Learn how the ADKAR model can drive change in your organization

July 31, 2024

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In today’s corporate landscape, the ability to adapt quickly to change is key to the success and sustainability of an organization. However, managing change can pose a significant challenge, often requiring more than just the implementation of new processes and technologies. What’s needed is a complete, structured, people-centered approach, to ensure that all members of the company are aligned and committed to new strategic directions. The ADKAR model is designed to help you do exactly that.

In this post, we’ll explore in detail how the ADKAR model can encourage and drive change in your organization. So, let’s get started!!

What is the ADKAR model and why is it important in change management?

The ADKAR model is a structured approach to managing change in organizations. Developed by Prosci, it aims to facilitate adaptation to change, a constant challenge in any company in the midst of transformation. ADKAR is an acronym for the five phases that make up the process of change: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement. This model provides a clear framework that helps both leaders and employees move change in an efficient and organized way.

The ADKAR model is especially relevant in a rapidly evolving environment, where companies must adapt to new technologies, processes or regulations. The ability to manage these changes effectively directly impacts productivity, competitiveness, and ultimately organizational success.

What is the ADKAR model used for in companies: advantages and disadvantages

Implementing the ADKAR model in companies helps ensure that everyone in the organization understands, accepts, and adapts to changes effectively. Its individual-centric approach allows each employee to progress at their own pace, addressing any resistance or barriers that might arise. All in all, ADKAR is a tool for change that not only improves the adoption of new practices or technologies, but also increases employee engagement and satisfaction.

Advantages:

  • Clear structure: The five-phase structure facilitates an organized and easy-to-follow process.
  • Focus on the individual: By focusing change on people, you increase the chances of success and genuine adaptation.
  • Identification of barriers: Helps to detect and address resistance to change.

 

Disadvantages:

  • Individual approach: May not adapt well to changes that require rapid transformations at the organizational level.
  • Culture dependency: Requires an organizational environment that supports and encourages change.
  • Limitation in complex changes: In large transformations it may be necessary to complement it with other models of change.

 

The 5 phases of the ADKAR model

The ADKAR model is a powerful tool designed to help you manage organizational change in a structured and efficient way. Developed by Prosci, ADKAR is an acronym that represents the five essential milestones an individual must pass in order for a change to be successful. Let’s break down each of its components:

1. Awareness

The first step of the ADKAR model is awareness. As its name suggests, this stage involves making employees aware of the need for change. In order to be convinced, they must understand why it is necessary, and what the risks of not implementing it could be. Without this awareness, professionals are unlikely to engage in or support the process of change. Internal communication tools and focused awareness sessions can be implemented to help achieve this.

2. Desire

After awareness comes desire. This phase refers to the willingness of individuals to participate in and support the change. Desire is driven by an array of motivational factors, which can be personal (such as individual recognition and professional development) or organizational (such as improvements to the work environment). In order to stimulate this desire, it’s important to utilize an organization’s leaders as agents of change, who can set an example, inspire, and motivate their teams.

3. Knowledge

The third phase of ADKAR is knowledge. At this stage, employees need to gain knowledge of how the change will be implemented and what their new responsibilities will be. This process can include traditional training, workshops, online learning, and many other types of educational resources. Creating a clear and flexible learning plan is key to ensuring that everyone has the skills and information they need to effect the change successfully.

4. Ability

The fourth component of the model is ability. This phase determines the ability of individuals to apply the knowledge they’ve developed to performing their new roles or tasks. Here, practical or experiential learning and ongoing support are two essential elements that will help employees develop the skills they need. Practice, feedback and coaching also play an important role in ensuring that everyone can perform according to the new expectations.

5. Reinforcement

Lastly, we have reinforcement. This final phase is important to ensure that the implemented changes are maintained over the long term. It involves implementing systems and mechanisms that are intended to reinforce and sustain new behaviors. Examples of these could include recognition and reward schemes, performance evaluations, and consistent communication on the benefits and results achieved through the implementation of change. Without adequate reinforcement at this point, there is a significant risk of regression to old behaviors.

