Integrating Change Management with Implementing OKRs

This article is written by Nisha Joseph (Profit.co) on the synergy between OKRs and change management.

Integrating change management with OKRs helps analyze objectives and prioritize initiatives while monitoring the progress toward new goals. As the world embraces fast-paced technological advances, businesses must develop effective ways of adapting to new market conditions and evolving customer trends amidst unexpected global crises.

What are OKRs?

OKRs stand for Objectives and Key Resources. OKR is a goal-setting framework used by individuals, teams, and organizations to define measurable goals and track their outcomes. It was originally developed in the 1970s at Intel and has been actively used ever since. Organizations like Google and Twitter use the OKR framework to align everyone in the organization behind a few strategic goals.

By integrating OKRs and change management, businesses can maintain agility and gain a competitive edge. Let’s discuss the change management best practices as we explore how to integrate them with OKRs to ensure business success.  

What is Change Management?

In a nutshell, change management is successfully implementing organizational changes, such as new policies or procedures, to achieve desired outcomes. This systematic approach involves activities like identifying, assessing, and managing associated risks to ensure the successful implementation of new methods and strategies. Organizational changes should always align with the organizational strategy and therefore be in line with the organizations’ OKRs. Let’s break down change management a bit more.

Understanding Different Types of Change

There are many ways in which one could categorize the types of change but in this article, we will use the distinction between radical, incremental, and transformational change.

1. Radical Change

The first type of change that your business can encounter is radical or disruptive change. This type of change involves a large-scale shift in your strategy and operations, often triggered by external events such as technological innovation or market shifts. 

Radical changes require careful consideration of potential risks associated with their implementation due to the magnitude of transformation they bring about.

2. Incremental Change

You may also experience incremental change that occurs gradually in response to small customer needs or internal process shifts. 

Incremental changes are less risky than radical ones as they cause minimal disruption across the entire organization. However, such changes might still significantly impact certain areas within your business. 

Some examples include:

• Minor changes like updating employee policies
• Introducing more efficient software systems for business operations

It is essential to be aware of these gradual modifications to keep employees informed and ensure stakeholders have visibility into any progress you make toward organizational goals.

3. Transformational Change

Transformational change alters existing structures and practices by creating a culture that encourages proactive problem-solving at all levels of your organization’s hierarchy. 

Transformational changes challenge traditional working methods while providing growth opportunities through innovative approaches that create a competitive advantage for long-term success.

For instance, you can develop new strategies for customer relationship management (CRM) initiatives or transition towards digital transformation methods such as cloud applications and mobile technology adoption. 

Change Management Models

Businesses must adopt appropriate change management models tailored to their unique circumstances. 

These models help you assess potential risks, plan actionable steps, prioritize objectives, and track progress to ensure successful implementation.

The most prevalent change management models include the following:

Kotter’s Change Management Theory

Kotter’s theory involves eight stages, each focusing on a critical principle linked to how people respond to change. These stages include: 

• Creating a sense of urgency to motivate your team to make progress towards objectives.
• Building a team with the proper knowledge, skills, and commitment
• Establishing a clear vision.
• Communicating frequently and effectively about the change
• Getting started by eradicating roadblocks and implementing constructive feedback 
• Setting short-term goals to achieve success with minimal pressure
• Remaining persistent throughout the change management process, even when faced with challenges
• Incorporating Change in the workplace culture

Lewin’s Model

Lewin’s model makes it easy to understand structured and organizational change. It involves three primary stages, including: 

• Unfreeze- This stage prepares your team for the change since most people often resist change
• Change- This stage is when the change process occurs, so effective communication and leadership are crucial
• Refreeze- This stage is where everyone accepts the change and business processes resume normalcy

ADKAR Model

ADKAR is a behavioral change model developed by ProSci. The ADKAR acronym stands for:

• Awareness – of the necessity for change
• Desire – to participate and bring change
• Knowledge – of how to implement this change
• Ability – to implement the changes regularly
• Reinforcement – to ensure the changes stick

This model is goal-oriented as it focuses on activities that link directly to the overall goals you intend to achieve.

