Championing Change: 5 Leadership Lessons from Aquant’s Change Management Masterclass

Aquant’s Mini-MBA Series continued with another transformative session to help service leaders refine their leadership skills and tackle today’s toughest challenges. Change isn’t easy, but the ability to lead a company through it effectively is what sets great leaders apart.

In the latest masterclass, attendees were equipped with the tools, frameworks, and mindset needed to champion change, whether overcoming resistance, building trust, or inspiring adoption across their teams. They heard it all from one of the best: Chris Flynn, a Principal Change Advisor at Prosci, who blended academic insight with real-world experience to make the process manageable and empowering.

Here are the top themes and takeaways from the session:

Key lessons learned

1. Adoption is the real measure of success: Change isn’t about rolling out a new system or policy; it’s about people using it. Flynn emphasized that true success hinges on adoption. Without it, even the most innovative strategies fall short.
2. The “people side” of change is where projects win or lose: While most organizations obsess over the technical side of change (systems, tools, processes), the people side often gets overlooked. Flynn drove home the importance of helping individuals adopt change, noting that success rates can rise from 17% to 88% when done well!
3. Resistance is a signal–not an obstacle: Leaders shouldn’t be surprised by resistance—they should learn from it. Flynn encouraged participants to view resistance as a diagnostic tool that helps pinpoint where someone struggles in the change process.
4. Change management is a repeatable and scalable process: Flynn introduced the ADKAR model (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement) as a research-based framework to guide individuals through change. 
5. Leading change requires role flexibility: Great change leaders learn to shapeshift. Sometimes they coach, sometimes they advocate, and sometimes they simply listen. 

5 crucial takeaways for leaders

1. Adoption = ROI: If your people aren’t using the solution, it doesn’t matter how advanced or expensive it is.
2. You can’t skip steps: Change happens in a sequence. Awareness always comes before desire, which always comes before training.
3. Resistance is insight: Ask why someone is resisting, and you’ll discover the barrier point. Your effort should focus on that.
4. Training alone doesn’t create change: Without context and buy-in, training is just noise. Change management is more than communication and instruction.
5. Speed comes from getting it right first: Proper change management increases the odds of hitting deadlines, staying on budget, and achieving tangible results.

Take your leadership to the next level

Mark your calendars! On May 7, 2025, at 11 a.m. ET, join Aquant’s virtual Service Leader event, Service AI Strategy Bootcamp, featuring peer-led sessions to tackle today’s top service challenges. No fluff, no gimmicks, just straightforward strategies from the experts who’ve been in your shoes. 

Service leaders are under pressure to do more with less. Discover how to make Agentic AI work for your teams and deliver better results faster. 

What’s on the agenda?

• AI that works for service: Discover the must-have features that separate the signal from the noise in today’s hectic tech landscape.
• Aligning AI with your business goals: Learn how to integrate AI initiatives seamlessly into your overall business goals, secure your team’s buy-in, and ensure your service organization leads innovation.
• Measure success and achieve quick wins: How to track the right KPIs, prove ROI, and build momentum with your AI projects.
• Fitting AI into your existing tech stack: Practical tips on making AI work with your existing systems—without the headaches.

Reserve your spot now for the upcoming Aquant virtual event. Don’t forget to share this incredible opportunity with your colleagues!

About the Author

Courtney Stafford, Marketing Programs Lead, Aquant

Hi there! I’m the Marketing Programs Lead at Aquant. My passion lies in creating unique in-person and virtual experiences, crafting engaging content, sharing best practices—and, most importantly, empowering service teams like yours to thrive.