Change Survival Guide 2025

Kia ora (Hi there) Change Wranglers,

Change managers frequently reach out to me to discuss their current challenges.

There are predictable patterns here, so if you were to ask me for a list of the top ten biggest change preoccupations of 2025, it would be this:

1. AI-Driven Change Management

2. Change Fatigue and Burnout Prevention

3. Hybrid Work and Culture Shifts

4. Leadership Alignment and Strategic Buy-In

5. Change Metrics and ROI

6. Employee Experience During Change

7. Agile Change Enablement

8. Digital Transformation Readiness

9. Resistance Management

10. Change Governance and Portfolio Oversight

One of my main observations about these items is that organisations try to do too much too quickly and move too fast.

“Change Management that Sticks” was, in many ways, my attempt to distil pretty complex ideas down to their most straightforward and implementable forms.

And my two courses are the same. “Sell Change with Confidence” provides you with a model and templates to deploy an effective change in five key moves. Effective Change Impact Assessment demystifies the development of impact assessments, providing a practical experience in creating one.

Over the next couple of weeks, I would like to address each of these challenges and offer three simple tips on how to approach them without feeling overwhelmed.

Let’s start by nibbling on the elephant's ear rather than trying to stuff the whole thing in our mouths!🐘

If you'd like to listen to this newsletter as a podcast, you can click here.

1. AI-Driven Change Management

How to keep it human.

• Pilot first, preach later: Run a small AI rollout in one department and gather feedback before scaling. Example: Test an AI helpdesk tool in IT before rolling it out organisation-wide.

• Demystify the tech: Use simple metaphors to clarify complex concepts. “AI is your digital assistant, not a robot overlord.” Don’t over-promise what it can deliver.

• Be the ethics referee: Establish a cross-functional committee to review concerns about bias and transparency.

2. Change Fatigue & Burnout

Everyone’s exhausted, probably including you.

• Cycle the heat: Create “cool-down” phases post-major changes (bake in the breather).

• Listen, don’t just talk: Use pulse surveys to catch burnout early. Better yet, walk the floor or open a virtual coffee room.

• Celebrate small wins: When someone adapts well, shout it from the Slack channels. Rewards don’t need to be expensive—recognition goes a long way.

3. Hybrid Work & Culture Shifts

Culture eats strategy for breakfast—and it’s hungry.

• Create shared rituals: Weekly “Win Wednesdays” or remote quiz nights help hybrid teams bond.

• Measure vibes: Regularly run culture scans or sentiment analysis tools (a 3-emoji poll can be revealing).

• Lead from the webcam: Model behaviours you want to see. If leaders aren’t showing up online or are ‘camera-off’, the team commitment will also switch off.

4. Leadership Buy-In & Strategic Alignment

Getting the C-suite to give a damn.

• Speak their language: Tie every initiative to revenue, risk, or reputation. Example: “This change could improve NPS by 10% and cut churn by 5%.”

• Invite them early: Pitch a solution, but co-create the problem framing with execs.

• Visuals win: A one-pager beats a 30-slide deck. Use infographics, not spreadsheets. Chatty is a whiz at helping with this!

5. Proving ROI of Change

“Trust me” won’t cut it.

• Pick the right metrics: Think adoption rates, usage statistics, and behavioural change—not just task completion.

• Build a dashboard: Use Power BI, Tableau, or heck, even a colourful Excel sheet that execs can understand. Zhush it up using Chatty.

• Tell stories with data: “Since the new CRM launched, customer response time has dropped by 18%” lands better than “Usage improved.”

We'll cover the remaining five in my next newsletter.

Until next time, keen changin' for the better.

Your change fairy godmother, Barb 🧚‍♀️✨

Barb Grant

Cutting through the noise to get to change that sticks.

================

Get my free 52-page PDF workbook for change agents here👉Bonus Workbook

Check out my Sell Change with Confidence Course for change managers and change leaders here👉 Sell Change with Confidence

Check out my Effective Change Impact Assessment course for change managers and volun-told change agents here👉Effective Change Impact Assessment

Check out my change manager mentoring package here👉Mentoring for CMs

Get my bestselling, gold award-winning book here👉 "Change Management that Sticks."

Get an A4 Daily Planner for Change Managers here👉 "A4 Daily Planner for Change Managers"

Find out more about what I do here👉 barbgrant.com