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Change management for content strategy projects

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Change management for content strategy projects

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Discover the secrets of managing the people side of change in content projects. This presentation will help you:
• assess and prepare for the impact the change will have on your team and your company
• set up a sponsorship network that has your back and does your bidding
• help resistors move through the change so they don’t sink the ship (do it right and they’ll float your boat).
This presentation is relevant both for agency and in-house content strategists, whether you’re struggling with post-implementation quality decline or are setting off on a brand new project.

Discover the secrets of managing the people side of change in content projects. This presentation will help you:
• assess and prepare for the impact the change will have on your team and your company
• set up a sponsorship network that has your back and does your bidding
• help resistors move through the change so they don’t sink the ship (do it right and they’ll float your boat).
This presentation is relevant both for agency and in-house content strategists, whether you’re struggling with post-implementation quality decline or are setting off on a brand new project.

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Change management for content strategy projects

  1. 1. Change management for content strategy projects
  2. 2. How d’you do Kirk Grayson Principal, Pedamento Content Strategy Andrew Peachey Change Management Specialist
  3. 3. 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
  4. 4. What is change management? And why is it important? 4
  5. 5. Managing change • Makes good business sense • Understanding – change is difficult • People need assistance and time to transition • Change management speeds the process
  6. 6. Installation vs implementation
  7. 7. On time On budget Technical objectives met Business objectives met Human objectives met Installation vs implementation 7
  8. 8. Who loves change? 8
  9. 9. The stages of grief (change) 9
  10. 10. 3 keys to successful change
  11. 11. 1) Analysis & planning 11
  12. 12. 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? 12
  13. 13. Assessing readiness Understanding 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 13
  14. 14. 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
  15. 15. 2) Cascading sponsorship “They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself” -Andy Warhol
  16. 16. Roles •Sponsors •Change Agents •Targets 16
  17. 17. 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 17
  18. 18. Effective sponsorship Sponsors need to be: • aligned • active and visible 18
  19. 19. Change agents Have 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 19
  20. 20. Targets •Each group affected – including sponsors – are targets first •Targets need to know: • Impacts • Benefits - WIIFM • Is it real (really going to happen) 20
  21. 21. Successful sponsorship strategy 21 Authorizing Sponsor Target/ Reinforcing Sponsor Target/Agent/ Reinforcing Sponsor Target
  22. 22. Unsuccessful sponsorship strategy BLACK HOLE 22
  23. 23. Content strategy example VP 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
  24. 24. 3) Managing resistance “Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what people fear most” -Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  25. 25. Resistance is… • Inevitable • Natural • Manageable • A sign you’ve touched on something important • A desire to control the change • A good thing 25
  26. 26. 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 26
  27. 27. 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 27
  28. 28. Involve •Give impacted people the opportunity for input •Defining the problem •Developing the solution •Designing the approach •Planning and/or executing the implementation 28
  29. 29. 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 29
  30. 30. Train •Essential for a successful implementation •Build in $$ and time •Plan for ongoing training 30
  31. 31. Reinforce •Reward efforts at adoption •Increase effort needed to perform old behaviour •Increase negative consequences for old behaviour 31
  32. 32. 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
  33. 33. Look for … Ownership & adoption • Commitment • Ability • Behaviour Plan for… •Ongoing governance, training, communication, reinforcement 33
  34. 34. Watch out for… •Lack of sponsor engagement or buy-in •Poor change history •Time-&-money constraints •One size fits all •Misaligned reward system 34
  35. 35. Tying it all together 35
  36. 36. Analyse the organization • Define the change • Assess readiness 36
  37. 37. Understand the people • People don’t love change • They need help to move through it 37
  38. 38. Cascading sponsorship is critical Authorizing Sponsor Target/ Reinforcing Sponsor Target/Agent/ Reinforcing Sponsor Target 38
  39. 39. Manage resistance through: • Involvement • Communication • Training • Reinforcement 39
  40. 40. 40 “Change is hard at first, messy in the middle and gorgeous at the end” - Robin Sharma

