The Change Model

Change has become an integral part of our world and our marketplace. Managing that change is one of the most challenging tasks facing leaders and managers today. Anyone who has taken responsibility for steering a major change initiative knows that simply controlling the movement and allocation of resources without considering the impact on the people guarantees heightened resistance. It is human nature to resist change of any kind because of the discomfort it creates. When people are simply told and controlled throughout the change process, their resistance will be powerful.

This natural urge to resist change happens for a number of reasons. Resistance is automatic when individuals don't trust the person/people informing them about the change, don't understand the need for change, are comfortable and proficient with the existing system, are fearful of how change will impact them personally, or have seen too many past attempts at change fail.

The only way to deal effectively with these legitimate reasons for resistance is to provide legitimate responses to each. Managing change strictly from an organizational (how) perspective, will not enable you to do that. First we must shift our focus from an organizational perspective on change management to a human perspective. We must put ourselves in the shoes of the front line people who can effectively stall our change initiative before it passes the starting line. To be effective, change management requires involvement at all levels. This doesn't mean that the steering committee should be comprised of 500 people; it does mean that you have to engage people in the change discussion early in the process and let them know their input counts.

In addition, the frequent communication that every change management guru describes as critical must be more than just distributing information or "telling". It must be visibly receptive and responsive: clearly respecting concerns and incorporating feedback into the ongoing cycle of improvement.  Most importantly, there must be at least as much listening as there is transmitting.

Human change management involves five distinct phases or stages. In order for your change initiative to be successful, you and everyone affected will successfully move through these five stages: Awareness, Acceptance, Adoption, Acknowledgement, and Assimilation. Each stage requires specific actions of change agents, leaders and managers; and addresses an anticipated range of reactions and behaviours throughout the organization.  Ensuring that your leaders and managers understand and master the process of human change management will support both the immediate effectiveness and the long-term viability of your organization.

At the Adao Institute for Change, the discipline of Human Change Management does not stand alone. Our model ties in the power of purposeful, continuing feedback and iterative improvement which has been the backbone of continuous productivity and quality improvement since the 1950s.

This fundamental Plan, Do, Check, Change™ process is further fuelled by a vibrant nucleus of Core Skills that instil the collaboration, adaptability, and resilience needed to excel in an environment of change.

These three aspects in combination create the Change Model as defined by the Adao Institute for Change. 

1. A central core of critical skills
   • Human Dynamics
   • Communication
   • Problem Solving
2. Supported by a process of continuous improvement
   • Plan, Do, Check, Change™
3. Augmented by a comprehensive Human Change Management process for navigating more complex change initiatives.
   • Awareness
   • Acceptance
   • Adoption
   • Acknowledgement
   • Assimilation

For more information on the Change Model or any of its elements, contact us at info@adao.ca