Change practitioners often tell us they struggle with building Desire in sponsors. It’s a common challenge cited in our research. But you can tap into sponsor beliefs to help them build Desire to participate and support a change. Here’s how.
Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) is useful when applied in change management because it helps you become a better listener and communicator. By understanding people’s belief systems, you can present information about a change in a way that aligns with the way they think. It may sound manipulative, but your goal is simply to listen, observe, and try to understand people better, so you can help them move through their ADKAR barriers and be successful during change.
Neurological Levels Overview
All people have belief systems. They’re part of the Neurological Levels framework created by Robert Dilts, which help you understand how people view and interpret situations. The levels appear in a pyramid or hierarchy, with each level impacting and relating to those below it.
The top level is Purpose orSpirituality, but some people don’t know their life’s purpose or feel spiritual, so it’s an optional level. If you do have purpose or spirituality, it informs your identity, which is in the next layer of the hierarchy.
Everyone has an Identity that represents who they think they are. If I ask you who you are, you'll respond quickly with a description of the things that are important to you, such as your name, job title, family role and key interests.
Your Identity creates your Beliefs and Values. These are your life experiences. Your upbringing and journey so far create certain views and principles that you live by.
Those values and beliefs give you the Capabilities either to do something or not do something. An empowering belief gives you the capability to do it. A disempowering belief stops you being able to demonstrate that capability.
You exhibit the capabilities in the form of Behaviors. These behaviors are how you act, react and go about carrying out your life in the world.
Behaviors create the Environment around you. Think of this like an aura you create around yourself. A consequence of your behaviors, this environment can be positive or negative.
How does this apply to change management sponsorship? During an organizational change, a person will say, “I (identity) can (the belief and value) do (the capability) X (the behavior you want me to exhibit) here (the environment it needs to happen in). This translates into “I can do X here” or “I cannot do X here” as you come down the triangle, and the can or cannot is determined by the beliefs you have around yourself.
ADKAR and the Logical Levels of Change
Now, let’s consider how aspects of this framework align with the ADKAR Model and how it can help you build Desire for change in change management sponsors and others. Note that we typically avoid starting with Purpose or Spirituality because it is dodgy in an organizational setting. Instead, we start with Identity:
Identity aligns with Awareness. This is the level you need to achieve first for meaningful change to take place. “I have the need to change.”
Beliefs and Values align with Desire to participate and support the change. “I have the belief that I need to change.”
Capabilities aligns with Knowledge of how to change. “I know how to change or have the capability to learn how to.”
Behavior aligns with the Ability to demonstrate the desired skills and behaviors. “I have the skills to demonstrate changed behaviors.”
So, when you work to build Desire to participate and support a change, people must first believe that it’s right for them. If they don’t, they will experience a barrier to the change at Desire.
Here’s a basic example to illustrate:
Your partner wants you to play golf with them, but your past experiences with golf have not been enjoyable. To motivate you to play, your partner buys you a set of clubs. They show you how to hold and swing the driver. They give you lessons with best golf pro in town, too. But you may never learn to play or demonstrate the right behaviors because deep down, your belief is that, golf is a waste of your time.
The same thing happens during organizational changes with people who must change the way they do their jobs every day. Without the right beliefs, they won’t have the Desire they need before they can start building Knowledge and then Ability. They get stuck at Desire.
This also happens when executives and senior leaders don’t have the Desire to fulfill their critical role as sponsors in change management.
Building Desire in Change Management Sponsors
Prosci Best Practices in Change Management research reveals several common sponsor challenges, some of which are directly related to Desire to participate and support the change:
To build Desire in sponsors, you must first uncover their beliefs about the change, so you can help them reposition or adopt a new mindset. Ask them to tell you what’s going on, what’s happening, and then listen actively. Once you uncover their belief systems and what they're based upon, you need to discern whether those beliefs are based on facts or assumptions they have made.
