Stakeholders and Change · tool 7 of 8
ADKAR: Change Adoption for Individuals
ADKAR: Change Adoption for Individuals: helps each person actually adopt what the project delivers.
Best for: Projects that change how people work · Time: 1–2 hours
Domain: Stakeholders · Focus area: Executing
How it works
ADKAR, from Prosci, describes five outcomes a person needs: Awareness of why, Desire to take part, Knowledge of how, Ability to do it, and Reinforcement to keep it going. Find the first missing one and work there.
- Sponsors are key for awareness.
- Managers are key for desire.
- Training doesn’t help if desire is missing.
How to apply it
- Pick the groups affected.
- Assess each ADKAR step.
- Work on the first weak step.
- Measure adoption after go-live.
Staff know the tool (knowledge) but don’t see why it’s better (awareness). More training won’t help; a clear reason will.
A project can finish on time and still fail if nobody changes how they work.
Quick check
People were trained but don’t use the tool and see no reason to. What’s missing?
Sources
- J. Hiatt, ADKAR: A Model for Change (Prosci, 2006) (Prosci on ADKAR with PRINCE2)
Last reviewed 2026-11-02 against the PMBOK® Guide, 8th edition · Practitioner review pending · How this guide is made