Influencing Change in Organizations

By Audrey Hood

Audrey Hood discusses the stages of change and tactics leaders and communicators can take to help support people through the process.

It’s an age-old axiom and an accepted fact: “The one constant we can count on is change.” Individuals and organizations alike must continually evolve to not only survive, but also thrive. However, because humans often take comfort in sticking with the status quo (especially when enduring a state of uncertainty and anticipation with no known endpoint… sound familiar?), the process of change for some is difficult, and sometimes emotional. As such, leaders need to acknowledge the challenges of change, and learn to work within the limits created by those challenges, to positively influence levels of acceptance and help people to successfully adopt change.

Thankfully, there is a model that can assist leaders and communicators as they help people work through the acceptance of changes at work. The Kubler-Ross Change Curve was first outlined in the 1960s to describe the stages of grief that people go through when losing a loved one, and since then has been recognized as broadly applicable to all situations of major change (from “How to Embrace Change Using Emotional Intelligence” by Kandi Wiens and Darin Rowell). When you reframe “change” as “loss,” is it any wonder that people show resistance? Loss can be felt as threats to an individual’s identity or to their competence and confidence, and it can heighten their fear of the unknown.

Something to keep in mind as we review this model is to recognize that the sense of urgency we often feel to implement a change can be at odds with the reality of the very human time required to go through this emotional process. That said, let’s take a look at the stages of change and what tactics we as leaders and communicators can take to help support people through the process. 

Stage 1: Shock & Denial 

Immediately after a significant change is announced, many people will react by clinging to the status quo. Signs of this include expressions of disbelief, seeking evidence that the change is not needed, and arguing against the change.

To help people to move to the next stage, leaders and communicators must first demonstrate that they are listening. Express empathy and let people know they are being heard. However, avoid getting bogged down in this stage. 

Leaders can help to move people forward by sharing information that will help them understand the rationale and the benefits of the change. Most importantly, they should help people see the “WIIFM” (What’s In It For Me). Share stories about other organizations or business units that have adopted a similar change and discuss the positive outcomes they experienced. 

Often, people have an underlying assumption that most change efforts will fail. We have an expectation that “change will be hard.” Massive hype campaigns and communications efforts are undertaken to prepare for what we think will be inevitable resistance. And while it is a good idea to plan for worst-case scenarios, we can feel encouraged by new research that is challenging those expectations. According to Christopher D. Conners in “EI for the Modern Leader,” researchers from the University of Chicago have found that by priming people with the expectation of a high probability of a successful change, the negative bias can be completely eliminated. So, a strong tactic for a successful change effort is to coach team members through the change, consistently providing positive direction and positive expectations. 

Finally, you can employ the use of champions to help spread the message and influence colleagues. Identify those individuals who typically are quick to jump on board, and who are well respected amongst their peers – the “Influencers” in your organization. Bring them into an ambassador role to help model and support their teammates through the process. 

Stage 2: Frustration & Depression

In this stage, team members are recognizing that things are going to change. There is less resistance. However, feelings of anger, fear, and resentment on the one hand – or low mood and lack of energy on the other – still linger. 

There is a risk that those who are strongly vocal can trigger chaos. You’ll want to identify these folks in advance, and plan to offer additional support. Listen, express empathy, but stay focused on the benefits. Keep your eyes and ears to the ground and take pulse checks to get a sense of the feelings of the team. Now is the time to leverage the power of repetition. Remind people of the WIIFM and its positive benefits. 

Stage 3: Experimentation

After people have had time to digest the change and see that the organization is moving forward, team members will start their initial engagement with the new situation. They will start dipping their toes in the water. They will show more willingness to try working in the new reality, and while still tentative about it – perhaps trying to bargain or negotiate to only adopt portions of the change and to maintain aspects of the status quo – they should be showing signs of feeling more positive. 

There can still be a lot of frustration in this stage, as learning new tasks can slow workers down until they develop new proficiencies. Give them time to explore and test, and give them support, encouragement, and recognition for their efforts. Share positive changes that have been achieved so far. 

Stage 4: Integration

Finally, as people start to experience the benefits of a change, we start to see full adoption – either due to resignation to the change or full acceptance. People start to feel a renewed sense of competence and confidence. 

The best thing leaders and communicators can do now is to celebrate with the team. Share the successful outcomes that have been achieved and give recognition to the change leaders who made it happen. 

TLDR (Too Long, Didn’t Read) / Key Takeaways

1. Acknowledge and build time into your plan for the fact that change triggers emotion.
2. There is a predictable change curve that guides us to assess the best approaches to use with individuals in our teams, depending on where they are in the process. 
3. Tactics we can use to help with change adoption include:

                   i. Help people see the opportunity in the change (WIIFM).

                   ii. Listen empathetically.

                   iii. Communicate positive expectations.

                   iv. Share stories of success.

                   v. Recruit champions to support and promote the change.

                   vi. Communicate early and frequently and leverage the power of repetition.

                   vii. Stay tuned in to how people are feeling.

                   viii. Share positive results.

                   ix. Celebrate and recognize.