The ADKAR model offers a clear, well-defined path to managing change, which focuses on the specific needs and experiences of the people involved in it. By understanding and acting on each of the five phases, organizations can significantly increase their chances of success when seeking to implement change initiatives.

How to implement the ADKAR model in your organization

Implementing the ADKAR model involves more than simply understanding its different phases – you’ll need to use the right tools and resources to facilitate each step of the change process. Below, we discover some of the tools and resources that can help you to integrate the ADKAR model into your organization.

Communication tools

Effective communication is the basis for achieving the first two steps – awareness and desire – of the ADKAR model. You’ll need to disseminate information to your employees about the need for change, the benefits that can be expected, and the various steps in the process, and internal communication toolscan help you to do this.

Solutions such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, and WhatsApp can be used to send instant messages, hold virtual meetings, share documents, and carry out group discussions. Webinars and video conferences also come into play for answering employee questions and addressing concerns, ensuring that everyone is clear and aligned on the goals of the change.

Nowadays, you can also take advantage of corporate apps that allow you to keep your team up-to-date with the latest developments in your company. These have the additional benefit of acting as an instant, two-way communication channel. They also feature new methodologies and learning formats such as gamification, which can increase employee engagement as well as reinforce your corporate culture.

E-learning platforms

When it comes to carrying out the knowledge phase, e-learning platforms are essential. They provide a flexible and agile way to deliver all the training and educational resources employees need, making it easy for them to understand how change will be implemented and what their new responsibilities will be. Using a learning management system (LMS) like isEazy LMS allows you to easily manage and distribute interactive and engaging training content. Interactive training modules, explanatory videos, questionnaires and collaborative spaces are just a few examples of the resources on offer when you opt to use one of these platforms.

Training and development programs

Specific, focused training programs are vital to ensure that employees pick up the skills they need to perform new tasks or processes. Online courses, coaching and mentoring sessions, as well as practical exercises, all help to develop these skills as well as encourage changes in employee behavior. Additionally, the use of interactive elements such as games and linked scenes can help employees to apply the knowledge they have absorbed within a controlled environment. This creates an opportunity to practice that can better prepare them to face real-life situations.

isEazy Skills provides a wide catalog of courses to meet the specific needs of your employees. These courses help your workforce to acquire power skills – vital abilities that let them carry out new tasks or adapt to new processes – thereby strengthening your whole team’s ability to deal with changes in an effective, efficient way.

Task management systems

During the reinforcement phase, it’s important to have task management systems in place that help to organize and monitor any activities connected to the change you’ve implemented. Task management tools allow employees to track the progress of their various tasks, set deadlines, and collaborate efficiently. Using software like isEazy Engage can help keep your whole team focused and in line with the goals of the change, making it easier to coordinate and carry out the relevant activities.

Change management software

Change management software can be extremely useful when it comes to planning, managing and monitoring the entire change process. These tools help you to coordinate activities, track progress, identify and mitigate any risks, and generally ensure that all steps of the ADKAR model are followed. They also improve communication between team members and make it easy to keep everyone involved up-to-date on the progress of change initiatives.

Dashboards and reports

Making use of dashboards and reports can give you a clear, continuous view of the change implementation progress. These resources are useful for measuring the effectiveness of specific activities related to each phase of the ADKAR model, so you can identify areas that need improvements, as well as pick out successes to celebrate and replicate. Data analysis and key metrics can also yield valuable information to help you make informed decisions throughout the change process.

ADKAR vs. Other models of organizational change

The ADKAR model is one of the most recognized approaches to managing change in organizations, but it is not the only one. There are other frameworks, such as John Kotter‘s model and Kurt Lewin‘s model, which have also proven effective in different contexts. Each of these models has unique characteristics that make them more suitable depending on the type of change being implemented, the size of the organization, and the corporate culture.

ADKAR Model: A Focus on People and the Sequence of Change

The ADKAR model focuses on individuals and the personal experience of change. Its five-phase structure (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Skill, and Reinforcement) addresses employees’ personal and psychological needs to facilitate their adaptation to new ways of working.

