Mastering the Change Curve

Change Management Assessment & Training

Change is a part of everyday life. And if organisations want to remain competitive in the marketplace, they need to ensure their employees are equipped for the ride. That's why you need Mastering the Change Curve to help individuals, employees, and managers learn how to understand, accept, and move through each phase.

It's clear — recurring change is the norm in organisational life today. Still, most of us have difficulty dealing with it. Experts in the field of change management, Drs. Jaffe and Scott describe change as a natural progression through four phases. To successfully master change, individuals must pass through all four phases: Denial, Resistance, Exploration, and Commitment. Mastering the Change Curve uncovers individual reactions to change and provides an understanding of how behaviour affects success.

Learning Outcomes

• Gain an understanding of the four phases of change
• Identify productive - and nonproductive change behaviours
• Develop a strategy to master change
• Pinpoint one's current stage in the change management assessment process
• Understand the Change Curve Model

The Change Curve Model is based on the following principles of change:

• Change is an ongoing process rather than an event.
• There is a progressive sequence of change behaviours that needs to be experienced and mastered to be effective in handling change.
• Seemingly negative behaviours such as denial, apprehension, anger, and resistance, are normal and adaptive elements in the change process.
• There are specific strategies available to increase change mastery.
• The progression through the phases of change represents an opportunity for growth and responsible risk taking.

What to order: You will need 1 Paper or Online assessment per participant. For maximum benefit, purchase 1 Facilitator Guide per trainer.

How it Works

Individuals begin by identifying a specific change in the organisation that they are experiencing. They then respond to 24 statements using a 5-point rating scale to indicate how true each statement is of their current reaction. Subtotal scores indicate where they are along the Change Curve. Individuals then learn more about the different phases of change (Denial, Resistance, Commitment, and Exploration.) Finally, discussion questions and action planning follow the discussion of each phase.

Uses for Mastering the Change Curve

• As a method of monitoring change when signs of resistance or difficulty have surfaced
• As a measurement to monitor and track progress through a change
• To help individuals understand their responses to change and plan ways to move through phases with which they may be having difficulty
• As a basis of discussion for groups, teams, business units, or an entire organisation in the midst of a change initiative
• As part of a workshop on change
• As part of a team-building session
• In a management retreat
• As part of a planning session on change