Virtual Change Management Training for Your Nonprofit
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Change is the only constant.
I'd agree with the Greek philosopher, Heraclitus on this one. And the last two years have made this even more evident.
Whether we are leading change, managing change, or implementing change, we have probably been stretched at least once or a dozen times since 2020.
And I suspect that will continue, and we'll need to use those change muscles even more.
So how do you develop the change management skills of your people virtually?
One Approach to Developing Change Management Skills
Developing change management skills can be complex because changes are complex, but here's one simple approach I recommend.
Pick a single supporting skill an start there.
Determine what success looks like with that supporting skill in the context of a change.
Design a meaningful virtual training experience.
Supporting Skills
Because change management is so complex, it requires multiple supporting skills to be successful. Think about which skills will be most important for your specific change and consider your team's strengths and areas for improvement. Then, select a skill to focus on. It might be:
Strategic thinking
Decision making
Communication
Something else unique to your audience and your organization
A Picture of Success
Once you've selected the skill you want to focus on, spend the time to paint a picture of success. What does it look like, sound like, and feel like when your team is communicating effectively? What are the observable actions you might see? List every detail so you can paint a picture of success.
Meaningful Virtual Training
Once you know what skill you are focusing on and what success look like, you can design a meaningful virtual training experience. Here are some tips to create something that is effective and engaging:
Make it collaborative so staff can reflect on their past experiences with that skill, share what they've learned, and learn from each other.
Invite a guest or panel of guests from other organizations to learn from their experiences.
Identify a change staff are experiencing or will experience soon and allow them to brainstorm what the supporting skill looks like in action.
Give them the chance to use that skill in context of the change you identified and allow them to get feedback from their peers.
All of this can be done virtually.
And it's essential that it happens.
Because change is the only constant.
P.S. If you want support creating more effective virtual change management training, here's how I can help:
Follow me on LinkedIn for more content and resources.
Send me an email - heather@skillmastersmarket.com - with the subject line "learning strategy" and share a little bit about your organization and what your needs are.
Schedule a free call.
About the Author
An experienced learning & development professional, Heather Burright is a principal consultant with Skill Masters Market.