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The ABCs of Sponsorship
Prosci's ABCs of Sponsorship emerged from more than two decades of Best Practices in Change Management research in which participants identified the most critical roles of executive sponsors during times of change. The ABCs of effective sponsorship are:
A) Active and visible participation throughout the project
The role of active and visible participation for the primary sponsor was cited in the research more frequently than any other sponsor activity. Study participants identified a list of activities that constituted active and visible sponsorship—from championing the change and allocating the necessary funding to participating in change activities and supporting the team. Sponsors cannot disappear once they've attended the kickoff meeting for a project. Their sustained presence is necessary to build and maintain momentum for a change.
B) Build a coalition of sponsorship
Participants expressed the need for the primary sponsor to take the lead in building and maintaining a strong group of sponsors—or sponsor coalition—to help support the change. The primary sponsor must mobilize other key business leaders and stakeholders, so they can advocate for the change and legitimize it in their part of the organization. A healthy coalition of sponsors is especially important for changes that stretch across multiple functions within the organization.
C) Communicate, support and promote the change to impacted groups
People impacted by change want to hear why a change is important from a leader at the very top of their organization. Senior leaders are the preferred senders of messages about the business reasons for change, as well as the risks or costs of not changing. An effective primary sponsor legitimizes the need for change within the organization and sets the prioritization of change through direct engagement with impacted employees.
Although these roles are critical to the success of any change effort, in reality, many executives and senior leaders are not fulfilling these roles effectively. The figure below shows the percentage of participants who stated their sponsors were either extremely ineffective or ineffective at the three roles outlined above. The role that sponsors struggled with most is building a coalition of sponsors.
Importance of Sponsors During Change
Prosci research demonstrates that sponsors are so critical to change efforts that they can make or break a project or initiative. Understanding this research can help practitioners clearly communicate this importance to leaders, as well as what it takes to be successful and how to avoid costly mistakes.
When it comes to change, primary sponsors and sponsors are:
A top contributor to success
When asked to identify key contributors to the success of their change initiatives, participants in the Best Practices in Change Management – 11th Edition research study placed active and visible sponsorship at the top of the list. Sponsorship has been number one on the list of top contributors in all of Prosci’s benchmarking reports since 1998. Although much has changed in the discipline of change management over the last two decades, the importance of the primary sponsor's role in change has remained constant.
The biggest obstacle to success
When asked to identify the biggest obstacle to success, participants in the same study identified a lack of executive support and active sponsorship as their primary obstacle to success. Ineffective primary sponsors did not understand their role in change, the resources required, or the purpose of the change. They were inactive or invisible, not at the right level, did not align with other leaders around the change, and wavered in their support. Ineffective sponsorship resulted in more resistance and slower progress toward realizing the organization’s desired results.
A key influence on starting early
Senior leadership involvement and previous experience with change management are top contributors to starting change management early on projects. And Prosci research shows that starting change management activities early in a project’s lifecycle has a significant positive impact on outcomes.
Preferred senders of change communications
Employees have preferred senders of messages about change. Employees want to hear about the change from two people in the organization: the person they report to and a leader at the top.
In addition to having significant impact on the success of change initiatives at a macro level, primary sponsors play a specific key role in supporting change management application and communicating directly to employees about why a change is needed.
Often uninformed about their role
Research participants said their executives and senior leaders were generally willing to be sponsors of change, yet many did not fully understand what that meant. The figure below shows how well leaders understood their role and responsibilities as change sponsors. More than 50% of participants reported that their sponsors did not have an adequate understanding of the role of a sponsor.
Critical to projects meeting objectives
Prosci's research consistently shows that sponsor effectiveness is critical to project success. Participants in the latest research reported that sponsor effectiveness had a direct impact on whether the project met objectives. In fact, those projects with an extremely effective sponsor met or exceeded objectives more than twice as often as those with a very ineffective sponsor.
Change Practitioners as Enabling Partners
Sponsors have a critical role to play in change, but information alone will not make them successful. To help sponsors fulfill the ABCs of Sponsorship, change management practitioners must play an enabling role. This includes clarifying the sponsor role, sharing supporting research and data, offering coaching and encouragement, and helping with tactical responsibilities to set up the sponsor for success. By facilitating specific sponsorship activities and action steps, change practitioners become vital partners in driving successful change outcomes.