Building a Change Community of Practice Presented by: Catherine Smithson Managing Director February 2017

Change Community of Practice Webinars

Introducing Being Human

•  Founded in 1993 • Our mission: develop

change-capable people and organisations so they achieve the benefits of change

2

Agenda

• What is a Change Community of Practice?

• Benefits •  Tip 5 tips for success • Q&A

3

Some definitions

5

“A selected group of individuals who do the same work in different environments/projects and come together to

knowledge share.” Joanne Rinaldi

“A group of change management professionals passionate about change

management, committed to sharing knowledge and

experience”. Max Knobel

“Groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better

as they interact regularly.” Etienne Wenger, co –originator with Jean Lave of Communities

of Practice

Key elements

Members are practitioners, develop

shared resources (stories, tools,

experiences, stories, problem solving).

6

Members interact, engage, share

activities, help each other, build

relationships, learn from each other.

Shared commitment to a profession, interest

Source: Etienne Wenger and Jean Lave

Benefits of a Change CoP 1.  Share common understanding

of professional practice 2.  Application of technical

experience – what worked/what didn’t

3.  Improvement - qualitative and quantitative

4.  Embed common approach, e.g. group audits – compliance and consistency

5.  Collaboration and engagement – alignment, shared vision and goals for “how we do change”

6.  Continued learning and personal development

7.  Helps ensure the organisation maximises its investment in Change Management

8

Change Maturity and the Change CoP

9

The CoP will evolve as maturity builds •  Its role will change from Level 1 to Level 5 • Be prepared to re visit its purpose and role, membership

etc as needed • Be prepared to hand over leadership

10

A Change CoP can help foster all 5 capabilities

11

Source: The Change Management Community of Practice: A fast track to enterprise change management competency by Bill Wilder, Lifecycle Institute

https://www.lce.com/pdfs/LCE-Change-Management-COP-Whitepaper-311.pdf

13

Tip 1: Secure a Sponsor • Provides authority and legitimacy • Creates motivation for members to

be in involved • Align CoPs purpose and goals with

organisational strategy and change capability goals

• Make the CoPs work visible and communicate its value.

•  Select the CoP Sponsor thoughtfully!

14

Source: The Change Management Community of Practice: A fast track to enterprise change management competency by Bill Wilder, Lifecycle Institute

https://www.lce.com/pdfs/LCE-Change-Management-COP-Whitepaper-311.pdf

Tip 2: Begin with the end in mind •  Purpose: simple statement of why the COP is

being established, bullet list of goals •  Membership: who participates and criteria, e.g.

change management training, experience, title, or group

•  Administration: roles, how the COP will be governed: sponsor, champion, leader, and coordinator.

•  Members Role: Expectations of members, rules of engagement. E.g. confidentiality of information

•  Schedule : •  How often will it meet, for how long? •  Typical agenda or activities such as training, field trips

and guest speakers.

15

Source: The Change Management Community of Practice: A fast track to enterprise change management competency by Bill Wilder, Lifecycle Institute

https://www.lce.com/pdfs/LCE-Change-Management-COP-Whitepaper-311.pdf

Variations of membership – each has a place

•  Change Management Professionals •  Change Managers •  People in a “change role” •  Prosci Certified Change Managers

•  Project professionals •  All or some of the above plus project managers, business improvement

specialists, operational excellence etc

•  Everyone involved in change •  All or some of the above plus people leaders (all, or selected)

•  Other variations?

16

The practical stuff: when, where, who? •  How often?

•  As often as it is practical, e.g. monthly, quarterly, key milestones

•  Where? •  Face to face •  Video link •  Teleconference •  Combinations

•  Who? •  Needs a small group to drive –

rotate? •  Share the load, foster

engagement

17

Tip 3: Remember A and D! •  A CoP takes ADKAR – Start with the A & D… •  A – make sure those involved understand the need for the

CoP and the personal and organisational benefits from being involved.

•  D – What’s in it for them to come along and get involved? It may be seen as an additional burden on their time and workload. Have you made it do-able? Worthwhile?

18

Tip 4: Role model effective Change Management • Cater for your members with a mix of formats. • Use a guest speaker on occasions – internal

representation from a business area, SME or executive. • Have a CoP share drive/folder for between meetings to

share resources. • Have a communication channel or two that works - email

list, in-person meet up, online forum, teleconferences or whatever works for the group.

• Get regular feedback on what’s working and what’s not from members.

19

Tip 5: Don’t make it all work! • Build in fun and allow time for networking either before or

afterwards. •  Informal feedback and engagement is valuable.

20

Bonus tip… the time commitment •  Estimate the energy and drive it will take to get it up and

running and then double it! •  A successful CoP takes a lot of time, commitment, energy and

resources. •  Don’t go it alone! •  Are you and the organization up for it?

21

More info

23

beinghuman.com.au •  Free Prosci Webinars •  Free Change Community of

Practice Webinars •  Free Resources •  Public Change Management

programs •  In house programs