Change Models – Which One Fits Best?

I wrote an article a few months back on the different approaches to change, and made a distinction between “business change” and “people change” (you can read that here: (25) Change Management is Not About People | LinkedIn).? Since then, I have been asked how different change models fit with those two approaches.? So here is an explanation of the five main models used in change, and how they align to the business and people change management approaches.

Here is the summary of the two approaches I showed in the article:

Critique of Change Models

Lewin Change Model – Kurt Lewin was a US psychologist who studied groups and first coined the term “group dynamics”.? He has a three-step change model attributed to him – Unfreezing (readying the organisation for change), Moving (making the change), Refreezing (embedding the change).? This is a “macro” approach to change, viewing the change from an organisational perspective.? This would fit with the “business” change approach that posits that you need to change many factors, not just people related ones.

Kubler-Ross Grief Cycle – The "Change Curve" is sometimes anecdotally thrown into conversations by people to demonstrate they understand change management. They are generally referring to the Kubler Ross Grief Cycle (depicted as a curve), which has nothing to do with organisational change. The Kubler-Ross curve was developed to explain to doctors how people go through various phases of emotion when a person close to them is dying or dies.? Someone came up with the idea that these phases of emotion may be felt by people going through other trauma, including organisational change.? There is no research I could find to support the link between the curve and organisational change.? Having said this, the model has been a catalyst to some widely accepted change principles: 1) people are emotionally affected by change; 2) their reactions may change over time; and 3) the change may affect people differently.? So it has made some contribution. This model certainly fits in the “people” change approach.

ADKAR – Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement (I can never remember what the two A’s are).? Interestingly when you search ADKAR you now get many “Prosci ADKAR” links popping up, so lets now assume the two are one and the same.? ADKAR is a “people approach”: Awareness (Communications), Desire (Vision, Communications), Knowledge (Training, Communications), Ability (Training), Reinforcement (Recognition, Communications).? The areas in brackets are the standard tools of the “people change manager".?

Kotter – Kotter’s model, like Lewins, views change as a process, putting forward an 8-step change approach - he essentially describes a high-level project plan for large scale change.? He describes the broad steps in the process in more detail than Lewin, while having the same “cradle to grave” approach, of getting the organisation ready for change through to sustaining it after the hard work of implementation is over.? He introduced the idea (Step 3 of 8) of having a compelling ?"Vision” to provide a clarion call for the change. This model would fit more in the “business” approach.

McKinsey 7 S – Not surprisingly for a company founded by engineers McKinsey took a “systems” approach to organisational change.? They proposed through this model that seven areas need to be changed/aligned if you are to affect significant change.? To me this model fits more an “operating model design” approach.? However, what it does do for managers involved in change, is call out clearly that you cannot ONLY focus on one factor of the organisation if you want to affect lasting change – for example, you cannot focus just on “systems”, or “structure” or “staff” – you must change/align them all.? This model made a major contribution to organisational change thinking and, along with the Lewin/Kotter models, contributed to change being packaged into a “programme” of work that seeks to coordinate multiple workstreams, as well as perhaps paving the way for the “process, technology, people” mantra.? This model definitely fits as a “business approach”.? Having all the words begin with “S” is a bit twee, and to me makes no contribution to remembering all seven (try it!).? However, it does roll off the tongue, so was no doubt good for marketing.

There are a few other models emerging (Bridges Transition, Nudge Theory, Satir), but the five above are the main ones that seem to have stuck. Some consultancies (including mine), and even some organisations, develop their own change management approach/methodology - although most can be traced back to these early pioneers. As an example, my model uses a combination of the Lewin, Kotter and McKinsey approaches.

An interesting question to ask your internal change team (or when hiring a change manager) would be “What change model do you use?”.? If they say they are using their own “bespoke” model then they should be able to answer what models their approach is based on. This questioning, along with whether their approach covers such areas as “processes”, “benefit realisation” or “business readiness”, should give you a good read on whether they are aligned to the business change approach, and consequently have a chance of creating real, tangible change that creates a permanent shift in the organisation.