APMG Change Practitioner flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

ADKAR model

A five-stage individual change model: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement; a person must progress through each stage for a change to be adopted and sustained.

Transition stages

Bridges identifies three transition phases: ending and letting go, the neutral zone of uncertainty, and a new beginning; people need different support in each phase.

Change curve

A model derived from grief research showing common reactions such as shock, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance; movement is not necessarily linear or time-bound.

Conscious competence stages

A learning progression: unconscious incompetence, conscious incompetence, conscious competence, and unconscious competence; learners need practice and feedback to move through the stages.

Beckhard-Harris equation

Change occurs when dissatisfaction with the status quo multiplied by vision and first practical steps exceeds resistance: D × V × F > R; any near-zero factor blocks change.

Resistance as information

Resistance signals a mismatch in awareness, capability, incentives, or agreement; diagnosing the source allows a targeted response instead of assuming opposition is irrational.

Learning transfer

The application of new knowledge and skills to real work; it requires practice, feedback, manager support, and reinforcement after formal training ends.

Lewin change model

A three-stage model: unfreeze current behaviour, move to a new way of working, then refreeze by aligning systems, rewards, and norms so the change persists.

Kotter eight steps

A sequence for leading change: create urgency, form a coalition, build a vision, communicate it, remove barriers, generate short-term wins, consolidate gains, and anchor changes in culture.

McKinsey 7S

Seven interdependent elements-strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style, staff, and skills-that must be aligned for organisational change to succeed.

Schein culture levels

Culture has visible artefacts, espoused values, and underlying basic assumptions; the deepest assumptions are hardest to change because they are taken for granted.

Planned versus emergent change

Planned change follows deliberate design and sequence; emergent change unfolds through continuous adaptation and learning. Choice depends on urgency, complexity, and uncertainty.

Change governance

The decision rights, stage gates, reporting lines, and escalation routes for a change; clear governance assigns accountability for benefits, risks, and go/no-go decisions.

Change saturation

The cumulative load of concurrent changes on a group; high saturation reduces capacity to adopt further change and raises the risk of fatigue and failure.

Stakeholder definition

Any person or group affected by the change or able to affect its outcome, including employees, customers, suppliers, regulators, unions, and leaders.

Power-interest grid

A mapping tool that classifies stakeholders by power and interest; high-power, high-interest groups need close management, while low-power, low-interest groups need monitoring.

Stakeholder position

A stakeholder's current stance toward the change-supportive, neutral, or resistant-combined with influence and impact to prioritise engagement effort.

IAP2 engagement spectrum

A range of participation levels: inform, consult, involve, collaborate, and empower; moving right increases stakeholder influence over decisions and demands more capability.

Coalition building

Recruiting influential supporters who can legitimise the change, mobilise resources, and persuade peers; coalitions are strongest when membership spans functions and levels.

Stakeholder analysis review

A repeated assessment of stakeholder positions, influence, and impact as the change progresses; earlier assumptions are updated because positions shift with information and events.

Communication plan

A schedule specifying audience, key message, channel, sender, timing, and feedback method; it aligns communication with stakeholder needs and change milestones.

Shannon-Weaver model

A linear communication model with sender, encoding, channel, noise, receiver, and decoding; feedback helps confirm that the intended message was understood.

Channel richness

The capacity of a channel to convey complex, emotional, or ambiguous messages; face-to-face is rich, while email and dashboards are leaner and better for routine data.

Key message structure

A message that answers why the change is needed, what will change, when, how, and what it means for the audience; repetition supports understanding without adding new facts.

Two-way engagement

A process that invites questions, challenge, and input rather than only broadcasting decisions; it builds trust and surfaces resistance early.

Communication noise

Any interference that distorts a message, such as jargon, rumour, information overload, cultural differences, or channel failure; reducing noise improves shared understanding.

Change lifecycle

The end-to-end sequence from assessing need and defining scope through design, planning, implementation, sustainment, and review; stage gates check readiness before progression.

Change impact assessment

A structured review of how a change affects processes, systems, roles, skills, rewards, and customers; it identifies adoption risks and targeted interventions.

Readiness assessment

A pre-launch evaluation of capability, capacity, willingness, leadership support, and culture; low readiness indicates the need to build conditions before implementation.

Benefits profile

A record of a benefit's description, measure, baseline, target, owner, and timing; it enables benefits to be tracked and realised after the change.

Adoption metrics

Measures such as usage, proficiency, speed of adoption, and sentiment; they show whether people are actually working in the new way, not just whether training was delivered.

Sustainment mechanisms

Embedding changes through policy, training, performance management, rewards, governance, and role clarity so new behaviours persist after the project closes.