Essential Toolkits for Communicating Change

When planning change communication it’s important to think about the nature of the change ahead, as this will have an impact on the tactics you deploy. This toolkit guides you through the issues that need to be considered when managing change as “business as usual” and when communicating messages with a higher emotional impact, such as restructures, redundancies or a crisis in leadership. You’ll learn how to:

• Tap into what drives and motivates employees
• Segment employees where possible
• Map and plan for the different reactions to change
• Use training and development to position the change
• Create opportunities for employees to “choose” change
• Use stories to bring change to life
• Assess whether or not you're facing a high-concern situation
• Create a set of communication principles

Having a communication team that fully understands the difference between “business as usual” messaging and messages designed to change behaviour and perceptions, is a vital first step in preparing for any change initiative. This toolkit will help your communication team to:

• Prioritise relevant communication
• Target your message
• Keep employees “in the know”
• Think about the timing of change programmes
• Think about audience needs during periods of change
• Collaborate with other departments to handle change more effectively
• Clarify available resources for change communication
• Gauge readiness for change

Leaders have a critical role to play in driving change: role-modelling new behaviours, storytelling, supporting their team through transition… But how can you best support them and other key stakeholder groups? This toolkit will help you to:

• Get leaders on the same page early on in the change process
• Assess how change may affect leaders differently
• Help leaders to create effective feedback channels
• Clarify what good leadership communication looks like
• Explain what’s required of leaders at different stages of change
• Get leaders to define and agree the change strategy

This toolkit will help you understand how organisational stories can be used as part of a wider effort to change opinions, attitudes and behaviours. Based on the advice and guidance of Tony Quinlan, principal consultant and chief storyteller at Narrate consultancy. You’ll learn how to:

• Use storytelling as an engagement technique
• Collect stories
• Make sense of the patterns and stories
• Communicate change via storytelling
• Run a vision arc workshop

As a communicator, you’re likely to face numerous challenges during tough times like recession, acquisition, lay offs or other major organisational change. During these times, communicating lay-offs with sensitivity and engaging employees who’ll remain with the organisation is vital to your continued success. This toolkit will show you how to:

• Focus priorities during a downturn
• Understand changes in motivation and engagement
• Make sure cost-cutting decisions have a clear rationale
• Getting the most from leaders during a downturn
• Encourage personalised communication
• Prepare managers for difficult conversations
• Provide support and guidance
• Coach managers to support change

• Designing a change communication strategy
• Communicating lay-offs and cost-cutting
• Choosing the right tactics for change
• How to demonstrate the role of leaders during change
• Assessing the emotional impact of change
• Making sure your team is equipped to support change
• Using message maps to articulate your strategy
• Adapting your measurement approach to monitor change
• Communicating to engage after change