10. Build Change Network

‌‌‌‌What is it?

A change network is a structure of motivated and effective change agents throughout the organisation who can translate the central need for change into a broader willingness and ability to make that change happen. This process help to identify and recruit the most appropriate people; discover and address training requirements and coordinating and evaluating an ongoing plan of activities throughout the change initiative.

Why do it?

This process will:

Identify the most effective, motivated and well-positioned change agents to provide a critical linkage between the change leaders and the impacted stakeholders
Evaluate the knowledge and skill requirements of the network and put in place activities address any gaps
Put in place an ongoing plan to support the effective operation of the network
Send a positive signal to the organisation to demonstrate the commitment to the success of the change initiative
Facilitate a faster, better and smarter implementation of the changes through the close alignment of the change leaders, project team and impacted stakeholders – addressing or accommodating concerns where appropriate

When to do it?

You can begin to define the change network during the Define Change Governance process in the Diagnose phase but it will start to operate during the Design and Develop phases

The Change Network is a group of sponsors and change agents that foster ownership of new business capabilities within the University.

Review the change network roles you considered in the Define Change Governance process and think about who could best fill these roles. You should consider the following criteria:

Navigation – who is adept at understanding and navigating the formal and informal structures, hierarchies, etc
Hierarchy – how to best represent the different levels of the organisation
Power – who has influence (formal or informal) in one or more areas impacted by the change
Constituency – what mix of agents best represents the various impacted business areas / stakeholder groups
Commitment – it is helpful to have a mix of commitment levels including constructive sceptics and well as enthusiastic advocates

Define the skills and knowledge requirements for the network, thinking about:

What insight and detail do they need about the change initiative (vision, drivers, change solution etc) and does it vary between different change network roles?
Are there any professional or technical skills are required (related to the specifics of the change initiative, eg Student Recruitment, Communications, IT)?
What is the level of change management understanding and skill across the network?

Training and knowledge materials can then be developed to address any gaps. The focus should be on providing capability around change management and a good understanding of the ‘ Shared change purpose’ so that the network can effectively facilitate change on behalf of the change leaders.

10.2 Coordinate ongoing change network activities & evaluate effectiveness

The Change Network will need to understand its role and responsibilities, time commitment and specific requirements at different stages in the change initiative. You will also need to check the effectiveness of the change network throughout the life of the change initiative – through interview or pulse surveys. In a long change initiative you may need different change agents in different phases.

Template: Document the Change Network roles and responsibilities and activities in the Change Network Plan

10.3 Change Agent roles and responsibilities

Change Agents have three key roles:

Help design the change solution
Help deliver the change solution
Help realise the change benefits

HELP REALISE THE CHANGE BENEFITS	ACTIVITIES	SKILLS REQUIRED
Identify and escalate potential ‘hot spots’	Review design documents (process, structure or system) and raise any issues with the change leadership before they become problems Help resolve issues by providing a business perspective	Detailed knowledge of current processes within their own function Appreciation of how their own function interfaces with other functions
Ensure that the new applications and their workflow match the business processes	Review documentation to ensure that processes or systems have been designed in a way that supports the proposed way the business will be carried out in the future state	Willingness to learn new skills Critical analysis
Test that the changes meet business requirements	Participate in testing and piloting activities	Logical thinking
Champion changes a line level	Support change leadership in delivering business awareness / training sessions Provide a point of contact within the business function with detailed knowledge of the change initiative	Respected influencer amongst peers Receptive to change Understanding change resistance Approachable
Seek out and address negative rumours	Listen to concerns of colleagues Try to uncover the sources of rumours and be ready to challenge them with the facts Notify the change leadership of widespread rumours	Good listening skills Prepared to have difficult conversations with colleagues
Review process, system and organisational design changes to ensure they can be accommodated	Review documentation from a functional angle	Attention to detail
Address business concerns regarding the change initiative	Be available to talk to colleagues about their concerns and show how the new ways of working will be beneficial	Ability to see the limitations of the current way of doing things Persuasion
Deliver change initiative training and communications as required	Help deliver specific sessions within their own business area to raise awareness or provide hands-on training	Good communication skills Early adopter
Encourage, coach and support colleagues during implementation of the change	Provide post-implementation support by floor-walking within their department / team offering coaching and advice to colleagues	Coaching skills Tenacity to ensure colleagues stick with the new ways of working

10. Build Change Network

10. Build Change Network

10. Build Change Network

‌‌‌‌What is it?

Why do it?

When to do it?

Inputs

Outputs

How to do it?