The ADKAR mode of change management was first designed in the 90s by Jeff Hiatt
, the founder of Prosci where the ADKAR was also first used as a practical tool in 2003. Hiatt developed the model after a thorough analysis of both successful and unsuccessful change processes in hundreds of different organisations in numerous world countries over the period of several years.
The name of the model itself is an acronym representing five stages and key concepts of the change process: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement. In its essence, ADKAR is a fairly simple tool that serves to help change the process. It breaks the process down into five most basic and essential elements, with each of them representing a stage on the successful journey to change.
Unlike most of the other management change models, ADKAR focuses on individual change rather than the change on the level of the whole organisation. It successfully recognises that there can’t be any organisational change without it first happening on the individual level.
The goal of the entire ADKAR model is to help leaders and managers focus their efforts on supporting and coaching their employees within the organisation during the change process so that each individual can accept and get along with the change.
With the help of ADKAR, employees can understand why the change is necessary and how each of them, along with the whole business, will benefit from it. In turn, this will result in driving the organisational change process, making it successful and more efficient, and, ultimately, delivering a positive outcome.
