Eight Steps of Change

"The Eight Steps of Change" is a model for managing change within an organisation. It's often associated with John Kotter, a Harvard Business School professor and author, who originally outlined these steps in his 1996 book, "Leading Change." 

The model provides a practical framework for implementing significant changes and is widely used by leaders and change managers. The steps are sequential, with each one building upon the success of the previous step.

In this guide, we share an overview of each step, along with some tips and methodologies you can use to put the model into practice. 

1. Create a Sense of Urgency

Start by helping your team understand why change is necessary. Use hard data and compelling stories to highlight the need for action.

• Tip: Explaining the need for change should balance the benefits and risks. For the benefits of change, share the human impact of doing things differently. For example, “Applying this change to our ways of working means we’ll have more time to focus on the work we care most about”. For the risks, think of the "burning platform" analogy. Paint a vivid picture of the consequences of inaction. For example, "If we don't improve our customer service, we'll lose 30% of our business to competitors within a year."

• Method: Conduct a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) with your team to make the need for change obvious to everyone.

  
  

2. Build a Guiding Coalition

Gather a diverse group of influential people from different parts of your organisation. This isn't just about senior leadership; include respected team members from various levels. Their diverse perspectives and influence are crucial for driving change. This step aligns with the concept of social proof, where people are more likely to buy into a change when they see respected peers doing so.

• Tip: Use the "2 Pizza Rule" to keep the group small enough for efficient decision-making.

• Method: Implement a "change champion" program by identifying influential individuals at various levels and departments, and equip them with the context and understanding to help drive the change.

  
  

3. Form a Strategic Vision and Initiatives

Develop a clear and compelling vision of what success looks like after the change. Make it specific and achievable. For example, "Within six months, we'll reduce customer wait times by 50%."

• Tip: Use the "Elevator Pitch" technique to refine your vision. Can you explain it compellingly in 30 seconds or less?

• Method: Host a vision workshop where team members contribute to shaping the vision. This increases their buy-in and ensures the vision resonates across the organisation.

  
  

4. Enlist a Volunteer Army

Widely and consistently communicate your vision. Use storytelling to make it relatable. Encourage questions and feedback. Your goal is to get people excited about the change and willing to contribute their efforts.

• Tip: Remember the "IKEA Effect"—people value things more when they've contributed to creating them. Involve volunteers in planning and executing change initiatives.

• Method: Create a change microsite or internal social media group where volunteers can share progress, ask questions, and celebrate wins. This builds a sense of community around the change effort.

  
  

5. Enable Action by Removing Barriers

Identify obstacles that might hinder your change efforts. These could be outdated processes, lack of resources, or even resistant individuals. Work to remove these barriers, and empower your team to take action. This step relates to the concept of psychological safety, where people need to feel safe to take risks and make mistakes as they implement new ways of working.

• Tip: Implement a "no-blame" policy for setbacks related to the change initiative. Encourage learning from failures.

• Method: Use the "5 Whys" technique to dig deep into the root causes of barriers. Often, surface-level obstacles hide deeper systemic issues that need addressing.

  
  

6. Celebrate Quick Wins

Plan for and celebrate early victories. These small successes build momentum and keep people motivated. Make sure to recognize the efforts of those involved.

• Tip: Use the "1% Rule"—celebrate improvements of just 1%. These small wins compound over time and maintain momentum.

• Method: Create a visual "wins wall" in a prominent physical or digital location, where achievements can be posted and celebrated regularly.

  
  

7. Increase the Pace

Don't let up after initial successes. Use the credibility you've gained to tackle bigger changes. Keep introducing new projects and ideas to maintain the momentum. You need to drive the narrative that initial changes are just stepping stones on a journey to a much larger outcome.

• Tip: Use the "Plus One" approach. Once a team has mastered one aspect of the change, challenge them to add one more element or improve one more metric.

• Method: Implement regular "change hackathons" where teams can propose and prototype new initiatives that build on the existing change efforts.

  
  

8. Institute Change

Finally, make the changes stick by anchoring them in your organisation's culture. Highlight the connection between the new behaviors and organisational success. This final step relates to Edgar Schein's work on organisational culture. For change to stick, it must become "the way we do things around here."

• Tip: Use "culture hacks"—small, actionable changes to daily routines that reinforce the new ways of working. For example, start each meeting with a quick story of how the change is positively impacting work.

• Method: Develop a "change scorecard" that tracks key metrics related to the change. Regularly review and discuss this at all levels of the organisation to keep the change top of mind.ction items, and thank everyone for their contributions.

.