Editor's Notes

  • Kirk
    16 years working in a large Crown Corporation - ICBC
    - project communications, where I started to see first-hand what a difference managing the people side of change could make to the success of a project.
    became accredited as a change management practitioner
    immediately able to put some of those practices to use in my role bringing in a new intranet as a foundational project for a multi-year transformation program – and the changes just kept coming
    Andrew
    Worked at ICBC for almost 28 years in various roles including business analysis, business case writing, project management, and of course change management.
    Strong writing and corporate communications background and have supported many corporate projects in various roles. I tried various roles and enjoyed all of them, but what attracted me to change management was that the people side of change is often glossed over or completely overlooked when organizations implement new systems or procedures. Kirk and I want to tell you more about the change management practice and why we feel it’s an important part of any corporate initiative.
  • Kirk
    Keys to successfully managing change
    Analysing the environment
    What is the climate for the change? Are people likely to be enthusiastic? Or not so much?
    Carefully planning the change approach, as part of the overall project plan
    Setting up your critical sponsorship network
    Identifying and managing resistance
  • Andrew
  • Andrew
    The sooner staff can adapt to changes in a company, the better it is for them and the organization. We know some people can do this easier than others; most people can adapt but some need more assistance and time than others.
  • Kirk and Andrew:
    Kirk: Change management is what makes the difference between a technical installation, and a successful implementation that considers the human factors for success.
    Andrew: (explain the engine metaphor)
    If you think about a car engine, you eventually need to replace parts that no longer work. There is no human element involved; you simply remove the old part and install the new one.
    When you’re implementing a new system in a company, the technical solution is only part of the scope of the project. You also need to get people using and embracing the new way of doing things. Therefore, a successful implementation also considers and addresses the human element by giving people the support and tools they need to change.
  • Kirk:
    Organizations historically focus on installation. As Andrew says, this doesn’t recognize the people side. Whenever there is a new process, system, or change in org structure and responsibilities, the day of “installation” is just the beginning of a successful implementation, where the business objectives are achieved.
    Why is this shortsighted? Without proper attention to the human side, the investment of time, resources and $$ that has gone into the change is at risk. Unless the people involved are onside with the changes, it will take a much longer time to achieve your business goals, or you won’t meet them at all.
    It’s like the difference between measuring output, and measuring outcome. In content strategy lingo, if you have a new CMS for product offerings but the people inputting the metadata or writing the product descriptions don’t do an effective job, you’ll never meet the business objectives of making the product easy to discover and purchase. (Tangentially related case in point… Target-in-Canada fiasco)
  • Andrew
  • Andrew
    Here are the stages of grief, applied to business change. (from slide)
    Through this process, there’s often a lot of “bad” behaviour:
    sulking
    doing things to undermine the project or process
    Gossip
    Rumours
    Etc.
    Through proper change management support, however, you can help move people along the curve must faster to “acceptance” and “moving on”
  • Kirk
    Start with…
  • Kirk
    The first step is analysing and defining the change, and planning to manage it.
  • Andrew
    First off, need to have a clear understanding of what the change is.
    Examples of differences: new  applications, procedures,  org structure, etc.
    Reason: what is the impetus/motivation for the change?
    Benefits: important in terms of people's acceptance (WIIFM?)
    Measurement examples:  how quickly people adjust to new application,  processing time,  decommissioning of old system, etc. 
    Kirk
    CS example of type of change:
    Establishing a customer journey approach to content that requires previous silos, like the marketing department and product development teams, to work in a more coordinated way
  • Andrew
    Assess the environment and the team or company’s readiness for change.
    Different groups could have a very different state of readiness. Helps determine where you’ll put your focus and effort. Change plan is tailored to meet the needs of individual groups.
    Factors that could adversely affect a positive outcome: (on slide)
    Other changes at the company
    Other major events (annual planning, budgeting)
