As a leader, you must work to identify specific
objections of key stakeholders and diffuse them
through education and communication. One key
stakeholder group you want to make sure is onboard
is your own marketing group. I’ve seen situations
where the marketing team was not bought into this
new vision and it created havoc for the plan.
The outcome of this stage is a general acceptance of
the need for change and the willingness to evaluate
options.
Expect a greater cross section of team members to
begin to make a more significant contribution to the
transformation during this stage.
Action Guide:
1. Establish marketing’s persona as a change
agent with a well-researched plan that takes
into account all key stakeholders.
2. Communicate often and in many formats
such as executive briefings, company meetings, sales meetings, marketing meetings, anecdotes, and case studies. This is a new
concept for many companies and as a result,
all key stakeholders need to hear the message
and the plan.
3. Inclusion is a key tactic that drives gaining
commitment. Hold facilitated brainstorming
sessions with key marketing personnel to discuss possibilities of a future state of marketing.
The outcome of this stage is a detailed plan and
implementation begins in earnest.
Acceptance:
Acceptance of the new strategy occurs as the result of
presenting and gaining buy-in of the Roadmap – a
complete plan of action for how marketing will help
drive revenue. Acceptance is the stage of change
where you transition from talking about WHAT you
want to do to HOW you are going to do it (turn
strategy into action). One of the longer stages of
change, Acceptance is characterized by putting more
structure and definition around what will change and
exactly how it will change, over what period of time
and who is accountable for each activity.
Action Guide:
1. Outline key strategic objectives of the change,
tie each key process or task to the broader
objective, and assign accountability.
2. Provide a plan to educate and upskill those
who will be effected by the change. Communicate this plan to team members and stakeholders.
3. Create a PR plan to celebrate innovative ideas,
key milestones, and next steps. Foster engagement by celebrating successes and highlighting milestones reached.
Word of caution: Do NOT try to boil the ocean at this
stage. Consider resources, time, cost and your culture
when developing an implementation timeline.
Acceptance evolves into adoption when strategy
turns into action.
Adoption:
In this stage, stakeholder groups move from “going
through the motions” of the new strategy to personally realizing the value of the changes and incorporating this paradigm into their daily roles and
strategies.
Strictly Marketing Magazine September/October 2016
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