Research consistently supports the need to align leadership approaches with the unique needs of faculty, staff and students to achieve success. But,according to the National Student Clearinghouse, universities and colleges face challenges on a much larger scale.
Post-secondary enrollment is over a million students below pre-pandemic levels
The number of students dropping out before completing a degree rose to over 40 million
Only 3.6 million college and university students graduated last year, a four-year low
Leaders in higher education are now tasked with improving these poor outcomes while undergoing significant changes to keep pace in a transforming landscape—from incorporating remote learning opportunities to integrating new technologies.According to EDUCAUSE, a third of surveyed institutions increased their central IT operating expenditure by over 30% between 2022 and 2023.
In this context, it’s clear that the leaders in higher education need to expand their focus to embrace a systemicchange management approachthat allows for more.
What it Means to Be an Effective Leader in the Changing Higher Education Landscape
Leaders in higher education are as diverse and multifaceted as the institutions they represent. The context of their work is equally dynamic—institutional leaders navigate a landscape of entrenched traditions, cultural change, and the relentless tide of technological innovation.
Key academic leaders, such as university presidents, provosts, deans and department chairs, are the primary sponsors of change in higher education—not to mention key C-suite stakeholders across finance, human resources, IT and academic departments. These leaders authorize major transformations and also play a major role in helping their institution realize the desired benefits of a digital transformation or policy overhaul.
Specifically, these academic leaders help coordinate the change effort from a high level, engaging constantly with project and people leaders across academic and administrative departments.
It’s crucial to remember that key stakeholders—including students, faculty, administrative staff and well-funded academics—also play an important role during times of change. While these individuals may not be the initiators of change, some are critical influencers during change, and all of them need to adopt the change for it to be successful.
Unfortunately, there are many challenges facing both the primary sponsors and key change agents in academia as these institutions try to keep up with the changing education landscape.
The Challenges of Leading Change in Academia
The unique culture of higher education makes the change process arduous. Unlike organizations in the business world, university and college leaders must contend with a range of unique attributes while trying to implement new policies, initiatives or infrastructure changes.
Those leading or sponsoring change initiatives in higher education often come up against many of the following issues:
Decentralized decision-making – Complex and layered governance can slow decision-making and dilute accountability. Faculty governance means deans and department chairs can have high power and autonomy.
Entrenched culture – Many leading academic institutions have been around for centuries, creating deeply rooted traditions and highly esteemed values. Furthermore, tenured faculty can often be more resistant to change than non-tenured counterparts.
Varied interests and capacity – There can be large disparities between departments regarding priorities, budgets and values. For instance, business, engineering and medical schools often have more financial resources and sway than other schools and institutes.
Multiple bottom lines – Return on Investment (ROI) is defined differently in the higher education context, especially with public funding. These institutions have the typical financial goals of large organizations but also prioritize non-financial outcomes like retention, graduation rates, growth in sponsored research, faculty recruitment/retention, faculty recognition and national rankings. The multiple stakeholders beyond students and faculty vying to influence leadership goals and decision-making can be overwhelming—e.g., alums, donors, city/state lawmakers, federal regulators, federal grant agencies, and accreditors.
Reputational damage – Many universities and colleges prioritize maintaining a strong reputation in academia and the public eye. Key stakeholders may resist significant change if they believe that failure to achieve outcomes will negatively impact that reputation.
Increased risk of losing talent – With higher education’s unique factors of tenured faculty, entrenched culture and extreme decentralization, poorly managed change efforts are more likely to lead to loss of valuable talent in key areas throughout the university.
These issues all contribute to the dismal state of change in higher education, where over 70% of large-scale initiatives fail to achieve desired outcomes. So, how can universities and colleges enact successful change in an environment where governance structures and cultures are so resistant to change?
Empowering Higher Education Leaders to Enact Change
The sheer variation in governance structures, leadership roles, and levels of autonomy interacting in academia precludes using a one-size-fits-all change management approach. It requires a structured, flexible approach to managing the change and a nuanced understanding of the institution's culture, the specific change and those impacted.
With 25 years of applied research in organizational change, Prosci has developed a framework that adapts and scales to the needs of these complex organizations and their leaders. In that time, our team has collected over two decades of longitudinal research on the dynamics of change within large institutions.
Here are three of the biggest findings observed over this time:
1. Active and visible sponsorship is the number one contributor to successful change management
Since 1998, one factor has led the way in Prosci benchmarking reports in terms of the biggest contributor to change management success—primary sponsorship.
These individuals ultimately sign off on investment in change and, while they may not lead the initiative directly, play an indispensable role in determining its outcome through active and visible promotion. Our research shows that primary sponsors who follow the ABCs of sponsorship—active and visible participation, building a coalition of sponsorship, and communicating support—strongly correlate with achieved outcomes.
2. The use of a structured change management approach is the second strongest predictor of successful change
Outside of effective primary sponsorship, there’s no more important contributor to successful organizational change than a structured change management approach.
Researchers, industry experts and consultants have developed methodologies, often based on change theory, that can be flexibly applied across different organizational contexts—even those as complex as higher education. Prominent examples include Kurt Lewin’s change model, Kotter’s 8-Step Change Process, and the Prosci ADKAR® Model.
Prosci research shows that organizations that apply effective change management are seven times more likely to meet or exceed objectives.
3. Middle management is the leading employee cohort in terms of resistance to change
Prosci research consistently points to middle managers as the most resistant to change within the organization. This resistance can culminate in technical system changes, an emotional reaction to a changing power structure, and other technical and human factors. Considering middle managers are the connective tissue between the upper level of a company and its front-line workers, overcoming this resistance is vital.
Over time, we’ve also discovered and tested a range of solutions for overcoming resistance to change within this central tier of the organization.
The Prosci Methodology
The Prosci Change Management Methodology stands at the forefront of enabling organizations, including higher education institutions, to navigate the complexities of change with a structured and practical approach. At the core of the Prosci Methodology and models is the understanding that successful change isn’t just about the technical solution being implemented but also about the people involved and being impacted.
Here are the structured, scalable and adaptable approaches Prosci takes to driving organizational change:
PCT Model – The Prosci Project Change Triangle (PCT) Model is a framework that highlights these four critical aspects of successful change efforts:
Leadership/sponsorship
Project management
Change management
A shared definition of success
This model underscores the importance of a shared definition of success across these areas. In higher education, leaders need to actively sponsor and support change initiatives, aligning them with the institution's strategic goals and managing the people side of change.
ADKAR Model – The Prosci ADKAR Model is a goal-oriented tool that guides individual and organizational change through five key outcomes:
Awareness of the need for change
Desire to participate and support the change
Knowledge of how to change
Ability to implement required skills and behaviors
Reinforcement to sustain the change
This model is handy for leaders in higher education, as it helps them understand and address the individual change journey their faculty, staff, students and other stakeholders experience.
Prosci 3-Phase Process – The Prosci 3-Phase Process is a structured yet adaptable framework designed to guide organizations through successful change management. It divides the change process into three key phases:
Phase 1 – Prepare Approach – This phase involves defining the change strategy, preparing the change management team and developing the sponsorship model.
Phase 2 – Manage Change – During this phase, the team develops and implements plans for communication, sponsor activities, training, coaching and resistance management.
Phase 3 – Sustain Outcomes – The final phase focuses on collecting and analyzing feedback, diagnosing gaps, managing resistance, and implementing corrective actions and recognition.
The PCT Model, ADKAR Model, and 3-Phase Process complement each other to create change. It's particularly relevant in higher education, where institutional challenges and governance structures greatly influence the success of change initiatives.
Prosci Drives Change at Leading Institutions
The Prosci Methodology has guided prestigious institutions like Texas A&M and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) through significant change initiatives, demonstrating the power of adaptive leadership and strategic change management.
Texas A&M University (TAMU)
The Texas A&M University System needed to overhaul its 35-year-old legacy payroll system to a cloud-based version—a process that would impact 200,000 students, faculty and retirees across numerous organizations. In addition to the technical challenges this represented, the project leader faced long review cycles, a lack of alignment on the ideal solution and a decentralized process for determining finances. What appeared to be a technical process was a change that affected every level of the university ecosystem's operations.
The Prosci team stepped in to facilitate this transition, recognizing the need for a leadership approach that was directive, inclusive and repeatable. Using the Prosci 3-Phase Process and ADKAR Model to guide the process, Prosci helped TAMU’s Executive Director of Project Management with the following:
Identification of the over 10,000 stakeholders most impacted by the project and an assessment of their leadership styles and training needs.
Proactive management of likely areas of resistance, including repeated communication of upcoming changes and access to technical coaching.
Strengthening ties between the A&M System sponsors and the Chief HR and Financial Officers from each university and agency through an Executive Advisory Committee (EAC).
Application of the ADKAR Model to create training curriculum and eLearning modules for full-time employees, HR liaisons and managers.
Facilitate collaboration between the EAC and key change agents in middle management to develop a communications plan that resonates with all impacted parties.
Read the full case study for a closer look at how TAMU’s $4.5-billion higher education network successfully navigated change in a complex, decentralized environment.
University of California, San Diego (UCSD)
UCSD, a top-15 research university worldwide, needed to change numerous processes and systems to create a more collaborative cross-discipline environment. This plan would impact all aspects of the campus. University leadership knew that a comprehensive change management plan was required to ensure that the tens of thousands affected by the transition would receive support throughout. This required a balance of leadership styles, blending democratic and transformational approaches to engage a diverse academic community.
UC San Diego partnered with Prosci to speed up the transition process and leverage our decades of experience enacting complex change. Working closely with the Staff Education and Development team, Prosci helped drive change in the following ways:
Facilitating award-winning development days that empowered 90% of the 500 attendees with new knowledge and tools
Building off the success of development days by promoting and regularly hosting change management training and services on campus
Augmenting change management training with smaller-scale webinars based on pressing issues like resistance to change and sponsor engagement
UCSD's initiative led to a more change-capable organization, where the principles of change management became embedded in the university's culture, paving the way for ongoing and future transformations.
Read the full case study to see how Prosci helped UC San Diego empower key leaders to embed change management materials throughout their campus and foster a pro-change environment.
Training and Supporting Key Change Agents in Higher Education
Prosci empowers leaders in various organizational contexts, including higher education, to drive and manage change effectively. Prosci has been applying research on best practices in change management for over 25 years, and we base our structured methodology and analytic tools on that research.
With decades of experience, Prosci offers comprehensive enterprise training and supportive advisory services tailored to meet the unique challenges and dynamics of leading institutions like Texas A&M and UCSD. These resources are invaluable for institutions seeking to foster transformational leadership and successfully navigate the complexities of change.
To explore how Prosci can assist your institution in harnessing effective leadership for change management, visit the Enterprise Training and Advisory Services pages for more information and guidance.
Prosci
As the global leader in change management, Prosci helps organizations turn complex change into something people understand—so they can act with confidence and deliver results. Built on more than 30 years of research, Prosci partners with enterprises to scale change, enable adoption, and realize outcomes across complex transformations, including ERP and AI. Our work brings clarity and structure to change, helping leaders move from strategy to action and ensure results endure. That’s what change done right looks like.
Organizational culture is the shared set of values, beliefs, behaviors, and everyday practices that shape how work actually gets done. It influences how decisions are made, how leaders lead, how teams collaborate, and how people respond when priorities shift or pressure rises.It’s experienced, not declared. It shows up in how people treat one another, how leaders respond to challenges, and how consistently actions align with stated values. And because culture is expressed through behavior, it is constantly being reinforced or reshaped by the way organizations introduce, manage, and sustain change. Company culture and change management are inseparable because every change initiative either strengthens or weakens culture based on how well it aligns with existing norms, engages people, and enables new behaviors to take hold. × Can You Afford for Your Change to Fail? Why is Organizational Culture important? Organizational culture matters because it directly shapes how people show up, perform, and stay engaged, especially during periods of change. While strategy defines where an organization wants to go, culture determines whether people are willing and able to go there together. Employee Engagement and Performance Culture sets the conditions for engagement. When expectations are clear, behaviors are reinforced consistently, and people feel supported through change, employees are more likely to stay focused, productive, and committed to doing their best work. Research from Gallup reinforces this connection: employees who strongly agree that they feel connected to their organization’s culture are 4.3 times more likely to be engaged at work and 62% less likely to experience frequent burnout. Attracting Talent Culture plays a critical role in how organizations are perceived by prospective employees. Candidates look beyond job descriptions to assess how leaders lead, how teams collaborate, and how change is handled in practice. According to Glassdoor, 77% of adults say they would consider a company’s culture before applying for a job. Retaining Talent Employees are more likely to stay when the organization’s culture aligns with what it promises and when change is managed in a way that respects people’s roles, workloads, and concerns. More than half of employees report that culture matters more than salary when it comes to job satisfaction, underscoring how strongly day-to-day experience shapes commitment. Organizational Success A workplace with a healthy, resilient culture is better equipped to navigate disruption, adapt to new ways of working, and realize the full value of change initiatives. When culture supports adoption and reinforcement, change becomes repeatable—and organizational performance improves as a result. Types of Organizational Culture Many organizations draw on the Competing Values Framework (CVF), developed by Robert E. Quinn and Kim S. Cameron, to understand common organizational culture patterns. The CVF outlines four widely recognized culture types based on how organizations balance flexibility versus stability and internal versus external focus. While no organization fits neatly into a single category, these patterns provide a useful lens for anticipating how people may respond to change. One of the strengths of the Competing Values Framework is its ability to make cultural tradeoffs visible. By mapping flexibility versus stability and internal versus external focus, the framework helps leaders recognize that culture involves competing priorities rather than fixed labels. Most organizations operate across multiple culture types at once, and effective change management requires adapting approaches based on which values are most dominant in a given context or initiative. Formal vs. Informal Culture In a formal culture, structure, policies, and defined processes guide how work gets done. Change management in these environments benefits from clear governance, documented roles, and consistent communication. In a more informal culture, work is shaped by relationships, trust, and adaptability, requiring change leaders to rely more heavily on influence, collaboration, and peer networks to build alignment and momentum. Adhocracy An adhocracy culture emphasizes innovation, experimentation, and agility. These organizations value speed and creativity over predictability. Change management in an adhocracy works best when employees are empowered to test ideas, iterate quickly, and adapt as conditions evolve, rather than being constrained by rigid plans or controls. Clan A clan culture is relationship-driven, with a strong emphasis on collaboration, shared purpose, and a sense of belonging. In these environments, change management should focus on creating opportunities for dialogue, reinforcing trust, and building support networks that help people move through change together. Hierarchy A hierarchy culture prioritizes stability, consistency, and control through clear roles, procedures, and decision rights. Change management in hierarchical organizations requires disciplined communication, well-defined expectations, and reinforcement of the rationale for change, while ensuring alignment with existing structures and governance. Market Culture A market culture is results-oriented and competitive, with a strong focus on performance and outcomes. In these settings, change management is most effective when initiatives are clearly linked to goals, metrics, and accountability, helping employees understand how new behaviors directly contribute to success. Characteristics of Good Organizational Culture A good workplace culture is not defined by slogans or stated values alone. It is reflected in consistent behaviors, shared expectations, and the way people respond to both everyday work and moments of change. Healthy cultures make it easier for people to do their jobs well, collaborate effectively, and adapt when new ways of working are introduced. Characteristics of a Positive, Thriving Culture In a strong culture, people understand what is expected of them and feel supported in meeting those expectations. Trust is built through transparency and follow-through, not promises. Leaders model the behaviors they ask of others, and employees feel comfortable raising concerns, sharing ideas, and learning from mistakes. Change is approached with clarity and intention, reinforcing confidence rather than uncertainty. Thriving cultures also demonstrate alignment between words and actions. Decisions reflect stated priorities, performance is recognized consistently, and accountability is shared. Over time, these patterns create an environment where people are engaged, motivated, and willing to adopt new behaviors when change occurs. Characteristics of a Strained or Unhealthy Culture In contrast, a strained culture often shows up as confusion, inconsistency, or disengagement. Expectations may shift without explanation, leaders may say one thing but reward another, and employees may feel uncertain about how decisions are made. Resistance to change increases not because people are unwilling, but because trust has eroded or past change experiences were poorly managed. In unhealthy cultures, silos form, communication breaks down, and people default to protecting themselves rather than collaborating. Change initiatives may stall as new behaviors fail to take hold, reinforcing skepticism and fatigue. How to Assess Organizational Culture Because company culture is expressed through shared behaviors and practices, effective assessment focuses on observable patterns instead of merely stated values or intentions. A clear understanding of current culture creates a baseline for making informed decisions, especially when preparing for or managing change. In fact, Prosci research consistently shows that understanding corporate culture is a critical success factor for change, with 87% of practitioners identifying cultural awareness as important or very important when managing change. Methods for Assessing Organizational Culture Organizations commonly use a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to assess culture: Surveys provide broad insight into shared perceptions and patterns across the organization. When designed well, they highlight consistency, misalignment, and areas where experiences differ by role, function, or location. Interviews allow leaders to explore how people interpret expectations, experience leadership behaviors, and respond to change. Focus groups surface collective dynamics, revealing how teams collaborate, where friction exists, and how norms are reinforced or challenged in practice. Frameworks That Support Cultural Assessment Frameworks can provide structure and shared language when assessing culture. For example, models such as Hofstede’s cultural dimensions help highlight differences in values and expectations across contexts, while the Competing Values Framework categorizes culture based on how organizations balance flexibility, control, internal focus, and external focus. These frameworks are most useful when treated as guides, not prescriptions. They help organizations interpret patterns and compare tendencies, but they do not replace the need to understand lived experience. Culture is contextual, and no framework can fully capture how people experience day-to-day work or organizational change. The Role of Organizational Culture in Change Management Every change initiative introduces new expectations and culture determines how people interpret and respond to those expectations. When change efforts align with cultural norms, momentum builds. When they conflict, resistance and fatigue often follow. Successful change management recognizes culture as a design constraint, not an afterthought. Leaders can better align change efforts with culture by: Engaging stakeholders early and often. Involving key stakeholders helps surface existing norms, concerns, and informal influencers who shape how change is perceived across the organization. Designing communication plans that reinforce desired behaviors. Effective communication goes beyond sharing information; it explains the “why,” clarifies expectations, and reinforces what success looks like in day-to-day work. Activating leaders as visible sponsors. Leaders shape culture through their actions. When they consistently model new behaviors and reinforce priorities, they signal that change is both real and supported. Supporting managers as change enablers. Managers translate change into local context. Equipping them to address questions, coach employees, and reinforce adoption helps new behaviors take root. Embedding reinforcement into daily work. Recognition, performance measures, and feedback mechanisms should align with the behaviors the change requires, ensuring consistency between intent and experience. Adapting change approaches to cultural context, such as adjusting communication style, feedback mechanisms, or decision-making involvement. Cultural Challenges During Change Organizations often struggle with change, not because the solution is flawed, but because cultural realities are overlooked. Misaligned expectations, inconsistent leadership behaviors, communication gaps, and change saturation cause employees to feel uncertain, disengaged, or skeptical based on past experiences. Without intentional reinforcement, even well-designed changes can fade over time, leaving organizations with surface-level adoption and cultural drift rather than lasting behavioral change. Organizational culture in change management helps address these challenges by: Aligning leadership actions with stated priorities, Reinforcing expectations among employees Building trust through transparent communication. Over time, effective change management strategies shape organizational culture by normalizing adaptability, reinforcing accountability, and enabling people to navigate future changes with greater confidence. Every Change Is a Culture Moment Every change initiative, whether large or small, sends a clear signal about priorities, expectations, and accountability. Over time, those signals become habits, and those habits become culture. Organizations that succeed over time recognize that culture and change management are inseparable. By treating change as a deliberate opportunity to reinforce desired behaviors, organizations build a culture that is resilient, adaptable, and ready for what comes next. Frequently Asked Questions How does organizational culture impact the success of change initiatives? Organizational culture strongly influences how employees perceive, interpret, and respond to change. In cultures that value adaptability, transparency, and collaboration, employees are more likely to engage with change and adopt new behaviors. In contrast, cultures shaped by past negative change experiences or inconsistent leadership may slow acceptance and increase resistance. What strategies can be used to align change management with organizational culture? Practitioners can assess cultural norms, identify trusted influencers, and design engagement and communication strategies that reflect how the organization operates. Changing organizational culture and strengthening the work environment requires leaders and managers to model desired behaviors and reinforce expectations consistently throughout the change process. How can organizations measure the effectiveness of change management in relation to culture? Effectiveness can be measured through a combination of employee feedback, engagement surveys, and adoption metrics tied to the change. Tracking how quickly and consistently new behaviors are adopted – and listening to employee sentiment – helps reveal whether change efforts are aligned with cultural realities or where additional reinforcement may be needed. What role do leaders play in bridging organizational culture and change management? Leaders play a critical role by setting expectations, modeling behaviors, and reinforcing priorities during change. Their actions shape how employees experience change. When leaders communicate clearly, remain visible, and support people through transitions, they reinforce a culture that supports successful change.