For example:
You: “Tell me about the project you're sponsoring. What’s going on?”
Sponsor: “Oh, well, it's big. It's really complex. We're bringing an ERP. It isn’t going to be popular. It’s going to be a tough battle to win and a lot of work.”
That's a negative belief system around what they're trying to achieve, which is going to impact their capability to be a good sponsor. The disempowering belief is going to come across as timid behavior when they're talking about the change to the organization. They’re not convinced, therefore they are not able to be convincing. They don’t have the correct level of Desire to be an effective sponsor.
But if you work with the sponsor to identify the initiative’s success criteria and help them appreciate the value to the organization, its people and how that aligns with their own Values and Beliefs. it can help a sponsor change their belief system about what they're doing. This then makes the effort and investment worthwhile for them.
They move from “I cannot be a good sponsor for the ERP system implementation” to “I can be a good sponsor for the ERP system implementation.”
Now the sponsor has the capability to be an active and visible sponsor in a convincing way. Now they want to be the sponsor. They believe it’s the right thing to do. They have achieved Desire and are willing to acquire the Knowledge and Ability needed to be a successful sponsor during change.
Sponsorship has been cited as the #1 contributor to successful change for 25 years.
Help Change Management Sponsors Overcome ADKAR Barriers
Sponsors get stuck at Desire for several common reasons. They may have had a prior experience as an unsuccessful sponsor. They might feel they are at the wrong level and lack the authority they need. Some are asked to sponsor changes without having been involved in the business case, so they lack ownership. Others simply don’t understand what a sponsor is supposed to do, or they believe they don’t have the time.
Building Desire in a sponsor who doesn’t believe in the change itself is a bit more challenging because you need to understand and address their objections. In such a case, you may ultimately appeal to the sponsor’s loyalty and duty as a leader in the organization. The sponsor can have robust debates with other leaders, but if the change moves ahead, they need to support the decision because it’s their job to be a cohesive leadership team.
If a sponsor can’t overcome their lack of Desire, they may not be the right sponsor. They will come across as negative, unsupportive, timid. They will make unconvincing arguments. It may be cliché’, but a timid request invites refusal. You've got to be convinced to be convincing.
In the Prosci Methodology, the most important behavior of sponsors is to be active and visible. They've got to believe that is the right thing to do. That belief drives the capability for them to stand up at a town hall and deliver a convincing argument and business case for the change.
Resolve Sponsor Barriers to Desire in Change Management
Not all barriers to Desire are due to belief and values. Some are due to a true lack of capability to perform the role of a sponsor. If you face these circumstances, the best move may be to work with the leadership team to find a more effective sponsor. But in many cases, sponsors only need the right conversations to get unstuck and move forward in their ADKAR journeys. A change practitioner who actively listens and works to understand a person’s beliefs around sponsorship can help sponsors be successful in their roles and with the changes they support.
Ian Croft
Ian Croft is a Prosci Senior Change Advisor with two decades of experience leading change in Fortune 500 companies. A former executive leader and management consultant, Ian has led changes in several industries, including healthcare, banking and finance, and aerospace. To help Prosci clients build the capabilities they need to thrive during change, Ian combines the Prosci Methodology with complementary frameworks, from Neuro-Linguistic Programming and MBTI to Six Sigma and Agile project management. Born and raised in the U.K., he has served clients across Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas.
