12 Learning from other change models
A change model is a framework used to understand, manage, and implement change within an organisation or a group. These models provide structured methods to guide the process of transition from the current state to a desired future state. Change models are tools. There is no one correct change model. Occasionally it might be useful to look at the same set of challenges using more than one change model. So far we have mentioned the ITAD Four Dimensions of Change model, Prochaska’s Stages of Change model, and Schwarz’s model for Universal Human Values. Here are a few more. We’re not going to explain them in detail, but we want to include them so that readers who are interested can go and find out more.
Lewin’s Change Management Model involves three stages. First, the ‘Unfreeze’ stage prepares the organisation to accept that change is necessary, creating awareness for the need for change. The “Change” stage involves transitioning to the new state, where people begin to resolve their uncertainty and look for new ways to do things. Finally, the “Refreeze” stage ensures that the change is sustained over time, making the new ways the standard operating procedure.
Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model starts by creating a sense of urgency to motivate people to move from their comfort zones. Next, it builds a guiding coalition of influential people to support the change. Forming a strategic vision and initiatives provides clear direction for the change efforts. Enlisting volunteers involves contacting as many people as possible, ideally across many different parts of the organisation, and inspiring and empowering them to get involved. Removing barriers enables action, and generating short-term wins provides momentum. To maintain progress, the model calls for sustaining acceleration, and finally, the change is institutionalised by embedding it into the organisational culture.
The ADKAR Model consists of five stages: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement, and is similar to the Stages of Change model, by focusing on the incremental determinants of success when it comes to individual or organisational change.
Systems mapping is not a one-size-fits-all model, but a way of creating your own model to fit your situation and goals. In system mapping, we create a diagram to visualise all the important ‘things’ in a system, and understand the intricate relationships and interactions among them. This approach is useful for recognising how various parts of the system influence each other, including feedback loops that either reinforce or balance the system over time. There are formal definitions of a system, but we can more easily think of it as ‘all the things I am interested in influencing, plus the things that influence them.’ Maybe this includes existing media, or governments (national vs. local), or political structures. Maybe these are our friends and family, and our social norms. These are messages that we see each day which in some way influence the way we act or behave. This mapping can help us think about the environment in which our message might land, as well as additional structures we might want to influence.
Systems thinking is especially interested in ‘non-linearity’, where a small change leads to a big change, or vice-versa. As a simple example, a change in one person’s attitude may make a big difference if that person happens to be the Environmental Minister. On the other hand, a lot of resources could be spent upstream on trying to change individual behaviour through communication, which might end up making only a small impact if the right structural incentives are not in place downstream.
The systems thinking guru Donella Meadows suggests some places where intervention in a system can be effective. For example, if you can alter the overall mindset or paradigm from which the whole system arises, this can produce profound transformations. Meadows says: ‘Paradigms are the sources of systems. From them, from shared social agreements about the nature of reality, come system goals and information flows, feedbacks, stocks, flows and everything else about systems.’
Of course, altering an overall paradigm is very hard to do. There are many other ways to intervene which may be easier to do, especially on a tight budget. For example, another leverage point is the distribution of power over the system’s rules. Or empowering different stakeholders can lead to changes in how the system operates and whom it benefits. Modifying the rules themselves can directly influence system behaviour. Systems mapping may also reveal feedback loops, either reinforcing feedback loops (such as the compounding interest in a bank account that grows and grows) or a balancing feedback loop that tends toward an equilibrium (like a progressive wealth tax).
Systems thinking and public interest communication can be complementary. Mapping the system you want to influence, and identifying potential leverage points, may give you insight in how to design your goals and outcomes, and which audiences to target.