This model is ideal for companies that:

  • They need to make changes where individual acceptance is critical to overall success.
  • They face resistance at the team level and must ensure that each person is motivated and equipped for change.
  • They look for a sequential approach that addresses attitudes first and then the skills needed to sustain change.

 

Because of its phase structure, ADKAR is especially useful in gradual changes, where each stage must be well entrenched before moving on to the next. However, due to its focus on the person, it may not be the best for rapid or large-scale transformations, where time is a critical factor.

Kotter’s Model: A Leadership and Organizational Culture Approach

John Kotter, a professor at Harvard University, developed an eight-stage change model, which focuses on organizational culture and how leadership can facilitate transformation. The phases of Kotter’s model include: creating a sense of urgency, forming a guiding coalition, developing a vision, communicating the vision, empowering others to act, achieving short-term wins, consolidating gains, and anchoring changes in the organization’s culture.

Kotter’s model is best suited for:

  • Large-scale organizational changes where support from senior management is essential.
  • Profound cultural transformations where collective mentality and behaviour need to be modified.
  • Situations where the company requires rapid and dynamic change, guided by visible leaders who inspire at all levels of the organization.

 

One of the main strengths of Kotter’s model is its focus on creating a shared vision and ensuring that change is backed by strong leadership. However, this model may not be as effective for smaller or more targeted changes, as the eight-phase process is more complex and demands significant involvement from the management level.

Lewin’s Model: A Three-Phase Structural Approach to Change

Kurt Lewin’s model is one of the oldest approaches and is based on three fundamental phases: Unfreeze, Change, and Refreeze. Lewin stated that change is a process of breaking the current situation to introduce new behaviors and, finally, consolidate these changes in the new organizational structure.

This model is effective for:

  • Specific and well-defined changes, such as the redesign of processes or the implementation of new internal policies.
  • Companies that want a simple, structural approach to change.
  • Situations where a clear transition between the old and the new way of doing things is needed.

 

Lewin’s model is known for its simplicity and clarity, making it easy to apply in companies that require a straightforward structure to execute changes. However, its limitation lies in the fact that it does not contemplate a stage dedicated to individual motivation, which can be problematic in environments where resistance to change is high.

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Benefits Benefits of the ADKAR model for promoting change in a company

Change management is a crucial skill for any organization that wants to stay competitive and relevant in a constantly evolving business environment. Because of its structured approach that focuses on individual needs, the ADKAR model stands out as a highly effective methodology for navigating these changes. Below, we take a look at the benefits offered by this model:

A clear, individual-focused structure

As we mentioned before, one of the main advantages of the ADKAR model is its clear, sequential structure, which greatly assists with the planning and execution of any change initiatives. By focusing on the five milestones (awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement), you can ensure that all essential steps in the process are properly taken. This approach recognizes that wider organizational change can only occur when each employee goes through their own journey.

Reduced resistance to change

Resistance to change is one of the biggest obstacles in any process of transformation. The ADKAR model addresses this issue directly by starting from the point of raising awareness of the need for change, before moving on to fostering the desire to participate in it. By involving employees from the beginning and clearly explaining the reasons driving the change (as well as its eventual benefits), this model can help to reduce resistance and increase support.

Improved communication and engagement

Effective communication is key to the success of any initiative, whether it involves change or not. The ADKAR model emphasizes the importance of keeping employees informed and engaged throughout the process. This involves not only clearly communicating the motivations and benefits associated with the change, but also providing detailed information on what it will take to implement it. A focus on communication helps to build trust, and ensure that all employees are aligned with the organization’s wider goals.

Facilitates learning and development

In order for change to be successful, employees must acquire a range of new knowledge and skills. The ADKAR model includes specific steps to ensure that workers receive the training and resources they need to adapt to the new requirements. This structured approach helps to soften the learning curve and prepare everyone for their new responsibilities.

Encourages sustainable change

The final phase of the ADKAR model, reinforcement, is essential to ensuring that any changes implemented are sustainable in the long term. Many change initiatives fail because there is no clear plan to maintain the new behaviors and practices once the initial implementation phase is complete. ADKAR, however, stresses the importance of continually reinforcing new behaviors through practices such as recognition, rewards, and continuous monitoring. This helps to prevent a return to former ways of operating, and see that change becomes a part of the new organizational culture.