As we prepared for the release of our tenth Best Practices in Change Management report over twenty years of research, I couldn't help but notice how many things have changed in twenty years. Let’s take a moment to reflect: Cell Phones – Nokia 6120 to iPhone X In 1998, the number-one selling phone was the Nokia 6120. Nokia may have started off as a manufacturer of paper, but in the 1990’s, Nokia was the phone to have. It boasted four games, a calculator, and the ability to act as a pager. Less a phone and more of a personal assistant, the 2018 iPhone X keeps our music, photos, contacts and even our documents and health organized. Where cell phones used to be considered a high-end luxury purchase, these self-learning mini computers are now viewed as an essential by many people. World Population – 1.6 Billion More People In twenty years we have added another 1.6 billion people to our planet. Projections from various organization show that population growth is likely to continue at a similar rate into the future, but a 1.6 billion increase is a huge change. For perspective, if we assume that the average human height is 5’4” and we stacked each person end to end, we reach past the moon by a factor of 30! Prosci Personnel Just like technology and the rest of the world, we as individuals have changed as well: Kent Ganvik In 1998, a three-year-old Kent had two interests: sports and eating. He was obsessed with sports and would only sleep if he was wearing his Chicago Blackhawks cap. Kent had his first bite of steak before all of his teeth had come in. When he was not eating or watching a game, Kent’s other hobbies included building towers and forts so he could destroy them later (only a few times did this involve fire). In 2018, Kent is an avid skier, camper and hiker with a passion for numbers and research that makes him an invaluable member of the Prosci Development team. He still enjoys a good steak, though he has now moved on from blanket forts to converting an old ambulance into an off-road camper. Robert Stise At nine years old, Robert was struggling to learn cursive because he did not believe that he would ever need to write a check (a fact he has since proven correct). A consumer of comics, fantasy novels and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Robert’s interests made him very popular in school. With a graduate degree under his belt, Robert now brings his passion for communications to work every day and strives to make sure that Prosci research is elegantly simple and meets the high standards of excellence that Prosci’s clients have come to expect. He still makes time for comic book reading and the occasional Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode. Susie Patterson In 1998, Susie had three primary interests: dance, makeup and boys. Everything she owned was covered in rhinestones. When she was not at dance practice, she enjoyed watching her favorite show, “Home Improvement,” and had a wicked crush on Jonathan Taylor Thomas. She was also president of the Student Council, of course. Susie now helps lead the development of Prosci’s training and eLearning portfolios. She is completing a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology and is passionate about helping others achieve high levels of performance and well-being. She is happily married, but she still has a celebrity crush (now on Simon Sinek). While Susie still dances in her spare time, sadly adulthood has rendered most of her belongings rhinestone-free. Tim Creasey In February 1998, Tim Creasey was embarking on his second semester as a freshman at Colorado State University. He had already declared four different majors - Mechanical Engineering, Psychology, Business and Economics (which he stuck with). He loved classic rock, but would occasionally be heard bumping some Wu Tang Clan or Phish in his dorm room. Tim was the worst Super Tecmo Bowl and NHL 96 player of all his friends. He was actively trying to save the world with CoPIRG, had just started CSU’s first Honors Student Association, and put on an outdoor music festival attended by 500 students and, later, twelve Fort Collins police officers. His pony tail paired well with his wool sweaters and corduroy pants. Today, in his 17th year with the firm, Tim serves as Chief Innovation Officer at Prosci. He leads research and development, and is often found trotting around the world teaching Prosci’s advanced offerings and speaking at conferences. Tim has two sons – ages nine and seven – so his personal passions include Legos, bugs, lizards, Nerf guns and Minecraft. Tim’s personal “why” for his work is sparking aha moments, and he has an affinity for diva pop. Prosci Research What's changed more than us? The research. The first Best Practices in Change Management research report was 31 pages long and contained results from 102 participating organizations. Like every Best Practices report to come after it, it began with a list of the Top Contributors to Change Success and contained lessons learned from in-the-field change practitioners. The 2018 edition of the Best Practices in Change Management report is 359 pages long and weighs a whopping three pounds (if you have a copy, go ahead and pick it up. That, my friends, is the weight of twenty years of research and the most exhaustive collection of change management best practices in the world). With every year and every new round of research, Prosci has added more areas of research in change management. The 2018 Edition includes upcoming change management trends, best practices of building organizational change maturity, how to align change management with other disciplines, and much more. Download this free executive summary for a full overview. But some things never change... While the research has continued to grow, active and visible sponsorship is still the number-one contributor to success on change projects. It has been number one since we first started tracking the Top Contributors to Change Success in 1998: Contributors to success 2017 rank 2015 rank 2013 rank 2011 rank 2009 rank 2007 rank 2005 rank 2003 rank 2000 rank 1998 rank Sponsorship 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Dedicated funding and resources 2 3 3 4 4 4 - - - - Structured approach 3 2 2 3 3 2 2 5 - - Employee engagement 4 5 5 5 5 5 4 - 2 2 Communication 5 6 4 2 2 3 3 4 2 - Project management integration 6 4 6 - - - - - - - Middle management 7 7 7 6 - - - - - - What’s In It for You? All this fun aside, what really matters is that you can now download a free executive summary of the 2018 edition of the Best Practices in Change Management. Not only will you learn more about how sponsorship is still the number-one contributor to change success, you’ll get a look at the newest research in change management.
