Navigating change can be challenging, but with the right leadership, it becomes an opportunity for growth and improvement.

In the below Q&A with our managing consultant, William Izzard – an Experienced Prosci® Practitioner, Chartered Mechanical Engineer and Clean Language Facilitator with over 25 years’ experience in projects and change in business – he explores the concept of change leadership and why it is essential for organisations.

With a special focus on behaviours and the neuroscience of change, Will delves into the idea that change leadership is about more than just overseeing transitions – it’s about inspiring people to embrace new ways of working, creating an environment for positive habits to thrive that spark positive cultural shifts. Now that’s change leadership!

So let’s kick this off…

What is change leadership and why does it matter?

Change leadership is the practice of guiding people through transitions by focusing on behaviours, effective communication and creating an environment where positive habits can spread organically. It matters because meaningful, long-lasting change occurs when everyone in the organisation adopts new behaviours aligned with strategic goals, leading to a sustainable evolution of culture: those leading change are best placed to model and be exemplars for those behaviours. Effective change leadership also involves strong sponsorship, with leaders actively supporting and championing the change, which significantly increases its chances of success.

What approaches and techniques can we take to make change leadership effective?

Our approach is effective because it blends ideas from behavioural science with strategic communication and engagement, aligning change initiatives with organisational objectives. By combining ideas from behavioural science with strategic communication and engagement, and aligning change initiatives with organisational objectives, we can often (in my experience) yield the most effective change leadership. I personally use techniques like symbolic modelling to coach leaders – this is a practice creating metaphors for describing the outcomes or changes desired and is particularly impactful because we make sense of the world in terms of metaphor. Combined with insights from models like the NeuroLeadership Institute’s SCARF (Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness, Fairness), the Behavioural Insights Team’s EAST (Easy, Attractive, Social, Timely) and University College London’s COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation – Behaviour) to understand and influence behaviours.

I also like to emphasise positive, persuasive language inspired by the advertising world to make change compelling – traditional change management can be terribly apologetic and you’d never get that in advertising!

Why are changes in our behaviours important and how do they support long-lasting change?

Behaviours are the building blocks of culture; when individuals adopt small, positive actions aligned with organisational goals, these behaviours can spread, leading to significant cultural shifts.

Our CMC ‘CAB’ model – Context, Approach, Behaviours – supports this by first understanding the context of where an organisation finds itself, such as its challenges and barriers, then developing an approach that nurtures the specific behaviours needed for meaningful and enduring change. Strong change sponsorship and ongoing engagement reinforce these behaviours, helping to sustain change over time.

How can leaders be supported and equipped to drive effective change?

Leaders can be supported through coaching that enhances their ability to communicate effectively, inspire their teams and act as strong change sponsors. I myself am proud to offer an ‘under the radar’ service you could call ‘change therapy’ – when you are in the role of a change facilitator, it is a privilege that people open up to you, so I encourage all the folks in my change teams to notice this and value it.

By providing practical tools and resources – such as refining how feedback is sought and given, modelling behaviour, etc. – leaders can be equipped to adjust as needed. When we equip leaders with these skills and resources, we enable them to drive change effectively and sustain it over time.

What are your three key take-outs for the successful adoption of change?

1. Focus on behaviours as the primary drivers of change; small actions aligned with strategic goals can lead to significant cultural shifts.
2. Ensure strong change sponsorship by having leaders actively support and champion the change, reinforcing desired behaviours through effective communication and example.
3. Improve the change capability of everyone involved, implement feedback loops and measure progress to sustain the change, making it a shared and ongoing responsibility across the organisation.

Ultimately, when everyone in an organisation starts adopting new behaviours that align with strategic goals, real lasting change happens. And it all starts with leaders who actively support and champion these changes, modelling behaviours and making the success of the transformation far more likely.