Given May 8th, 2009 for the Ragan Corporate Communications Conference, this presentation highlights the differences between traditional corporate communications and communications associated with organizational change management.

1. - Strategy - Enterprise Technology - Network and Infrastructure - Industry
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How employee engagement can drive A national information technology and
buy-in for organizational changes management consultancy delivering
innovative solutions that help clients
Larry A. Mathias across all industries realize their
Blackwell Consulting Services business goals, while capitalizing
May 8, 2009 on their current investments.

2. Agenda
• What is Change Management?
• What is ADKAR?
• Types of Internal Communication
• Type of Organizational Changes
• Differences between Corporate
Communication and Employee
Engagement
• Grapevine
• Questions
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3. What is Change Management?
―A structured approach to transitioning
individuals, teams, and organizations from a
current state to a desired future state.
The current definition of Change Management
includes both organizational change
management processes and individual change
management models, which together are used to
manage the people side of change.‖
Source: Wikipedia
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4. Why You Should Care
• Best practices show that communication is the #3
contributor to success of a change implementation.
Source: Prosci, Inc.
• Conversely, 92% of large
change efforts fail because
of leadership issues,
organization (culture)
issues or ―people‖ issues
Source: Organizational Dynamics, Jim Markowsky
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5. Why Change Communications Fail
―One of the biggest reasons that change efforts fail is that
they start with management thinking that people will care
much more than they actually do. They think that if they
broadcast or communicate the benefits, people will rush
to embrace the change and become champions.
The fact is, people care most about what affects them
personally and what they can control. Management needs
to make a rational argument for change, but also an
emotional appeal as well.‖
Source: Mark Shadle, President, Central Region, Edelman
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6. Why Change Communications Fail
• People want to know what the proposed change is
all about and why things have to change.
• People want to know how the change will be good
for them personally—not just good for the
company. They also want to know if they will be
able to master the new skills the change requires.
• People want to know the nitty-gritty
implementation concerns such as system
alignment, best practices, and the daily mechanics
of making the change happen.
Source: David Witt, Ken Blanchard Companies
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7. Other Reasons Why
Change Communications Fail
• Communication is not tailored to specific
audience
• Companies begin communicating too late
• Companies do not understand what mode
of communication will be most effective
during change
• Companies avoid talking about outcomes
(too much ―fluff‖ and not the ―future state‖)
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8. The Shift Started in the Mid-1990s
―…15-20 years ago very few businesses had someone in the
company with 'Internal Communications' in their title. Today
almost all FTSE 100 firms do. And Fortune 500 too.‖
David Ferrabee, MD
Change and Internal Communications
Hill and Knowlton London
6 July 2006
Emphasis on internal
communication spurs IABC
January 26, 2009
―…Companies and institutions have been putting increased
emphasis on internal communications in recent years….‖
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9. Change Commitment Curve
Change can be achieved
… or compliance
through commitment …
Commitment
Compliance
quot;I want to do it this new wayquot;
quot;I have to do it this new way”
Action
Reaction
quot;I will act to achieve this changequot;
quot;I will react to this change – If I mustquot;
Testing
Testing
quot;I will put myself at stake for this changequot;
quot;I must absorb this change”
Positive perception
Negative perception
quot;I see the opportunity in this changequot;
quot;I feel threatened by this changequot;
Engagement
quot;I see the implications for me/usquot;
Understanding
quot;I know why and what will change”
Awareness
quot;I am being told about somethingquot;
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10. What is ADKAR?
• ADKAR Model
– Awareness of the need for
change
– Desire to participate and
support the change
– Knowledge on how to change
– Ability to implement required
Jeffrey M. Hiatt (2006)
skills and behaviors
ADKAR: A Model for
– Reinforcement to sustain the
Change in Business,
Government and our
Community
change
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11. Prosci‘s Change Management Process
Phase 1 – Preparing for change
Define your change
management strategy
Prepare your change
Desired outcomes
management team
Awareness
Develop your sponsorship model
Organizational attributes
Change characteristics
Desire
Phase 2 – Managing change
Develop change management plans
Knowledge
Take action and implement plans
Ability
Phase 3 – Reinforcing change
Reinforcement
Collect and analyze feedback
Diagnose gaps and manage resistance
Source: Prosci, Inc.
