Change Communications

Overriding principles:

Change ahead: urgency!

• Transmit need to change, need to prepare in all communications: use of countdown clocks, timelines.
• Harkness & Kennett study: Over 50% of companies fail in the first phase if change by not establishing a great enough sense of urgency.
• A unique identity (logo, mascot, look and feel) helps to differentiate from many other change programmes competing for employee attention.

Clear & credible

• Active management involvement in content, thorough proof-reading and validation
• Unclear situations: not always possible to communicate an answer – clear honest communication better than nothing.
• Address “What is in it for me” and no more…

Enable and support local messages

• Creation and support of a network of field communicator, provide resources…
• Study into who do employees want to hear from? (Prosci’s Best Practices in Managing Change report, 2003)
• 31% their supervisor/line manager
• 25% CEO or President level
• 11% Change management team

Communication strategy:

Considerable management involvement and buy-in

• Monthly “communication committee” to agree direction, actions and content with all key parties concerned.
• Essential: communicator cannot work in isolation. Requires support and involvement of project management.

Communication plan:

• Gives overview of planned actions. Essential for management understanding and serves as basis for discussions/planning

Actions adapted to each phase of change cycle:

• Change curve well known. Can be summarised as a period of pre-contact, contact and post contact. Communication requirements not at all the same for each period.
• Newsletter, Web = ongoing;
• Kick-off meetings, posters, workshops, brochures/guides = pre-contact/un-freezing;
• Daily communications (progress, updates) = contact/changing;
• Communication of achievement, results, surveys = post contact/re-freezing.

• Focused on specific audience groups and particular needs

• Stakeholder matrix allows for mapping of communication actions to a phase of change and to a clear target audience and a clear communication requirement.

• Innovative communication tools (mix of traditional comms and use of technology)

• Technology can be effective and useful but not solution to all. Face-to-face communications and paper communication essential in achieving change. Must not be underestimated. People need something to hold and look at. Result: hybrid communication tools adapted to deployment needs. Attention: information overload, dangers of “just sending out another email”.

• Mechanism for feedback

• Essential for evolving approach. Various channels (management, communicators,
  team, web surveys).

Network of communicators:

• Put change communications on agenda of local management / steerco

• Create local ambassadors. Speak “their language”. More credible to those receiving message.

• Integrate change messages into local communications

• Change is not just something coming from afar… “concerns us locally too”

• Support project communications

• Relay messages, print and distribute locally…

• Raise feedback and questions

• Important gauge of needs in the field.

Source: Nicholas Ranken