Confirm The Business Change Sponsor

The change sponsor provides a critical role for any change or transformation programme. 

Experience with previous change programmes confirms change happens, most easily, from the top down, however, the role is not just about the Sponsors position in the organisation.

The Change Sponsor must be the the visible champion of the change. The Change sponsor must articulate the vision and direction to all stakeholders and demonstrably living the change. The change sponsor is a key driver of success, motivating, and encouraging the change team to manage the programme to completion.

All transformation programmes must have a change sponsor to maintain momentum and focus during the change programme.  Ultimately, the success or failure of a change initiative is the responsibility of the Change Sponsor.  In reality many transformations fail to deliver on their planned benefits due to sponsors who, however good they are at running an organisation, don’t know how to lead a transformation effectively.

The extent of leadership required is dependent on the Level of Change.

Change is always fundamentally aligned to the Strategy and strategic objectives of the organisation. The need for change arises due to a shift in the internal and external forces which influence the organisation.  The was the organisational responses to change is dependent on the outcome of the initiative and the experience and leadership of the Change Sponsor should match the level required:

• Change at the Strategic level impacting the organisation, employees and customers requires an executive, for example, CEO, COO or board-level Change Sponsor.
• Change at the Management Level for minor systems or process improvements without significant impact on the organisation may only require a management or GM level sponsor.
• Change at the Business Project Level for managing the alignment of people, processes and technology within a project level can require a Business Change Manager. Smaller project may only require a Project Manager with Change Management competencies.

Typically, a Project Manager will be responsible for selecting the Business Change Sponsor.  If the Change Management team is engaged in the programme early, ideally the Change Management Manager should have input into this decision.

Effective sponsorship is essential to the success of a change initiative. The sponsor must be fully committed to the change and be able to communicate that commitment to others within the organisation. The sponsor must contain the skillset to engage with stakeholders at all levels of the organisation, including employees, customers, suppliers, partners, and management.

Change Management and Organizational Change Governance.

In addition to providing sponsorship, the sponsor may also work closely with the change management team. Where an organisation has existing Change capabilities, the sponsor will collablorate to ensure that the change initiative is implemented in a way that is aligned with the organisation's goals and objectives.

This may involve guidance and feedback to and from the change management team, as well as monitoring the progress of the initiative to ensure that it is on track to deliver the expected benefits.

The Right Change Sponsor

It is essential to confirm the sponsor has the right mix of skills, experience, and knowledge to champion the change.  The Change Sponsor is ultimately responsible for the change realising the planned business benefits.  The level of sponsorship required depends on the risk level of the change.  Consider the following when securing which Change Sponsor is suitable for a Change Project.

The Right Change Sponsor:

Can champion the Change, need for change, and the strategic benefits of the change:

1. Has the competencies and credibility to lead the programme.
2. Is engaged and understands the organisation’s strategies and vision.
3. Has an overall knowledge of the business, its market, customers and competition.

Embodies the change and can influence others to change:

1. Can demonstrates the ‘we are already there’ values and behaviours aligned with and supportive of the future vision.
2. Is committed to the change and new ways of working, demonstrating the embodiment of appropriate values, behaviour and ways of relating and communicating with others.

Understands the project and change best practices:

1. Understands the budget and resources for the project.
2. Sets the priorities between project work and day-to-day work.
3. Advocates for assigning the best resources to the change team.
4. Has change management competencies and experience to support the programme.

Larger strategic transformations may have more than one change sponsor.  There must always be a primary executive sponsor, however, as with any large organisation or programme the change team may include additional sponsors for financial, product, architecture or other specialist areas of the programme.

Steps to confirm the Change Sponsor

The sponsor is often confirmed early in the planning of the change initiative. 

The organisation may have already assigned a Change Sponsor to the transformation programme before a project manager comes on-board the project. 

If you are in the position to have input into the selection of the Change Sponsor, then use this checklist to identify sponsor risks to the programme. 

• Download and complete the sponsor assessment - This checklist should be reviewed and discussed with the senior stakeholders. 

Download the Change Sponsor Checklist