April CLT Monthly Meeting Summary - "Member Burning Issue: Changes in Change Management"
At this meeting, we explored Melanie Hilton's burning issue, the evolution of change management. Our guest speaker, Melanie Franklin, set up our discussion. Melanie’s approach bridges neuroscience, leadership, and culture to help organizations thrive in ongoing transformation. She advocates that organizations need to:
● Move beyond “project-by-project” change.
● Focus on people’s emotional and neurological responses.
● Build widespread change literacy and resilience.
● Embed change capability into culture—not just into change programs.
1. Rethinking Traditional Change Management
Traditional change models (like ADKAR, Lewin’s Three-Step Model, Bridges’ Transition Model, and Kotter’s 8 Steps) are built around the assumption that stakeholders are only experiencing one change at a time.
Melanie’s critique:
● Organizations are now experiencing continuous, overlapping waves of change (e.g., post-COVID shifts, hybrid work models, AI integration, economic volatility).
● These models fail when applied in high-change environments.
● Leaders must realize: the volume of change isn’t decreasing—and treating each change as isolated is ineffective and even harmful.
2. Leading Transformation vs. Sponsoring Change
New perspective:
● Leaders aren’t just change “sponsors” anymore.
● They are stewards of constantly transforming organizations.
Dual objective for leaders:
1. Achieve change benefits (performance, growth, productivity).
2. Create a positive experience of change for people affected by it.
Failing to focus on experience leads to:
● Resistance, cynicism, and fatigue.
● A slowdown in future initiatives due to eroded trust.
● Poor organizational resilience to future changes.
Creating positive experiences builds:
● Change capacity and capability—your people learn to adapt faster and with more confidence.
3. Everyone Is in “Perform + Transform” Mode
Melanie highlights that everyone in an organization has:
● A “perform” role (day-to-day operations).
● A “transform” role (driving or adapting to improvements).
Even if only 10% of someone's job is about transformation, they:
● Must adopt changes.
● Often influence others (teams, peers, suppliers, customers).
● Need emotional and cognitive tools to manage that.
Therefore, building change capability must be organization-wide, not reserved for a change management team.
4. Neuroscience: The Brain on Change
The brain’s default reaction to change is fear. It interprets the unknown as a threat, triggering:
○ Adrenaline (short-term energy).
○ Noradrenaline (stress/hyper-vigilance).
○ Cortisol (sustained anxiety).
The threat response causes:
● Narrowed focus (reduced peripheral vision).
● Withdrawal from change.
● Resistance, even to beneficial initiatives.
5. The Chemistry of Positive Change
To counteract fear and promote engagement, aim to trigger:
● Dopamine: Motivation, reward, drive (“I want to do more”).
● Endorphins: Natural painkillers, associated with happiness.
● Oxytocin: Connection, trust, social bonding (amplifies positive feelings when shared with others).
Melanie uses this neuroscience to coach leaders on creating rewarding environments around change.
6. The Four Core Conditions for Change Success
Melanie presents four non-negotiable neurological needs that must be met to support a positive change experience:
✅ Confidence
● Belief that the change has purpose and personal value.
● “This is worth my time.”
✅ Certainty
● Clarity of what’s coming next, even if just short-term.
● “I know what’s expected today or this week.”
✅ Choice
● Sense of autonomy and agency.
● “I had a say. I’m not just being told.”
✅ Connection
● Shared journey with others. Bonding matters.
● “I’m not alone. We’re in this together.”
Melanie suggests using these four conditions as success criteria for any change initiative—more practical than applying outdated theoretical models.
Q&A Highlights
Q: Can resilience to change be learned? A: Yes.
● The brain adapts to change through repeated, curated exposure. Over time, it produces less adrenaline and noradrenaline, making future changes feel less threatening.
Q: How can we snap out of hyper-vigilance? A: Focus on small wins + mindfulness.
● Melanie recommends:
○ Deep breathing.
○ Reflecting on achievements to boost dopamine.
○ Using smiling and social moments to release endorphins and oxytocin.
○ Creating rituals that mark progress or completion.
There is a rich set of notes from each of the four breakout sessions; you can find summaries of these discussions linked here:
