The ultimate goal of change management is to drive organizational results and outcomes by engaging employees and inspiring them to adopt a new way of working.
Whether the change is to a process, system, job role, organizational structure, or all of these, a project or initiative can only be successful if individual employees change their behaviors. This is the essence of change management. And to manage change successfully, all core roles must participate.
Much like putting on a play—where actors, directors, costume designers, lighting and sound crews coordinate their unique talents to deliver a single successful outcome—change management requires individuals in key roles to engage with the change and coordinate their efforts in defined ways. From the highest levels of leadership to front-line employees, an entire system of people within the organization must support employees through the transition.
This article examines the core roles in change management:
The table below describes each core role from the perspective of the person or group executing it. These “I-by” statements illustrate what each individual or group might say when they understand their role and are actively engaged in managing change. The table also includes what they might say when they do not clearly understand their role.
Change Practitioners |
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"I, change practitioner, contribute to successful change outcomes through adoption and usage by preparing, equipping and supporting people with integrated strategies and plans." |
“I feel like I’m on an island here. People expect me to do everything and have all the answers.” |
Sponsors |
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"I, sponsor, contribute to successful change outcomes through adoption and usage by Actively and visibly participating throughout, Building coalitions, and Communicating directly." |
“I gave you funding and signed the charter, now go make it happen!” |
People Managers |
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"I, people manager, contribute to successful change outcomes through adoption and usage by performing the roles of Communicator, Liaison, Advocate, Resistance Manager and Coach." |
“I feel like I’m going to be directly affected by some of these changes, and I wish I knew what was going on.” |
Project Manager |
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"I, project manager, contribute to successful change outcomes by designing with adoption and usage in mind and integrating with the people side." |
“My focus is getting to go-live. Once I flip the switch, I’m moving on to the next project.” |
People/Impacted Employees |
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"I, employee, contribute to successful change outcomes by engaging, adopting and using the change." |
"I'm going to wait and see what happens. It seems like this change and its success are not my responsibility." |
Of the core roles presented above, two have direct contact with front-line employees impacted by the change—they’re actors on the stage and in the spotlight. Two other roles do more of their work behind the scenes. They’re the directors and stage crew who quietly guide others to successful outcomes.
Sponsors and people managers are the two roles that interact directly with individuals who need to change. To the impacted employee groups, they are the visible actors on the change stage. Sponsors and people managers deliver communications, and support and coach teams through their transitions. They also present the organization’s “desired future state” to impacted groups via one-to-one interactions and one-to-many interactions.
Why are these two roles employee facing?
Because these are the people employees want to hear from.
Change practitioners and project managers are facilitators of change. Like producers and directors who operate off-stage to produce a successful play, enabling roles develop and coordinate the plans employee-facing roles will execute during change.
Why are these two roles typically not employee facing in times of change?
Because employees don’t know who they are, and
they are not preferred senders of messages.
One of the most important takeaways from this discussion about roles is that change practitioners need to work with and through others to achieve change success. Although change practitioners are often resourced from a project team, HR, OD consultants, or a specialized change management group, most of the change management work gets carried out by others.
In addition to the core roles, you may need additional or what we call "extend" roles to execute your change management plan. Roles that extend your support resources may include, but are not limited to:
When you identify the extend roles needed in your organization and for your particular change initiatives, it is important to select individuals who will actively engage with the role. They should also understand and be able to describe their roles using the structure of the "I-by" statement (as in the table above):
“I, ____, contribute to successful change outcomes (through adoption and usage) by ____.”
For example, “I, change agent network, contribute to adoption and usage by providing a voice for end users and sharing key messages in a timely manner.”
A growing body of data shows a strong correlation between the success of a change initiative and how well the people side is managed. Change projects with excellent change management are six times more likely to meet objectives and outcomes.
Having dedicated resources for change management is one of the greatest contributors to success in Prosci’s Best Practices in Change Management research.
Dedicated change management resources provide focus and keep track of change management activities. They act as a point of responsibility and accountability. When budgets and schedules are squeezed, change management activities are easily pushed to the bottom of the priority list if there are not dedicated resources.
Apply a structured change management methodology
Instead of operating in an ad hoc manner, the dedicated change management resources approach change management with structure and intent through a proven methodology.
Formulate strategy
They evaluate how big a change is and who will be impacted to develop a customized and scaled strategy for managing the people side of the initiative.
Develop role-based and activity plans
Based on the organization’s strategy work, the change team creates a tailored set of plans for moving people forward. Guided by an ADKAR Blueprint, change practitioners develop two role-based plans (Sponsor Plan and People Manager Plan) and follow with two activity plans (Communications Plan and Training Plan). The team may also need to add unique plans to address the organization’s unique needs. Note that the ADKAR Blueprint is a primer for the set of plans. If the change is small enough, the team could choose to use only an ADKAR Blueprint.
Support other roles
The change management resources are the coaches and go-to people responsible for enabling success with the other roles that are vital to change management.
Sponsors execute the ABCs—an acronym for the three roles a sponsor must perform to be an effective leader of change. Sponsors must:
Managers and supervisors—or people managers—are essential during any change. They play five key roles, as described below.
Project managers play an essential role during change, as described below.
Each of the roles discussed above is a core role and must be part of every project or change initiative. As mentioned earlier, your specific change might call for additional "extend" roles, which typically contribute to designing, developing and delivering the solution or engaging, adopting and using the solution. These complementary functions extend the execution of change management activities and help maintain strategic alignment with broader organizational goals.
A coordinated system of key roles works to bring about change in an organization. Some roles are the actors on stage while others orchestrate change activities behind the scenes. And employees make personal transitions with help from those who prepare, equip and support them during the change. Ultimately, the collective impact of these successful individual transitions helps the organization achieve its change objectives and realize the enriched future state its strategic leaders envisioned.