To learn more about how these and other change models can be made more human-centric and evidence-based by leveraging insights from behavioral psychology and neuroscience, read our article on behaviorally informed change models.

Some Change Management Best Practices

Change management is a crucial success driver for any business to thrive in today’s dynamic business world. Implementing the following best practices can help ensure successful change management.

• Create a Clear Plan

When implementing change management, it’s best to involve stakeholders and employees. 

Create a clear communication plan which outlines who needs information and when and provide feedback opportunities for those impacted by the changes. It’s also essential to consider potential resistance to change and develop strategies to manage it effectively. 

As John Kotter cautions in his book, Our Iceberg is Melting, most leaders’ biggest challenge in the change process is convincing people to change behaviors. Therefore, you must clarify why these changes are necessary and communicate your commitment to offering support through the transition.

• Develop Strategic Vision

Once you establish the objectives, key results, and timeline, you must develop a clear plan for implementing OKRs and the changes. The goal is to create a strategic vision defining where you want to go and how you plan to get there. 

You can stay focused on your goals throughout this entire process by creating an environment where your employees feel empowered and encouraged to take ownership of assigned tasks. 

• Prioritize Collaboration

Prioritizing collaboration during change management involves creating an environment where teams feel heard and supported. 

Engaging stakeholders and team members in developing the plan ensures everyone understands their roles and responsibilities throughout the process.

Investing in training initiatives equips your staff with the necessary skills to handle new processes while boosting morale during challenging times.

Incorporating Change Management Best Practices into OKRs

Successful change management requires ongoing evaluation and assessment at each step. It enables you to monitor progress and adjust the course as necessary.

Identifying key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your Objectives and Key Results helps track progress toward the desired outcomes while allowing your team to address arising issues or challenges proactively.

• Be Proactive

Incorporating change management best practices into your OKRs requires you to adopt a proactive approach. This means first understanding the objectives and KPIs associated with each initiative. 

This clarity helps determine the potential outcomes of making changes while identifying any risks arising from implementation. 

• Prioritize Change Initiatives

It is essential to prioritize the change initiatives to maximize available resources and ensure success within given timelines. 

You can leverage technology solutions with innovative collaboration platforms to simplify communication between you, stakeholders, and your team. Such robust tools ensure successful OKR change management through ongoing evaluation and assessment at each step.

Creating clear review processes based on predetermined milestones is best, like measuring performance against the OKRs you established at the initial stages. Doing so empowers you with valuable insights that inform future strategic decisions, allowing your business the agility of evolving strategies.

Embracing Change to Drive Progress on OKRs

Change management requires you to plan how to implement OKRs and strategies to enable your business to respond quickly and adapt when faced with unexpected obstacles. 

By creating a clear roadmap, keeping track of KPIs, and engaging stakeholders, you can ensure effective implementation of initiatives while maintaining the ability to adjust course as necessary. 

Integrating change management and OKRs helps you achieve the desired outcomes within given timelines and gives you invaluable insights that inform future strategic decisions.

Hopefully this article has helped you understand more about integrating change management with OKR implementation. Read more articles on our blog or watch 100+ videos on our Youtube channel!

About Neurofied

Neurofied is a behavioral science company specialized in training, consulting, and change management. We help organizations drive evidence-based and human-centric change with insights and interventions from behavioral psychology and neuroscience. Consider us your behavioral business partner who helps you build behavioral change capabilities internally.

Since 2018, we have trained thousands of professionals and worked with over 100 management, HR, growth, and innovation teams of organizations such as Johnson & Johnson, KPMG, Deloitte, Novo Nordisk, ABN AMRO, and the Dutch government. We are also frequent speakers at universities and conferences.

Our mission is to democratize the value of behavioral science for teams and organizations. If you see any opportunities to collaborate, please contact us here.