    Upcoming technology changes
    Poor change history
    Ask yourself who needs to be involved. Make sure all the stakeholders who can or may influence – for good or bad – the outcome of the project are consulted and involved.
  • Andrew
    In general, there are lots of misunderstandings about change management - what it is/isn't, and what's involved
    CM plans and efforts are scalable based on the specific needs of each project (i.e. degree to which various stakeholders are being impacted)
    Just like project plans, change plans are, "living, breathing" documents that get modified as needed throughout the course of the project
    Change plans are incorporated into the overall project plan
  • Kirk
    Effective sponsorship is the most important success factor for change management.
    In a hierarchical company, sponsorship has to work its way down, without any gaps, through each level of management.
    On Click: And to Andy Warhol’s point: the sponsor has to take an active role. Sponsors have to walk the talk. They need to be present throughout the change.
  • Kirk
    To establish a common way of describing the “players” in the change scenario, we talk about 3 different roles:
    Sponsors
    Change Agents
    Targets
  • Kirk
    Sponsors must:
    Authorize, legitimize and demonstrate ownership for the change
    Personally influence peers and targets
    Have enough organizational power and influence to:
    Commit resources in the form of $$ and people
    Reinforce the change at local levels
    The type of discussion you’ll have with sponsors:
    Here’s the plan: do we have your blessing?
    Do you think this will fly with the other execs? If not, what do we need to change?
    We want to start this series of meetings with key stakeholders. Are you ready to run interference with your peers?
    We’d like to get this done by Christmas. Do you see any impediments?
  • Kirk
    There are three ways that sponsors can demonstrate support for the change (sponsor alignment)
    Important to reach people in may different ways to ensure understanding.
    Talking the talk (least effective, but still highly useful when used appropriately)
    Town hall – Emails - Webcast/Podcast - Public statements
    Walking the talk (second best)
    Decision making (not procrastinating or delegating)
    Participating in setting priorities – and establishing the change as a high priority
    Allocating resources
    Their own daily observable behaviour
    Reinforcement (most powerful and effective) through:
    Recognition (personal and public) – “thank you for your leadership, focus and dedication to this change”
    Rewards (promotion; new role; pay raise or incentive pay; development opportunities)
    Consequences (making it harder for people to do the “wrong” thing)
    Metrics (measuring the new, desired behaviour, such as X # of people are now using the new online form to request content updates vs calling the department)
    Performance management
    Reinforcement is also an important way to manage resistance, which Andrew will talk about later.
  • Kirk
    Change agents:
    This is typically your role.
    The change agent is the person responsible for doing the planning and carrying out the plan. The ideal change agent will:
    From slide
    Have a network within the company and be seen as a strong contributor with proven leadership qualities
    Be knowledgeable about the field; believe in the project
    Have credibility with key sponsors & target groups
    Be knowledgeable about the business and company strategy
    Common roadblocks
    Change agent is assigned based on availability rather than suitability
    Technically proficient but lacking implementation experience and relationship-building skills
    Are expected to focus on change management in addition to standard full-time responsibilities
  • Kirk
  • Kirk and Andrew
    This is a simplified view of what a cascading sponsorship model looks like. (Walk through slide).
    Andrew: Authorization
    Street cred – of immediate supervisor/manager – all have to deliver the same message. Also, staff follow/believe messages from their leaders versus from the Change Management resource.
  • Kirk
    What happens when the sponsor is not treating their immediate reports (directors, then managers) as targets – that level isn’t able to reinforce the change.
  • Kirk
    Content Strategy example; we talked earlier about a hypothetical case where a company is establishing a customer journey approach to content that requires the marketing department and product development teams to work in a more coordinated way.
    This change is initiated by the Marketing Manager. So first the mktg manager needs to convince the Director (1st target) , then the VP Corporate Affairs (2nd target).
    VP Corporate Affairs becomes the authorizing sponsor, and needs to convince the VP Operations that this new, consistent approach to the customer’s experience will result in significant business benefits.