A flexible and adaptable approach

While the ADKAR model provides a sufficiently clear framework for handling change, it’s also flexible enough to adapt to different organizational needs and contexts. So, whether for a technological change, an organizational restructuring, or a continuous improvement initiative, ADKAR can be easily implemented in a way that meets the specific needs of an organization and its employees.

In all, the ADKAR model is a highly valuable tool for managing change as it provides a structured approach that covers all the key steps of the process. Additionally, by focusing on the needs and perceptions of individuals, it helps to ensure that changes are properly understood, adopted and maintained, providing lasting benefits to an organization.

Example of application of the ADKAR model in a company

A practical example would be that of a company that wants to implement a teleworking system. In the Awareness phase, leaders communicate the benefits of work flexibility. In the Desire phase, employees are incentivized by highlighting personal advantages. Then, training is done on digital tools (Knowledge), support is provided on their use (Skill) and, finally, implementation is monitored (Reinforcement).

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Common Mistakes When Implementing the ADKAR Model and How to Avoid Them

The ADKAR model is a powerful tool for managing change, but its implementation is not without its challenges. Some mistakes can arise when applying its five phases, from initial miscommunication to insufficient reinforcement of new habits. Below, we’ll explore the most common mistakes when implementing the ADKAR model and how to avoid them to maximize its effectiveness in the organization.

1. Not spending enough time on the Awareness phase

Mistake: One of the most common mistakes is rushing through the Awareness phase, assuming that all employees automatically understand why change is necessary. The lack of clear and continuous communication about the reasons for change generates confusion and resistance.

How to avoid it: Take time to communicate the “why” behind the change through meetings, informational talks, and internal communication channels. Use concrete examples to show how the change will benefit both the organization and employees. Also, make sure this communication is two-way, allowing employees to voice their concerns and doubts.

2. Underestimating the importance of the Desire phase

Mistake: The Desire phase, which seeks to motivate employees to get involved in change, is often neglected by assuming that all employees will be willing to adapt. However, a lack of adequate incentives can lead to low participation and demotivation.

How to avoid it: Motivate employees by creating a sense of belonging and actively incentivizing them. You can do this through recognition, rewards, or by showing examples of colleagues who have experienced personal benefits from change. Listening to employees’ concerns and responding to them effectively also contributes to generating a genuine desire for participation.

3. Not providing sufficient training in the Knowledge phase

Error: The Knowledge phase requires employees to understand how to perform their tasks according to new procedures or tools. A common mistake is not providing proper training, resulting in confusing and poor implementation of change.

How to avoid it: Make sure training is detailed, relevant, and accessible to everyone. It offers varied learning materials (tutorials, workshops, guides, videos) that suit different learning styles. Also, keep technical support or advisors available for employees to turn to if they need additional help.

4. Lack of support in the Skill phase

Mistake: While employees may know the steps needed for change, they don’t always have the practical skills to apply them correctly. This mistake occurs when they are not given the necessary support and practice so that they can consolidate these skills.

How to avoid it: Facilitate practice opportunities in a supervised environment, where employees can experiment and improve their skills without fear of making mistakes. Assign mentors or experts who can provide one-on-one guidance and answer employee questions. In addition, it provides continuous feedback to help them hone their skills in the context of their daily tasks.

5. Insufficient reinforcement of new habits

Error: One of the most critical mistakes is to assume that, once the change has been implemented, it will be maintained automatically. Without a robust Reinforcement phase, employees are likely to revert to old habits, especially if these were more comfortable or deeply ingrained.

How to avoid it: Implement a tracking system to measure progress and compliance with new behaviors. Offer incentives, recognition, and positive feedback to reinforce changes and create reminders or wrap-up sessions. Also, conduct regular assessments to ensure employees are still implementing the new processes and adjust if necessary.

6. Lack of an ongoing communication plan

Mistake: Another common mistake is not maintaining constant communication throughout the change process. Initial communication can be effective, but if you don’t continue to update and motivate employees, they may lose momentum or clarity about their roles in the change.

