Change management for content strategy

projects

How d’you do

Kirk Grayson

Principal, Pedamento Content Strategy

Andrew Peachey

Change Management Specialist

Let’s talk about …• What change management is – and what it isn’t• Where does a change plan fit in a project?• Keys to successfully managing change

• Analysing & planning• Setting up your vital sponsorship network• Identifying and managing resistance

What is change management? And why is it important?

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Managing change• Makes good business sense• Understanding – change is difficult• People need assistance and time to transition• Change management speeds the process

Installation vs implementation

On time

On budget

Technical objectives met

Business objectives met

Human objectives met

Installation vs implementation

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Who loves change?

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The stages of grief (change)

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3 keys to successful change

1) Analysis & planning

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Defining the change• The difference between current and future states• Reasons for the change• Benefits of the change• Stakeholder inventory – each group that will be affected• Timelines • Measurement – how will we know how successful the change is?

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Assessing readinessUnderstanding how each group is feeling about the upcoming change• Aware? • Supportive and positive?

Factors that could have an impact: • Other changes at the company• Other major events (annual planning, budgeting)• Upcoming technology changes• Change history

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What is a change plan? Where does it fit?• CM is scalable• CM is specific to each project• Change plans are part of a project plan• They’re flexible, changing to meet

changing needs

2) Cascading sponsorship

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself”

-Andy Warhol

Roles•Sponsors•Change Agents•Targets

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Role of sponsor•Authorize, legitimize and

demonstrate ownership •Have enough organizational

power and/or influence to−initiate resource commitment,

or −reinforce the change at the

local level

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Effective sponsorshipSponsors need to be: • aligned• active and visible

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Change agentsHave implementation responsibility through planning and execution. •Successful personal and company history•Knowledgeable about the field; believe in the project•Credible with key sponsors and target groups

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Targets• Each group affected – including sponsors – are targets

first• Targets need to know: • Impacts • Benefits - WIIFM• Is it real (really going to happen)

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Successful sponsorship strategy

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Authorizing Sponsor

Target/Reinforcing Sponsor

Target/Agent/Reinforcing Sponsor

Target

Unsuccessful sponsorship strategy

BLACK HOLE

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Content strategy exampleVP Corporate Affairs VP Operations

Director, Corporate Communications

Manager Marketing

Manager Digital Services

Copywriter

Videographer

Digital Comms Specialist

Social Media Specialist

Director, Product Development

Manager Product X

Manager Widget Y

Product Engineer

Technical Writer

Product Engineer

Technical Writer

Authorizing Sponsor

Targets/Reinforcing Sponsors

Targets/Agents/Reinforcing Sponsors

Targets

3) Managing resistance

“Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what people fear most”

-Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Resistance is…• Inevitable• Natural• Manageable• A sign you’ve touched on something important• A desire to control the change • A good thing

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Resistance is not…• Logical • A sign of disloyalty• Something to overcome or combat• Personal• Designed to discredit your competence• Indicative of poor performance• A sign that the change process is out of control

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Surface and validate• Explain the change in terms of how it impacts each group• Make it safe to surface resistance• Surface it early and keep it overt• Identify magnitude of the impact• Take action• Repeat the process

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Involve•Give impacted people the opportunity for input•Defining the problem•Developing the solution•Designing the approach•Planning and/or executing the implementation

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Communicate•A plan to support the change•Not one-way, top-down•Not once and done•Customized for impacted groups•Variety of formats, channels, media

•Right message, right audience, right time

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Train•Essential for a successful implementation•Build in $$ and time•Plan for ongoing training

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Reinforce•Reward efforts at adoption• Increase effort needed to perform old behaviour• Increase negative consequences for old behaviour

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Successful change

“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.”

-Albert Einstein

Look for …Ownership & adoption• Commitment• Ability• Behaviour

Plan for…•Ongoing governance, training, communication, reinforcement

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Watch out for…•Lack of sponsor engagement or buy-in•Poor change history•Time-&-money constraints•One size fits all•Misaligned reward system

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Tying it all together35

Analyse the organization• Define the change• Assess readiness

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Understand the people• People don’t love change• They need help to move through it

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Cascading sponsorship is critical

Authorizing Sponsor

Target/Reinforcing Sponsor

Target/Agent/Reinforcing Sponsor

Target

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Manage resistance through: • Involvement• Communication• Training• Reinforcement

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“Change is hard at first, messy in the middle and gorgeous at the end”

- Robin Sharma