Implement corrective actions and
celebrate successes
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12. Managing Change
Change Management ADKAR phases of
Tools change
Communication Awareness
Sponsorship Desire
Coaching Knowledge
Resistance mgmt. Ability
Training Reinforcement
Source: Prosci, Inc.
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13. Types of Internal Communications
• Informational
– Aimed solely at
sharing information
– No action required
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14. Types of Internal Communications
• Inspirational
– Aimed at building
pride in the
organization
– Little or no action
required
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15. Types of Internal Communications
• Engaging
– Aimed at
driving a
change in
behaviors
– Action
required
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16. ‗Connecting the Dots‘ (Line-of-Sight)
Work by technologists throughout
Allstate Protection Technology
(APT) has helped produce our
outstanding second quarter
results.
In announcing corporate earnings for
the second quarter last week, Allstate
Chairman, President and CEO Ed
Liddy attributed net income of $1.034
billion, in part, to sophisticated
underwriting and pricing technology
that helps find an attractive price for
customers offering high lifetime value
-- technology that was developed
internally by APT employees.
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17. Where Do You Start?
• Assess the impact on people
– Organizational (re-org, merger, downsizing,
acquisition, new products or services)
– Process
– Technology
• Assess the significance of the change(s)
– Developmental
– Transitional
– Transformational
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18. Types of Organizational Changes
• Developmental Change
– Enhancement of current systems, processes or skills
• Transitional Change
– Creation / implementation of new products, services,
systems, processes, policies or procedures that
replace existing ones
• Transformational Change
– Existing state is being forced to die, while new state is
still unknown; new state requires a fundamental shift in
mindset, organizing principles, behavior and/or culture
designed to support new business directions
Source: Linda Ackerman Anderson and Dean Anderson
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19. Symptoms of Poorly Managed Change
• Negative messages
• Employees lose interest
• Employees leave the organization
• Increased absenteeism
• Unplanned obstacles
• Funding disappears
• Sudden shift in executive priorities
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20. Employee Resistance
• Employee resistance
…is the norm, not the exception
• Even when things are bad, there is a
―comfort‖ with how things are today
• The goal of organizational change
management is not to eliminate
resistance, but to minimize the impact of
the resistance
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21. Successful Change Management
Successful change
management leads
to:
– Greater speed of
adoption
– Higher utilization
rate
– Greater
proficiency
Source: Prosci, Inc.
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22. Why Do People Resist Change?
• ―What‘s wrong with the way we do things now?‖
• Loss of control
• Lack of trust
• History of poorly managed change
• Lack of clarity on expected outcomes
• Threat
• Fear of failure
• Surprise factor
• Size of the task
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23. Change and Transition Process
While change occurs externally, individuals go through
transition internally in order to accept the change.
Transition Future State
State
Current
State
Source: William Bridges
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24. Communicating During Transition
• People adjust to the same change in different ways
and at different speeds (people transition differently)
• Transition does not occur in a smooth, linear fashion
• People will think first about what they have to give up
• Transition is necessary for buy-in and commitment
• People will be concerned that they do not have
enough resources
• If you take the pressure off, people will revert back to
their old behaviors
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25. Corp. Comm. vs. Employee Engagement
Communication Awareness
Corporate Communication Employee Engagement
• Focused on informing employees • Focused on engaging employees in “what’s
Focus
on “what’s going on” changing” and “how it impacts me”
• Viewed as [one-time] event • Viewed as a process, with various
Frequency
communication activities occurring as
employees move along the change
acceptance curve
• One-to-many vehicles (blast emails, • One-to-one vehicles at multiple stages of the
Vehicles
companywide presentations or communications process, including face-to-
videos, and newsletter articles) face meetings with managers
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26. Corp. Comm. vs. Employee Engagement
(continued)
Corporate Communication Employee Engagement
• Usually comes top-down, and • Encourages two-way dialogue
Direction
geared for one-way
communications flow
• Context of the message is in terms • Context of the message is in terms of the
Context /
individual employee’s perspective
Tone of organizational view
• Frequently worded to communicate • Designed to provide the opportunity for
key messages in “safe” language, impacted employees to ask questions,
minimizing impacts to the contemplate the message, talk to their peers
organization to discuss the impacts, and then ask
additional questions.