    They then cascade the sponsorship roles down through their directors and managers to the end-targets – the people who will be living the change most directly: the copywriters, videographers, digital comms specialists, social media specialists, product engineers and technical writers.
    And the Directors and Managers will need to actively take on a sponsorship role – that’s the key. They need to talk the talk, walk the walk, and reinforce the change through performance management, training, consistent messaging, etc.
  • Kirk
    So, we’ve talked about how change affects people; the importance of a strong cascading sponsorship model. Now let’s talk about resistance.
    When people go through the whole Kubler Ross roller coaster of emotions surrounding a change, they’re not willing participants. Here’s the really weird thing. Even if they view the change as a positive one, they will still feel some resistance to it, which will have to be managed. Why?
    Because resistance is not a function of liking or understanding the change. It is a function of disruption.
    People carry around a sense of inertia and most people’s initial reaction to change is resistance. So a lot of change management efforts go into understanding and managing that resistance. Even if it’s perceived as a positive change, there’s work to do.
    The question is not whether we will or will not have resistance, but rather how much, how will we manage it, and how will we pay for it?”
  • Andrew
    Resistance is (from slide)
    Inevitable
    Natural
    Manageable
    An attempt to protect the individual FOR
    A sign you’ve touched on something important
    A desire to control the change
  • Andrew
    Resistance is not… (from slide)
    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
  • Andrew
    It’s vital to expect, plan for, and address resistance head on. Be explicit.
    Explain the change for each group:  how will this affect them, specifically? 
    Make it safe to express resistance; create paths and channels for expression, such as individual discussions, team meetings, Q&A
    Surface it early and keep it overt; start early – before the change. Be transparent.
    Identify magnitude of the impact – determine if each issue being raised is confined to a small number of people or most/all people. 
    Take action on the concerns. Things can often be changed, addressed, eliminated.
    Remember, this is an iterative process. It’s not once and done.
    Resistance can be managed through involvement, two-way communication, training and reinforcement, which we’ll cover now.
  • Andrew
    Opportunities for involvement: (from slide)
    Defining the problem
    Developing the solution
    Designing the approach
    Planning and/or executing the implementation
    Advantages of involvement
    Lessens stress and resistance
    Builds solutions stronger than any individual idea
    Gets everyone focused on the road ahead – pulling together.
  • Andrew
    Sometimes there's a mistaken belief that communication  = send out an email and that's it
    Variety of formats addresses various individual learning styles and also helps to better reinforce the change
    Right message/audience/time - want to send enough information to each audience and at the appropriate cadence
  • Andrew (and Kirk)
    Training is essential to a successful implementation.
    Whether it’s a new CMS or new content strategy, or both, or…
    $$ and time need to be built into the planning to ensure the targets are ready and able to work in the new way.
    Essential to plan for ongoing training and support (to reinforce the messages)
    Example – City of Surrey
    Just brought in a new intranet
    Set up training for authors through the project
    Continue the training quarterly to ensure people transitioning into an authorship role aren’t left to flounder
  • Andrew
    In a nutshell, make it easy to do what’s new, and hard to follow the old way.
    Celebrate, reinforce, publicize early wins to build momentum
    Recognize and reward learning and innovation; make it safe to make mistakes while learning
    Continue to recognize those who surface concerns
    Provide immediate, positive reinforcement for progress
    Reward supporters
    Motivate (don’t punish) resisters
    Eliminate option of operating successfully in the old way
    There are only two options: reinforce the status quo, or reinforce the change.
  • Kirk
    So how do we know if we’re managing change successfully?
  • Andrew:
    Ownership and adoption
    What are people saying?
    Are they able to perform the new tasks?
    Are they performing the new way?
    Andrew introduce: Plan for
    Ongoing governance (sponsorship), training, communication, reinforcement… the structure needed to sustain ongoing ownership & adoption
  • Kirk
    Things that will get in your way:
    Lack of sponsor engagement or buy-in
    A history of doing change badly at the company!
    Time-&-money constraints – has the sponsor been effective and been able to commit the necessary resources?
    Assuming what worked in one organization will work in this one
    Reward and reinforcement systems not aligned
  • Kirk
  • Kirk
  • Kirk
  • Kirk

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