Starting the change management process

Dr Elissa Farrow
September 16, 2013

Setting up a change process, I usually analyse the organisation, the size of the change task, any methodology that may exist and then think about appropriate models for change.

There are a wide number of models of change that exist in the literature. Some, like change specialist Dr John Kotter’s model are very well known with its eight steps.

Kurt Lewin also has a three-step model with nine activities within it. William Bridges‘ two is a staged approach of ending, neutral zone and new beginning. Each has merit.

I encourage the change managers I coach and mentor to understand the rich range of theoretical models that can be applied within a methodology. There are excellent resources that summarise each of these models and also some that provide an overall summary. (I will be covering these in future blog posts.)

Another source will be the soon-to-be-released Change Management Institute’s Change Management Body of Knowledge (CMBOK), the first globally recognised body of knowledge currently being created by a team of committed volunteers. This will be a resource that will provide the foundations for change management practice.

Like the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), the CMBOK will contain a rich range of agreed best practice principles and philosophies that underpin what is considered best practice and that methodologies are built upon.

Author avatar
Dr Elissa Farrow
Dr Elissa Farrow is a founder and lead consultant for About Your Transition and has extensive experience in strategic organisational adaptation design, facilitation and delivery. Elissa has supported organisations to define positive futures and then successfully transform to bring lasting benefits. She has proven adaptive capacity and can successfully transfer her skills to different contexts. In 2022, Elissa was awarded her doctorate through the University of the Sunshine Coast. Her published research explores organisations of the future and how they will need to adapt to the evolving field of artificial intelligence. Elissa is an experienced board director and thought leader in her field, having won a number of awards for her research and for her contributions to Women in Project Management.
Read more