Webinar - Defining CM

The initial step for introducing change management into an organization is to ensure that people have the same notion of what change management is. Prosci defines change management as a structured approach to managing the people side of change - it is the process, tools and skills for ensuring project success by managing the changes that individual contributors have to make to their jobs.

There is confusion in organizations about what is meant by "change management". Some of the confusion that we mention on the webinar include: in the IT world change management relates to version control; in the project management world change management an sometimes mean the steps we take when we change scope or other project characteristics; sometimes the term change management is used as an umbrella for any and all approaches to creating change; some still see change management as just communication or just training; a fifth to add to the blog that was not in the webinar slides is that change management is seen as a purely reactive tool for addressing resistance once it happens.

The webinar provides a context for helping see where change management fits in, relative to "the change" and to project management. The three bucket framework helps to separate out the actual nuts and bolts of what is changing ("the change"), the technical side of implementing the project (project management), and the people side of the change (change management). Regardless of what "the change" actually is - Six Sigma, new performance review, ERP, 360 evaluations, Balanced Scorecard, etc - it needs a structured approach for both the technical and the people sides of the project.

How would you use this new framework - "the change", project management and change management? Who do you expect to use the framework with?

Enjoy!

Tim Creasey
Prosci
Director of Research and Development

Webinar - ROI of CM

The ROI of change management is one of the most often asked questions we hear. The model presented in the webinar looks at three realities of any project that define or constrain the value the project will return:

- Speed of adoption
- Ultimate utilization
- Proficiency

To even get to the discussion, people must make the connection between the project they are implementing, the specific changes to how work is done and the people whose day-to-day activities will be different (this happens to be the focus of a recent tutorial available at http://www.change-management.com/tutorial-connecting-cm-business-results.htm).

The connecting of ADKAR to the three factors is very important. This goes back to the idea that the measure the effectiveness of change management, we must first understand the goal of any change management activity. For me, the goal of any change management activity is to help an individual through their own personal transition (also read through ADKAR). This is how we link the specific behavior change required by the project to ADKAR to the three ROI factors and ultimately to the value the project delivers.

One of the biggest requests about the ROI model is for examples. Do you have a project where you can describe speed of adoption, ultimate utilization and proficiency? What did they mean for the project and how did you measure them? This blog might be a good way to share your examples of the ROI model applied to a real-life project you are working on.

Enjoy! And share your thoughts and examples...

TimC

Webinar - Sponsorship

Okay, here goes test #3 of the webinar blog. Enjoy!

Research and experience shows that the role of the sponsor is critical. It brings authority and credibility to the project and sends very strong signals to the rest of the organization. In all five of Prosci's best practices studies in change management (1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007), the number one contributor to success identified by participants was active and visible sponsorship.

On the webinar, we address three lists which I think provide a good summary of the need for and challenges around sponsorship:

3 most important roles of sponsors:
1. Participate actively and visibly throughout the project
2. Build a coalition of sponsorship and manage resistance
3. Communicate directly with employees

5 biggest sponsor mistakes
1. Failed to personally engage in the project
2. Avoided direct communications with employees
3. Abdicated or delegated his or her role
4. Wavered in his or her support
5. Failed to build a coalition of sponsorship with key leaders

5 reasons sponsors struggle with change management
1. They don't understand their role
2. They think they can tell people to just change
3. They live in the future state
4. They have limited sponsorship capacity
5. They haven't connected the people side to what they care about


We only briefly touch on what can be done about sponsorship (as we only have an hour and this could take us days to discuss). For building Awareness and Desire to "be a great sponsor", there really is no substitute for bringing in one of Prosci's instructors - experienced Fortune 500 executives - to facilitate a 4-6 hour executive session (email training@prosci.com for more information or a proposal). You play a key role in coaching your sponsor for Knowledge and Ability - once A&D are present.


What do you think? What are some reasons you have had trouble engaging your sponsors? What tactics have you used to get sponsors on board?


Thanks.

Webinar - Managers and supervisors

Well, here is experiment #2 on the webinar blog. Time will tell whether I keep these going - so if you are interested be sure to demonstrate that with your participation. Enjoy!

The webinar on September 5th, 2007 was about the role of mangers and supervisors in leading change. Quy Nguyen Huy makes the point perfectly in his article 'In Praise of Middle Managers' in the September 2001 HBR: "Indeed, middle managers may be corner-office executive's most effective allies when it's time to make a major change."

Managers and supervisors play a critical role because they are the eyes, ears, mouths and arms of the organization. They are the closest to front-line employees - the employees who have to change how they do their job for a project to be a success.

When we teach change management, we make the point that change happens one person at a time, and ADKAR is the tool we use to evaluate how an individual is doing in making the change. Many participants in our program immediately comment: That is all well and good, but how am I supposed to keep tabs on the 2500 employees that are impacted by the change?!? The answer is, you as the change management resource are not supposed to - their supervisors do!

Managers and supervisors play a role in three of the organizational change management levers in Prosci's methodology - the role of communicator, resistance manager and coach. It is their unique position and relationships that make them such a critical cog in the change management program.

Finally, it is our (read: the organization and the change management resource) job to adequately prepare managers and supervisors to lead change. We must provide them with 1) the skills and knowledge to fulfill their role and 2) the accurate, timely project information they need to share with their employees. Prosci's one-day manager program is an interactive session to teach managers and supervisors the basics of change and their role in supporting their employees.


What do you think? How have you prepared and charged managers and supervisors to lead change? What challenges have you faced?

Thanks.