I was one of those dogged (or, as I like to think, “passionate”) children who did not change easily once my mind was set. My poor parents had to be prepared with a litigation-worthy defense to dissuade me. “Because I said so” did not fly; I simply had to understand why they wanted me to do something differently in order to consider it. But it’s not just headstrong children who have to know why they are being asked to change their ways. People in general need to have an awareness of the need for a change before they can buy in. This is why the Prosci ADKAR Model starts with awareness of the need for change. Communicating a change is happening without providing the why is the adult equivalent of saying “because I said so.” People need to know the real why. However, even when we clearly communicate why a change is needed, we can run into obstacles to building awareness. Let’s look at some of the most common obstacles and what you can do about them. A Person’s View of the Current State People who are very comfortable or invested in the current state may deflect awareness messages simply because they represent a change to the status quo. They may even argue against the reasons for a change in favor of keeping the more comfortable current state. A more personal, one-on-one approach can help here. Taking time to understand the person’s attachment to the current state can aid in creating a tailored “why” message that demonstrates why the change will ultimately benefit the person more than staying put. How a Person Perceives Problems Some individuals will have already spotted the need for change or, if they haven’t, will quickly get their mind around why a change is needed. Others may be completely caught off-guard and need time to adjust. Understanding people’s processing speed is essential. Provide the time and opportunities to circle back in order to help people process awareness messages according to their personal style. The Credibility of the Sender Who sends the awareness messages impacts whether they are received and thought to be credible. Research shows that messages around why the change is being made and how it aligns with the business strategy are most credible from senior leaders. Messages about how the change will impact employees personally and the “what’s in it for me” are most credible from their manager. Also, if leaders have made unfulfilled promises in the past or otherwise destroyed trust with employees, their level may not matter. They are no longer a trusted source of information. In this case, alternative senders of the message may be needed to communicate to an employee. Circulation of Misinformation or Rumors In the absence of official information, people will fill the gaps in with rumors. Don’t underestimate employees’ ability to sense when something is happening—or to creatively fill in the blanks. If rumors have started to spin, leaders and managers need to spend extra time correcting misinformation. Share what you do know, and what you do not know. Take time to listen to what people have heard and dispel what is not true. Give employees time to decipher the real information from the fabricated and get on board. The best strategy for this obstacle is to not let it happen. Communicate the right information from the start. Even if all information is not yet solidified, it is better to start communicating clearly what is known and what is not yet known. Contestability of the Reasons for Change While some changes have external and observable reasons that are difficult to dispute (like new industry regulations that require compliance) other changes have reasons that are internally oriented and not obvious to employees. If the reasons for change are not driven by external factors and therefore open to debate, extra time will be needed to build awareness. What This Means for You As you consider the changes you are leading, evaluate your strategy for building awareness. Consider these obstacles; are you running into any of them? Do you see potential for them to emerge? Be mindful that communicating the “why” isn’t always enough and be prepared to implement special tactics should you run into any of these issues.
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