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V The ADKAR model was first published by Prosci

in 1998 after research with more than 300


companies undergoing major change projects.

V ADKAR is a goal-oriented change management


model that allows change management teams
to focus their activities on specific business
results.

V The goals or outcomes defined by ADKAR are


sequential and cumulative.
The business dimension of change includes the
typical project elements.
V Business need or opportunity is identified.

V Project is defined (scope and objectives).


V Business solution is designed (new processes,
systems and organizational structure).
V New processes and systems are developed.
V Solution is implemented in the organization.
V w is the first building block of Prosci's ADKAR Model. Any
successful change begins with the answer to one of the most basic
questions about change: ë It is human nature to want to
understand the reasoning behind an action or a required change.
V It means sharing both the nature of the change AND answering 
this change is needed.
V In a 2005 study with 411 companies undergoing major change
projects, the number one reason for resistance to change was lack
of   of why the change was being made.
ΠProject managers of these major change initiatives stated that
employees and managers alike wanted to know the business
reasons for the change.
V Another viewpoint is that employees do not need to know
the reasons behind every change. They think that employees
are compensated for performing a job, and if that job should
change, employees should just do those new tasks rather
than ask  a change is needed.
V Building Awareness can be much more difficult than it
sounds. For example, do you trust the leadership team of the
change message? Do you believe the reasons they are
providing about why the change is needed.
V As a change manager, you will need to understand the
activities that drive Awareness, and those "resisting factors"
or restraining forces that prevent the awareness message
from taking hold with your audiences.
w 

ëhat builds Awareness of the need Potential Resisting Factors:


for change?  Ñomfort with the status quo
 Ñommunications from others  Ñredibility of the source or sender of
 Access to information the message
 An event  Denial that the reasons for change are
 An observable condition real
 Debate over the reasons for change
°xamples:
 Sponsor messages, Managersǯ  Rumors or misinformation
conversations, General employee  General perception of the people
communications, Ñatastrophic closest to me (if different than the
disaster, ëeakening financial public message)
V ðnce an individual has an understanding of why a change is needed
(Awareness), the next step in successful change is making a
à to support and participate in the change.
V Ñreating desire poses a challenge, in part because of the limited
control we have over another personǯs choices. Unlike awareness-
building, where we can take definitive steps to generate awareness
of the need for change, creating the desire to change remains
elusive and, by definition, not under our direct control.
V For example, I may be aware that my PÑ monitor contains some
lead, but I may not be willing to recycle my computer. Awareness
enables people to begin the process of evaluating a change, but
does not necessarily result in a desire to change.
V ºikewise, in the workplace, managers can develop
new processes, tools and organizational structures.
They can purchase new technology and promote new
values for their organization. However, they cannot
force their employees to support and engage in these
changes.
V A common mistake made by many business leaders is
to assume that by building   of the need for
change they have also created 
. Understanding
the underlying factors that influence an individualǯs
desire to change is an important first step to achieving
this element of the ADKAR model.
V As with Awareness, Desire is only achieved when the
individual would say to us, £    à 
 

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V Knowledge is probably the building block that poses the fewest
issues. Because organizations have a long and rich history with
delivering training - most even have an entire department dedicated
to training along with specialists that focus on education. However,
training is not the only way to develop knowledge.
V From a change management perspective, it is important to
recognize two distinct types of Knowledge. The first is Knowledge
on    , and the second is Knowledge on    


    
V Knowledge is only effective when the individual already has
Awareness and Desire. ëithout these you cannot effectively create
the Knowledge that is necessary for a change to be successful.
V DGreendz Hotels Association introduced a change in 1993 that has
spread throughout hotels in the United States and impacts many
business and vacation travelers. After a trip to Germany, Patricia
Griffin, founder and president of DGreendz Hotels Association,
returned with an idea to change the way hotel guests treated
bath towels. ðn the surface, this could appear to be a daunting
challenge. How could one person initiate a change that would
impact thousands of hotel guests? It began with the printing of a
small card that would hang on the towel rack in hotel guest
rooms. The card essentially says:
°   

           

           

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w        
V By 2005, DGreendz Hotels Associationǯs guest cards could be
seen in more than 150,000 guest rooms. Hotels are
reporting significant savings in water, utility and detergent
costs. This change has helped conserve water and reduce
operating expenses while protecting our environment.
Fifteen years earlier most hotel guests would have
laughed at the suggestion that towels be reused. Many
people would consider this nothing more than a cost-
savings attempt by a Dcheapdz hotel manager. Imagine the
reaction of hotel guests to a sign that reads, 
    ‰et, in this case, DGreendz
Hotels Association was able to successfully implement this
change, and nearly every major hotel chain now uses
similar towel cards in their guest rooms. ëhat was
different about how this change was managed that made
it a success?
V If you analyze the simple text on this card, notice that   is the
starting point. Many hotel guests may have never considered the
implications associated with the simple process of washing towels. The
card then states clearly: DDecide for yourself.dz This simple expression
captures the essence of 
. It is ultimately up to each hotel guest to
participate or not participate in the program
V Finally, the card states how to change: DHanging up the towel means Iǯll
use it againdz and DA towel on the floor means please exchange.dz This
phrase captures the how or the    component of the change in
very simple terms. ëithin this simple card the first three elements of the
ADKAR model are realized. Since the fourth phase, 

