Role of Strategic Communication in Change cont. 1

Framework and Check List for Change Communications (planning, people, processes and performance)

(source: Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017)

Notes

A. Crafting a change vision (one of the first things to do and should be communicated before, during, and after the change; answering the following questions will assist:
"... - Why is the change initiative being undertaken?
     - What is at risk if the change is not made?
     - How does the change vision differ from the organisation's vision?
     - How does the change affect individuals now?
     - What are the rewards for making change happen?
     - What does a successful change look like?
     - How do we measure whether or not the change was successful?..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017)

B. Communications and people (initially selecting members of the change team and identifying their role and responsibility; need to keep in mind:
"...- Invite at least one representative from each stakeholder group to join the team. This is to ensure that you take each audience's unique cares and concerns into consideration when crafting your change messages
     - Designate a team leader, and describe the scope of his/her responsibilities
     - Describe the individual and group responsibilities for each of the additional team members
     - Identify the change champions in the organisation..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

NB

"...The change champions are the individuals who act as advocates for the change. These people are:
- influencers
- natural leaders by behaviour, not necessarily role
- others active in the organisation..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

"...change champions are the first people in the organisation to whom you will deliver your change message. Like the members of your change team, your champions should represent each of the stakeholder groups that will be affected by the change..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

Need to identify how the change champions can best contribute to the change initiative.

The more senior management support your change initiative, the better the chance of success.

It is important to listen for feedback from people
"...Listening involves monitoring the environment to see what challenges people are facing, proactively seeking input for ideas the organisation should consider, and acting on feedback..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

Some listening tips

"...- Carefully listen for understanding, not just an opportunity to respond.
     - Although agreement is not necessary, listen without judgement and acknowledge that you have heard what is being said.
     - Provide all stakeholders affected by the change an opportunity to share their feedback, and offer a variety of communication channels such as formal face-to-face meetings, phone interviews, e-mails, blogs, and online surveys.
     - Most critically, respond to any feedback offered voluntarily; responding helps to build support for the change, while not responding can eliminate support..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

NB If done properly, listening makes people feel valued as gaining critical insights)

Recommended related content:

Tips to improve listening skills

Technique 1.7, Supportive Listening

C. Communications and process (any message should be
"...- short, simple and specific
     - like a 30-second elevator speech
     - easy to remember..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

Any  message about change should take people through the following components

"... - Current state: what are the challenges or problems we are facing? What is 'pushing' us to change?
     - Future state: what solution are we working towards? What is the vision for change?
     - Methods: what is our action plan? How will we arrive at the future state?
     - Result: what is our ultimate goal? What is our vision ? How is it realised?..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

Storytelling is an important communication tool
"... Stories are relatable and gripping because they engage people's emotions. If stories resonate with your audiences, individuals will be more prone to share them, making your change communications contagious..."
Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017

Some guidelines to develop a compelling story

- define the story's main objective

- identify the protagonist and what that person or organisation wants

- determine conflicts the protagonist must overcome to get what he/she wants.

- describe the climax of the story, or the 'point of no return'.

- share story's resolution, or how everything turns out in the end

- call individuals to action as you have now communicated the message and have their attention

Recommended related content:

xii) Not understanding the importance of stories

Technique 1.48, Storytelling ( discourse theory)

Some change communication basics

i) honest & candid communication (this is pivotal to gaining instant credibility; people want to know the truth, ie good and bad news)

ii) tailoring your message to each audience's uniqueness (tweak your core change message for each audience like staff, clients, other stakeholders, etc; understand what your audience finds compelling and concerning)

iii) repeat, reiterate & reinforce (audiences need to hear your message up to 10 times before understanding it; be prepared to over-communicate a change initiative; deliver the same message through a variety of channels (see below)

iv) use third-party validation when possible (encourage change supporters to communicate their perspective as widely as possible)

v) focus on human examples and real numbers (these help the messages to 'stick'; make them easy to remember like using famous people or reinforcing with facts and figures)

Communication channels

(main source: Elizabeth Scott et al, 2017)

D. Communications and performance (need to evaluate how successful the change was by reviewing the change objectives, ie

- Which change objectives were not successfully met?

- What were the reasons for not meeting these objectives?

Process to evaluate ongoing effectiveness of your change initiative

Notes

i) calculate baseline performance measure (represents the current costs, like staff, time, facilities, software, etc dedicated to the existing program

ii) benchmarking (identify, compare and learn from, industry-leading competitors and their programs; build on pre-existing approaches of competitors which will save you time and costs; don't try to reinvent the wheel)

iii) continually upgrade costings while the change is being implemented (if not producing cost savings, need to determine the causes)

iv) continually monitor and review change initiatives (make adjustments to improve change implementation, especially on costings)

Need to share results with all identified stakeholders and get their feedback.

Need to be proactive, ie anticipating challenges, rather than being merely reactive, ie responding to challenges