How to avoid it: Establish a long-term communication plan that accompanies each phase of ADKAR. Use newsletters, regular meetings, and updates on internal platforms to keep everyone informed and engaged. Also, consider conducting feedback surveys to better understand how employees feel about the change and adapt the communication plan according to their needs.

7. Not involving team leaders in the change process

Mistake: Often, the change process is managed only by the management team or the Human Resources area, without involving team leaders, who play a crucial role in implementing and monitoring change in their respective departments.

How to avoid it: Train team leaders on the ADKAR model and its role in the change process. These leaders must be active ambassadors of change, motivating and guiding their teams in every phase. Arrange follow-up meetings with them to ensure they are aligned with the goals of the change and can help resolve any obstacles their teams may face.

8. Not evaluating the success of each phase of ADKAR

Error: By not measuring the progress of each phase, you run the risk of advancing to the next one without having consolidated the previous one. This can lead to the change not being sustained over time or problems to arise later in the process.

How to avoid it: Set specific metrics and goals for each phase of ADKAR. For example, in the Awareness phase, you can measure the level of understanding about change; in the Skill phase, you can assess employees’ practical competence in new tasks. Make adjustments to the change plan based on the results of these assessments to ensure that each phase is met before moving on to the next.

Take your ADKAR implementation to the next level with isEazy

Implementing the ADKAR model is not just a matter of blindly following a process, but rather taking a considered, strategic approach that maximizes the benefits of organizational change. Throughout this article, we’ve emphasized that by exploring how each phase of ADKAR aims to make the overall transition easier.

To ensure the success of your own change initiative, it’s essential to use the right tools. Platforms such as isEazy Author allow you to create interactive e-learning content, while isEazy LMS makes for efficient learning management. isEazy Skills, on the other hand, offers your workforce a full range of complete and customizable training. Together, these powerful resources can help you in every phase of the ADKAR implementation process.

So, if your organization is ready to revolutionize its approach to change management, then don’t hesitate to request a demo of our solutions! Discover how isEazy can help your team develop new skills, drive innovation, and effectively achieve their strategic objectives.

FAQs about ADKAR Model

What is the ADKAR model and what are its main phases?

The ADKAR model is a change management framework developed by Prosci that helps guide both individuals and organizations in the process of adapting to new ways of working or technology. ADKAR is an acronym that describes five phases necessary for successful change: Awareness, where employees understand the need for change; Desire, which motivates employees to get involved; Knowledge, where they learn how to implement change; Ability, to apply knowledge in their tasks; and Reinforcement, which consolidates change in the long term.

What are the most common mistakes when implementing the ADKAR model in a company?

Common mistakes when implementing ADKAR include rushing through the Awareness phase without clearly communicating the need for change, underestimating the importance of motivating employees in the Desire phase, offering insufficient training in the Knowledge phase, and not properly reinforcing new habits in the Reinforcement phase. To avoid these mistakes, it is essential to dedicate time to each phase, provide constant support, and establish a long-term monitoring and communication system.

How does the ADKAR model compare to other models of change, such as those of Kotter and Lewin?

The ADKAR model differs from other change frameworks because of its focus on the individual level and its five-phase structure. While Kotter’s model focuses on leadership and cultural change in eight steps, and Lewin’s model focuses on a three-phase structured transition (Unfreeze, Change, and Refreeze), ADKAR focuses on people, helping them overcome resistance and develop the skills needed for change. ADKAR is ideal for changes that require individual buy-in, while Kotter and Lewin may be better suited for larger-scale transformations.

How can the change be reinforced in the final phase of the ADKAR model?

To consolidate the change in the Reinforcement phase, it is important to establish a system of incentives and recognition, such as rewards or positive feedback, that motivates employees to maintain the new practices. It is also advisable to conduct regular evaluations of progress and continue to communicate the benefits and achievements of the change. In addition, using reminders and creating wrap-up sessions can help new habits become an integral part of employees’ daily work.

Paula Cury Monteiro
Paula Cury Monteiro
Content Marketing Specialist at isEazy

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