, is the simple
act of placing towels back on the towel bar, the change took hold. The

   for sustaining the change comes from two sources; first the
hotel guestsǯ gratification that they have helped in a small way with a large
environmental issue, and second, the hotelǯs expense reduction from
using less water, electricity and detergent.
V ëhile Knowledge and Ability can seem similar,
there can be a very large gap between the two.
An example that illustrates this gap is playing
golf. ëhile someone can gain the Knowledge by
working with a golf pro - learning how to
approach the ball, how far apart the feet should
be, that it is important to keep one's head down
when following through, how to swing correctly
- it may take many years for this Õ   to
translate into w

 in terms of performance on
the golf course.
ëhat fosters Ability to implement Potential Resisting Factors:
the required skills and behaviors?  Inadequate time available to
 Practice develop skills
 Time  ºack of support resources
 Ñoaching or role modeling behavior
 °xisting habits contrary to the
 Access to right tools
 Feedback desired behavior
 Psychological blocks
Tactics for fostering Ability:
 ºimitations in physical abilities
Direct involvement of coaches, Access
Individual capabilities (personal


to subject matter xperts, Performance
monitoring, Hands-on practice during limitations)
training, Availability of expert
resources to help employees
V Ú    is the final element of the ADKAR model and is
achieved when the necessary mechanisms are in place to sustain the
change.
V It is a natural tendency to resort to what we know. In fact, there is
research emerging about how the brain functions that suggests it is
not just a natural tendency, but in fact physiological tendency.
V ëith effective reinforcement, you avoid losing momentum from the
initial deployment of the change and you can prevent employees
from reverting to old ways of doing work.
V ðne of the reasons Reinforcement can be difficult, from a change
management perspective, is that once a change is finished, we are
often already moving on to the next change. It takes concerted
effort and time to make sure a change "sticksD.

      
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If you are an employee in an organization undergoing
change, your reaction to the change and how you are
viewed by the organization will be directly affected by
each of the five elements in the ADKAR model.
Take for example the implementation of a new software
tool. If the change is implemented and you believe it
was not needed (i.e., you were not aware that any
changes were required), then your reaction might be:
DThis is a waste of time.dz
Dëhy change if it was working just fine before?dz
DIf it ain't broke, don't fix it.dz
DThey never tell us whatǯs going on!dz
If someone had taken the time to explain that the old software would no
longer be supported by the vendor, and that new software was necessary
to meet the needs of your customers, then your reaction (based on this
awareness) would likely be very different:
DHow soon will this happen?dz
DHow will this impact me?dz
Dëill I receive new training?dz
Take this same example one step further. Assume you were made aware
that a change was required, but you had no desire to participate or support
the change.
Dëhatǯs in it for me.dz
DI doubt they are really serious about this.dz
Now the tables are turned, and you may become the target of an
emotional response from individuals within the organization. ‰ou may be
labeled as difficult, inflexible or unsupportive. Some may say you lack
initiative or vision. ‰ou may be called a cynic or pessimist.
Ñhanging unwanted behavior in children follows the ADKAR model well.
Ñhildren first need to know what they are doing is wrong. This awareness
often comes when an upset parent tells the child he is doing something
wrong. Simply knowing it is wrong, however, will not stop most children.
Their natural inclination is to test the boundaries and push the limits.
Ñonsequences, either positive or negative, are usually required. These
consequences impact the child's desire to change. However, the process
cannot stop here. Given proper motivation to change, children need a role
model to understand what the proper behavior looks like. They need
examples so they can obtain the knowledge of what the correct behavior
is. Next, they need practice in order to obtain the fourth result of ADKAR,
ability. Few children can change immediately; it is an ongoing process
requiring them to develop new skills and habits. They need time to
develop the ability to act in a new way. Finally, children need
reinforcement to keep the good behavior going. This may be in the form
of positive encouragement or other types of rewards.
V In this case study example, a parent was attempting to improve the
batting style and skill of his son playing baseball. Dad was concerned
that his son's batting was not up to the level of the other boys on the
team. He searched the Internet for batting videos and purchased a
tape for his son. For weeks he tried to get his son to watch the video
on batting mechanics. ëith some parental persuasion, Dad was able
to get his son to watch part of the tape. After that, the video was left
untouched.
V The father's attempt to educate his son failed and resulted only in a
frustrated parent. He finally sat down with his son and asked him why
he would not watch the tape and use it to improve his batting. His son
replied that he just enjoyed playing baseball with his friends, and it did
not matter to him if his batting was as good as some of the other boys.
V In this example the father skipped elements of the ADKAR model
(from awareness to knowledge). His son had no desire to change and
was content just to be out there playing the game. Dadǯs efforts to
build knowledge failed because his son lacked the desire to change.
Briefly describe the personal change you are trying to implement with a friend, family
member or work associate:
V 1. Awareness. ºist the reasons you believe the change is necessary. Review these reasons
and rate the degree to which the person you are trying to change is aware of the reasons or
need to change (1 - 5 where 1 is no awareness and 5 is total awareness).
V 2. Desire. ºist the factors or consequences (good and bad) for this person that create a
desire to change. Ñonsider these motivating factors, including the personǯs conviction in
these factors and the associated consequences. Rate his/her desire to change on a 1 - 5
scale.
V 3. Knowledge. ºist the skills and knowledge needed to support the change, including if the
person has a clear picture of what the change looks like. Rate this personǯs knowledge or
level of training in these areas on a 1 to 5 scale.
V 4. Ability. Ñonsidering the skills and knowledge identified in the previous question, evaluate
the personǯs ability to perform these skills or act on this knowledge. Rate this personǯs
ability to implement the new skills, knowledge and behaviors to support the change on a 1
- 5 scale.
V 5. Reinforcement. ºist the reinforcements that will help to retain the change. Are
incentives in place to reinforce the change and make it stick? Rate the reinforcements as
helping support the change on a 1 to 5 scale.

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