March
02,
2025
Government agency prime contractors need their consulting partners to bring these essentials.
In today’s rapidly evolving government landscape, agencies are more engaged in transformation initiatives than ever before. They include technology modernization and responsible integration of artificial intelligence. Agencies are also weathering big changes to the federal government workforce such as agency-level restructuring, reorganization, and return-to-work mandates.
Big changes need change management to succeed.
A great organizational change management (OCM) partner can be invaluable to prime contractors supporting these new agency priorities.
Here are seven key features primes should look for in a change management teaming partner:
1. Comprehensive Expertise
A change management partner should have experience across project types. They should be able to manage:
- Global Implementations
- Supply Chain Transformations
- IT System Rollouts
- Integration of Innovative Technologies
- Organizational Restructuring
- Process Redesigns
The consulting partner should also have significant experience in various industries, private and government organizations. In particular, private sector change management experience can offer a lot of value.
Significant industry experience means the consultant can bring fresh perspectives and proven methodology honed in competitive, demanding environments, where change is constant and success is measured by tangible outcomes.
Moreover, private sector experience offers valuable insights into managing cultural shifts and overcoming resistance to change. This enables federal clients to navigate their unique challenges more effectively, balancing the need for consensus-driven decision-making with the imperative for rapid, impactful change.
This breadth of experience helps the entire project team deliver more successful transformation, improve service delivery, and better align with evolving public sector demands.
2. Proven Methodology
Look for a partner with a structured, yet flexible approach to change management. They should offer:
- Stakeholder Identification and Analysis
- Change Impact Assessments
- Change Models Tailored to Your Organization
- Comprehensive Change Management Scorecards
Many OCM firms have developed their own change models based on their experience of what works. That said, there are many change models organizations can adopt, such as ADKAR and Kotter’s eight-step change model. A good OCM partner should be able to apply a variety of change models, including proprietary. Regardless of the approach, the model should consider the entire performance system at the individual, organizational, and cultural levels.
3. Ability to Manage Complex Change
At Emerson, we often adopt the mindset of an air traffic controller, where we help our prime teaming partner see the “flight map” of the organization. We identify the concurrent initiatives impacting the same stakeholders so we can anticipate conflicts, clarify messaging, and ensure smooth implementation of activities. This is particularly valuable in large-scale government projects with multiple stakeholders and initiatives.
The idea is to keep a structured but nimble approach, helping our partners meet project milestones, manage risks effectively, and deliver successful outcomes.
4. Experience with Comprehensive Communications
Effective communication is crucial in change management. Your partner should excel in:
- Ensuring leadership alignment
- Developing targeted communication plans
- Creating engaging content for various channels
- Training change champions and leaders
- Facilitating workshops and seminars
It’s essential that all communications across the initiative are grounded in one set of messages, and that all actors are aligned on that foundation. That’s why it’s important that your consulting partner has deep experience planning and implementing communications from the leadership level to the staff level, customizing content so that it resonates with each group.
5. Employee Engagement Focus
A great partner recognizes that successful change hinges on employee buy-in. They should provide:
- Employee readiness planning
- Strategies for building and sustaining momentum
- Interactive training programs
- Tools for measuring and improving adoption
Successful employee adoption requires a multifaceted approach. A good strategy prioritizes organizational values, transparency, and engagement (physical or virtual). Good plans include activities that build trust, confidence, and ownership in the agency’s success.
It’s essential that a consulting partner targets true engagement — not just delivering communication and training but creating a two-way flow of information and collaboration between the program and stakeholders.
6. Training and Development Expertise
To support new processes or systems, your partner should be adept at designing, developing, and delivering:
- Custom learning programs that target the initiative’s outcomes
- Training in multiple and blended modalities
- Training that fits agency platforms and policies (in-person or virtual)
- Sustainable learning solutions
Training and workforce development drive performance. Without the right skills and knowledge, employees can’t fulfill the initiative’s objectives or the agency’s mission. Targeted learning programs help the workforce embrace the rationale behind the change, adopt new processes, and develop the competencies they need to work in the new way.
7. Experience Building Change Capability
In an ever-evolving government landscape, smart agencies are building capability in change itself. Home-grown change management practitioners can serve their own agencies, dispelling common myths about change, reducing employee resistance, and creating momentum for workforce adoption.
Building capability typically means a combination of training and practical application. The right consulting partner can teach selected staff to apply change management concepts and methodologies to real scenarios.
Agencies with internal change management capabilities are ready to respond to future transformations and foster a culture of continuous improvement and agility in a time of constant change.
A change management partner with the right qualities boosts a prime contractor’s ability to execute complex government projects successfully, support positive client relationships, and position themselves for future opportunities.
Want to explore the topic in more detail with John? Hop on his calendar: Book a meeting with John