• “Participatory” metrics (evidenced • “Attitudinal” metrics (focused on
Measurement
by attendance at a meeting, page measurable changes in specific [desired]
views to an intranet page, etc.) behaviors)
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27. Sponsor Roadmap
Awareness
Sponsorship Desire
Knowledge
Source: Prosci, Inc.
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28. Communicators Can Support Managers
Desire
Coaching Knowledge
Ability
• Develop audience-specific
Reinforcement
key messages to help
managers properly and
appropriately cascade
information to their teams
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29. Communicators Can Support Managers
Source: Prosci, Inc. – 2009 Benchmark Survey
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30. Resistance Management Planning
Desire
Resistance mgmt.
Source: Prosci, Inc.
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31. Change Saturation Log
• It’s been written that “the only constant is change.” Effective employee
engagement is more than a one-time event that informs employees of
organizational changes; it’s an ongoing process aimed at moving employees
through the various phases of the change adoption curve.
• In this practical session, you’ll hear how a Fortune 100 company used
communications as the foundation for an enterprisewide change
management initiative. Specifically, you will learn how to:
• Identify the six primary differences between corporate communications and
change communications Help leadership cultivate coalitions and partnerships
to overcome barriers between departments and organizational silos Develop
coaching strategies that help managers properly and appropriately cascade
information to their teams Recognize risks associated with change saturation
and overload Create a program that uses “informal” leaders at the grass-roots
level to help eliminate gossip and misinformation Don’t miss this opportunity
to obtain real-world ideas for engaging employees and mitigating the risks
associated with most change initiatives.
• Employee communications is just PR to an internal audience
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32. How Do We Informally Solicit Feedback
and Communicate Concerns?
Source: IABC
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33. Credibility of Source Matters
Source: Prosci, Inc.
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34. Controlling the Rumor Mill Before it
Destroys Your Effort!
Source: Dr. TJ Larkin and Sandar Larkin
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35. Grapevine Kicks Into Gear
Conditions when you can expect the rumor mill to kick into
high gear:
1. When there is a lack of formal communication
2. When the situation is ambiguous or uncertain
3. When employees feel threatened, insecure, and
highly stressed
4. When there is an impending large-scale change
5. When the subject matter is of importance to
associates
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36. Change Agent Network
• Employee Participation
– Selected by either manager submission or volunteer application
• Characteristics
1. Ability to convey information and engage peers in communication
and change management efforts
Trustworthy, open, honest (seen as reliable, credible and a ―go to‖
2.
person)
3. Commitment to participate and see tasks to completion
4. Excellent observation and analysis skills
5. Risk taker, good judgment, ability to move forward even when
there is ambiguity
6. Enthusiastic, able to establish and maintain momentum
7. Ability to positively influence peers
8. Collaborative - capable of working with diverse
groups of people to bring them together
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37. Change Agent Expectations
One-year commitment to:
– Communicate key messages to peers
– Encourage and support others throughout the
implementation of new policies and processes
– Seek out feedback from others; listen and dispel
rumors
– Gauge individual feelings and reactions
– Raise issues early so that the issues can be resolved
before they affect the successful implementation of
new initiatives
– Brainstorm solutions and recommendations
– Participate in Change Agent meetings and follow-up
activities
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38. Helping Coworkers Through Change
1. DO demonstrate your own passionate commitment to the
change.
2. DO demonstrate your unwavering commitment to your
people.
3. DO give a mighty sense of purpose.
4. DO give the power to succeed.
5. DO give people a sense of connectedness.
6. DO give people meaningful rewards ... especially during
changing times.
Source: ©Dr. Alan R. Zimmerman
www.DrZimmerman.com
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39. Resources
by Jeffrey M. Hiatt by Dean Anderson and
by William Bridges
by John P. Kotter Linda Ackerman Anderson
www.change-
www.wmbridges.com/
www.johnkotter.com/
management.com/ www.beingfirst.com/
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40. Questions?
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41. Larry A. Mathias
Consultant
- Strategy - Enterprise Technology - Network and Infrastructure - Industry
larrymathias@comcast.net Bloomington, IL - Cincinnati, OH - Chicago, IL - Miami, FL - Washington, DC
HQ - 100 South Wacker Drive, Suite 800 Chicago, Illinois 60606
ph 312.553.0730
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