Commitment from Employees Affected by Change: How to Get It

Should You Be Running Employee Participation Workshops to Increase Commitment from Employees Affected by Change?
If your goal is to secure genuine commitment from employees affected by change, employee participation workshops can be a powerful tool. These highly interactive and strategic working sessions bring together stakeholders with members of the Executive and Change Leadership Teams to:

• Understand the proposed change in depth.
• Share reactions, concerns, and ideas in a safe and open forum.
• Co-create pathways for ongoing involvement in the change initiative.

Participation workshops often serve as the cornerstone of effective two-way communication with stakeholders — complementing other channels such as newsletters, town halls, and videos.

When designed and executed thoughtfully, Change management consulting experts know these workshops do more than inform — they engage employees in meaningful dialogue, strengthen ownership, and foster lasting commitment throughout the change process.

Suggested Timing
Hold employee participation workshops as early in the change process as possible.  In change management training, we advise holding the workshops within 30 days of the organizational change kickoff so that participants can function as key conduits of feedback and communication and begin the two-way flow of information throughout the organization.

Required Roles
The Executive Leadership Team, Change Leaders, and the Change Catalysts should own and lead the employee participation workshops. The objective is to bring together managers and participants from across the organization, in order to:

• Let go of old baggage.
• Consider the design of the new processes.
• Begin to develop new ways to work together.

Both time and money are saved overall by bringing people together in the short-term to work out the issues most likely to derail you in the long-run.

Scope
Employee participation workshops can be done with groups ranging from 6–250 people across key stakeholder groups.

High-Level Design: Employee Participation Workshops

1. Create Receptivity and Openness
   Organize participants into mixed groups of six to eight and facilitate structured conversations designed to surface both what they value and what frustrates them in their day-to-day work — the barriers to success. This activity serves a dual purpose: it breaks the ice and signals that all perspectives are welcome, fostering a psychologically safe culture where candid discussion and constructive debate are not only safe but expected.
2. Share the Current State
   Clearly communicate where the organization stands in the change process — including what is and is not open for debate. Key points to cover:
   • • What the Change Team is doing
     • Current state analysis
     • Vision for change
     • Business case for change
     • Urgency for change

   After sharing, have participants discuss what they’ve heard and develop table questions to clarify the current situation and desired future state. Facilitate a dialogue to ensure everyone understands both the urgency of the change — and the magnitude of transformation required for long-term viability.

   Leaders should openly share data and their honest perspectives. Even if all answers aren’t ready, research in change management simulations shows employees value transparency. When people have the chance to think through the situation, they contribute more effectively to solutions and are more prepared to accept difficult but necessary changes.

3. Discuss Change Design Alternatives
   At this stage, the Change Team presents either a draft design for the desired state or two to three alternative approaches to bridge the current and desired states. Presenting multiple options has added value — it draws on insights from a broader cross-section of the organization and increases personal commitment, as employees help shape the solution.

   Mixed-table groups then develop questions to clarify the design and ensure understanding. Once questions and suggestions are grouped by theme, participants vote on and discuss the most critical items. This structured dialogue not only surfaces key perspectives but also builds shared ownership, fostering engagement and commitment to the change process.

4. Identify Current Norms and Needed New Principles
   Table groups begin by listing current organizational and team norms — the “how things get done around here” — and sharing them with the larger group. These norms are then grouped into categories. Each table selects one or two categories and brainstorms new norms or work principles that would enable the new design to succeed and deliver excellent results for both people and the business. These proposed principles are shared with the larger group for discussion.

   If there are no large layoffs and participants can anticipate their future work groups, it is valuable to spend time in those groups exploring:

   • •  What do we still need to learn?
     • What do we need to do differently to ensure success?

   This is a critical activity, but it must be handled carefully if a significant portion of participants will not remain in the organization after the change. In such cases, have each person reflect individually on what the change means for them personally and professionally, using simple written prompts to capture their insights.

5. Identify How People Want to be Involved?
   Participants form table groups representing their work teams or functions and brainstorm the information they need — and how they want to be involved — in the change design process moving forward. Each group then reports back to the larger room, sparking an open discussion that surfaces preferences, concerns, and ideas for meaningful participation.
6. Agree Upon Next Steps
   The full group collaborates to define the action plan for the next 90 days, outlining how employees will continue to be involved in the change process and ensuring clarity on responsibilities, timelines, and communication. This step reinforces accountability and shared ownership, keeping momentum strong..

The Bottom Line
When it comes to organizational change, project postmortem results tell us that active involvement creates active commitment.  If you want to get commitment from employees, design an inclusive, honest, and transparent process that lets people be heard and put their fingerprints on the changes you seek.

To learn more about how to get commitment from employees affected by change, download  5 Research-Backed Lenses of Change that Leaders Must Get Right