One of the key roles of sponsors during any change is to build a coalition of support among important stakeholders in the organization. With such a coalition, organizational changes are far more likely to succeed. Yet, sponsors often fail to demonstrate support for the project in words and actions. Here’s how you can help your primary sponsor build the coalition of support your project changes need for success. The ABC's of Effective Sponsorship When managing change, practitioners depend on executive leaders to perform the ABCs—an acronym for the three key roles a sponsor must perform to be an effective leader of change. A sponsor must be Active and visible throughout the life of the project, Build a coalition of support, and Communicate directly with employees. Of these critical activities, building a coalition of support can elude even the most well-intentioned sponsors. In the twelfth edition of Prosci's Best Practices in Change Management benchmarking research report, 36% of respondents say it's the role sponsors struggle most to fulfill during change. Why? The most common reason is that sponsors don’t understand their role. In the study, project teams report that half their sponsors have no understanding or only some understanding of their role in managing the people side of the change. And 18% of participants report that their sponsor underestimated or misunderstood the people-side impacts of a project. It stands to reason that only 33% of respondents found their sponsors effective or highly effective at building a coalition of support. Effective Sponsor Coalitions Although some changes are small enough that a single sponsor will suffice, most organizational changes impact multiple business groups and require multiple sponsors. This sponsor coalition consists of the primary sponsor along with other sponsors throughout the organization, who support changes by conducting key activities within their respective groups. Prosci research shows that effective sponsor coalitions: Engage across the organization Create, coach and maintain a network of active and committed change agents Communicate the importance of role-modeling the change, and encourage senior leaders to participate and support the change Cultivate management support of the project Ensure alignment of expectations among people managers Clarify roles Solicit and openly receive management feedback Your goal as a practitioner is to enable sponsors as they enlist peers, help these peers understand why they must advocate or “role model” the change for employees, and ensure that peers follow through on the commitment. As change enablers, you and the change team provide coaching and guidance, and work with sponsors to facilitate key activities and actions as needed. Why Build a Sponsor Coalition? When sponsors fail to lead by example, promote or champion the change adequately, or otherwise “walk the talk” for successful change, they can negatively impact a project’s chances for success. Bottom line, people generally won’t commit to a change to any greater extent than the sponsor does. And Prosci research consistently shows that projects with an extremely effective sponsor meet or exceed objectives nearly three times as often as projects with a very ineffective sponsor. 5 Ways To Help Your Sponsor Build a Coalition There are many paths to building an effective coalition, depending on the change and your organization’s needs. The key is to ensure that sponsors are well informed and equipped to gain commitment from peers and stakeholders. Here are five tips for building a coalition of support. 1. Present a compelling case for the change Executives and managers value facts, data and outcomes. You make their job easier by equipping them with the right information and research to make a compelling case for change with colleagues. Such information includes benefits of success, reduced likelihood of resistance, and risks of not changing. 2. Use tailored and plain language Leaders are often unfamiliar with change management terms. Your words will resonate when you communicate in plain-spoken terms and tailor the conversation to the specific areas of the organization that will experience the change. 3. Build out a Sponsor Coalition Map Analyzing sponsor commitment and alignment across the organization helps you and your sponsor drive the Awareness, Desire and Reinforcement elements of the ADKAR Model. Diagramming this in an organizational chart enables you to visualize the level of support you have for a change in each business group, analyze the overall health of the coalition, pinpoint required actions, and identify risks to your change effort. Prosci Sponsor Coalition Map 4. Equip sponsors and change agents Most sponsors have Awareness of the importance of their role and the Desire to be an effective sponsor. However, few have received opportunities to develop their Knowledge of what effective sponsors actually do. Hosting a Change Management Sponsor Briefing addresses this issue by clearly connecting change management to business success and detailing the sponsor’s critical role in enabling that success with support from stakeholders. Once you establish this baseline understanding, you can implement biweekly meetings with sponsors and coalition members to share updates, clarify confusion and remove roadblocks. 5. Coach sponsors Periodic, one-on-one coaching sessions help sponsors translate their Knowledge into Ability. Change teams can also enlist effective sponsors to coach new or less effective sponsors in change management. Leading Change Behind the Scenes Building a sponsor coalition is a critical aspect of the executive sponsor’s employee-facing role in change. As a practitioner, your role in that effort is to work behind the scenes—enabling the sponsor’s success through effective planning, coaching, education and skill building. Working together, you can help your primary sponsor demonstrate meaningful support for the change in both words and deeds while building an effective coalition of support for the change across your organization.
