You’ve probably had some genius idea to improve your business, only to find it’s far more difficult to implement that you realized. Let’s face it—most of us have implemented processes to improve performance, take advantage of opportunities, or correct problems, but have always struggled with employee cooperation. There’s usually at least one vocal naysayer—or a passive resister—who can derail a project by simply refusing to adapt to the new process.
Change isn’t easy. That’s why change management models sprang up. Yes, that’s right—there’s an entire discipline devoted to understanding how we prepare, equip, and support employees to successfully adopt change that drives organizational success.
After all, business transformation is never a cut-and-dried process and the popularity of digital transformation has added a whole new layer. This is particularly true when introducing new technologies, tools, and digital processes to operations steeped in “old ways” and traditions. (See our recent blog: 5 Tips to Keep Your Digital Transformation from Derailing Your Business).
That’s where change management can swoop in to save the day—and your business. Luckily, there’s a wealth of established change management approaches to choose from. Ahead, we'll look at three popular methods and list the pros and cons of each.
Designed by Prosci in 1998, the ADKAR model breaks down the five stages that individual team members go through on their change journey. They include:
The ADKAR model provides insight into how real people react to change. It can be used by employers to understand what the business transformation journey looks like for their team members, and inform strategies that will support those individuals through each step.
Critics of the ADKAR model argue that the ADKAR approach is overly prescriptive and focuses too much on the micro-level of program management. Its ready-made nature also makes it somewhat inflexible to innovation or changes along the way, and for situations where multiple changes are occurring at once.
Introduced by Professor John Kotter from the Harvard School of Business, this aptly named model breaks down the process of business transformation in 8 digestible steps. They include:
The Kotter model offers a step-by-step blueprint to leaders who anticipate a struggle during their business transformation. In this sense, it can be a reliable guide for building towards one's objectives. As a top-down strategy, however, it requires change leaders to check in with their team at every step to collect their feedback and address concerns to ensure a smooth transformation.
Created by psychologist Kurt Lewin, this 3-step model provides leaders with a simple framework for change. It includes:
Lewin's Model is a straightforward approach to business transformation that focuses more on what leaders need to do. However, it does not adequately address the challenge of dealing with team members who are disengaged, reluctant to change, or face difficulty learning new processes or technologies. In this sense, the Lewin's model is light on some of the more “human” factors that can impede business transformation.
If you’d like to keep your initiatives on track, one of these change management models may prove to be exceptionally valuable. Their approaches are different, but each emphasizes a systematic approach that takes into account a team's needs, concerns, and human reactions to change. Once you deal with those obstacles, your employees should be far more willing to implement improvements.