management to what they
care about and the job they are
tasked with in the organization. Second, utilize examples from
past changes that will help them
relate to the concepts and points you are trying to make. Third, be sure
to recognize the effort they are already putting forward. Many times,
good leaders will often already be doing some of the tasks you are
asking them to do as part of change management. Be sure to acknowledge
that you are talking about adding structure around managing change, and
that you realize some of this may already be happening in the course of
their own work.
The worksheet below is a good way to begin thinking about how you
will engage and make a compelling case for managing change to different
groups in the organization. You can complete a worksheet like this for
each of the groups you need to get 'on board' in your change management
program (at a minimum, the four groups represented in the 'gears'
image).
| Group or individual you are
completing worksheet for: |
| Pain points |
What does this person worry
about in their job? What keeps them up at night?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
|
How will change management help
them address this pain point?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
|
| Potential objections |
What are the potential
objections from this person to change management?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
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What is the root cause of the
objection? How would you respond?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
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| Why change management? |
What are the organizational
benefits to applying change management?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
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What are the personal benefits
to applying change management?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
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| Value proposition |
Write a concise,
targeted value proposition specific to the individual or
group you are speaking with. The value proposition should
show the value of becoming involved in change
management to that person.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
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Below is a form you can use if you would like a Prosci analyst to
contact you with more information about one of the self-paced offerings
or training options available from the Change Management Learning
Center. Prosci's goal is to create research-based, easy-to-use, holistic
approaches for managing the people side of change. Our analysts are
always available to discuss which options are best suited for your
organization and your change management challenge.
Tools referenced in this tutorial:
- 2007 Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking report
($249) - journal-style report with lessons learned and best practices
from 426 participants, presented in an easy-to-use format - reads as
a checklist of what to do and what not to do
-
Change Management Toolkit ($349) - hardcopy 3-ring binder presenting
Prosci's change management methodology, includes templates, checklists
and assessments for managing the people side of change (includes CD-ROM)
- Change
Management Guide for Managers and Supervisors ($189) -
tools to help supervisors engage and coach their direct reports
through change (includes 4 copies of the Employee's Survival Guide)
- Change
Management Pilot ($449) - online tool including Prosci's change
management methodology, eLearning modules and downloadable templates,
assessments, presentations and checklists
-
Change Management Pilot Professional ($559) - the content of the
Change Management Pilot plus additional benchmarking data and an
online version of the Change Management Guide for Managers and
Supervisors
-
Change Management: the people side of change ($18.95) - a primer for anyone
involved in organizational change that addresses why manage change,
individual change management and organizational change management
-
Employee's Survival Guide to Change (14.95) - a handbook to help
employees survive and thrive during change, answers frequently asked
questions and empowers employees to take charge of change
*** Prosci also offers
leadership packages - groupings of products at discounts that
offer you some of the most helpful and common combinations of Prosci
change management resources
Email this page to a friend
Email a Prosci analyst or
call 970-203-9332 with questions about the methodology, its application, or finding the
right resources to support your change management activities.
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