How to establish a network of Change

Champions

© The Change Source 2013 – All Rights Reserved

The use of change champions to implement change in organizations spans nearly five decades and there are numerous benefits to creating a network of champions to support your change effort: • Reduce the pressure on the centralized team to deliver

change; • Identify issues on the ground and raise them quickly to the

project team; • Gather feedback on the communications campaign and

feedback to the change team; • Identify key resistors of change; • Assist with managing resistance to change amongst their

colleagues; • Create super users to assist in training of users;

Benefits of a change champion network

1. Define the objectives - sample

Collaboration

What do we want the change champions to achieve?

Gain experience of the ABC project on the ground and share it with colleagues;

Promote the ABC project;

Identify issues and risks within their division/team;

Gather feedback on the change;

Accelerate problem solving;

Foresee potential areas of resistance / avoid problems with resistance;

Become the main point of contact for their department during and after the project;

Become super users and the main go-to person post implementation.

Role Criteria Next Steps Objectives

2. Define the roles and responsibilities - sample

Collaboration

What are the roles and responsibilities?

Understand the change the impact on employees;

Understand the key project milestones and timeline;

Attend project meetings as required;

Assist with project communications;

Attend focus group sessions to prepare for testing and training;

Participate in UAT testing;

Attend classroom based training and participate in e-learning training before users;

Become super users of system X;

Provide ongoing support to colleagues post Go Live;

Support new joiners with e-learning training.

Role Criteria Next Steps Objectives

3. Define and agree the criteria - sample

Collaboration

Change Champions will:

• Have worked at organisation ABC for more than 2 years;

• Have availability to attend project meetings and training sessions as required;

• Be able to translate the overall change vision for their division/team;

• Act as a positive role model for the project; • Be able to provide timely feedback to the project

team; • Be charismatic and influential; • Be trusted and respected by colleagues and seen as a

‘go to’ person; • Be able to recognise resistance to change and be

supportive to their colleagues.

Role Criteria Next Steps Objectives

What are the criteria for change champions?

4. Agree collaboration methods - sample

Collaboration Role Criteria Next Steps Objectives

Change Champion Kick Off session

Monthly project status updates

Quarterly champion face to face meeting

Project meetings as required to develop communications, scenarios, prepare for training and Go Live

E-mails

Intranet project page

Change Champion Awards Ceremony

How will we collaborate?

5. Next Steps - Sample

Collaboration Role Criteria Next Steps Objectives

Conduct detailed follow up meeting

Activate

Conduct Intro session

Change Champion Network Active – add date

After Management volunteers champions the CM Team will brief champions regarding the project and their role of in achieving the project vision.

Send an e-mail to selected change champions providing information on next steps in their new role.

Collaboratively this group meet to discuss and agree:

Provide a project overview

Provide a change management overview

Provide an overview of the Change Champion objectives

Provide details of the role and expectations

Agree methods of collaboration

Agree next steps

Communicate and Reward Change Champion Network

Ensure that the organization is aware of the change champion network by providing contact details, a photo and ways to communicate with them. In addition, ensure that the launch communication includes how the change champions will support the organisation during the change. Ideally this message will come from the project sponsor or a senior leader to ensure the importance of the network can be expressed with senior leadership support. One of the risks of becoming a change champion is that the organization will continue to value and reward champions solely for their regular job duties, which they continue to perform. If this additional role is not recognised, valued, and rewarded, it will be difficult to persuade anyone to continue in the role even though it is occasional. Conversely, if a high value is placed on the role, the number of change champions will continue to increase, which should produce substantial benefits to the organization.

Case Study

A large Government department was rolling out a new knowledge management system for 5000 employees that were geographically dispersed. It was impossible for the change management team to work closely with all those impacted so they asked the Division Heads to select individuals to join a Change Champions Network. The network was comprised of employees from across the organisation who served as extensions of the change management team as “on-the-ground” champions to support their colleagues and be the “eyes and ears” for the change management team. The change management team provided the champions with on-going project updates, information and tips which they shared with their colleagues. Periodic meetings and conference calls allowed change champions to connect with each other and exchange ideas about how to build commitment, as well as keeping the change management team informed about issues and major areas of resistance that required attention. In addition, the change champions assisted with rehearsals for training and Go Live, helping the change management team to iron out issues and preempt likely areas of resistance during implementation. The champions then became super users of the new system and were the go to people within their division during the Go Live and the post implementation support phase of the project.

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