Introduction: why this action matters for adoption
Role clarification for senior leaders during a change is a practical adoption intervention, not a communications event. It brings senior leaders into the real working environment to observe how the change is landing, clarify what leaders, managers, the project team, and impacted employees are each expected to do, and remove barriers quickly. This matters because sponsorship is consistently identified as a major contributor to change success, while unclear sponsor roles are a common gap [Prosci, 2021]. (prosci.com)
The logic is simple: when roles are unclear, people guess. Research on role ambiguity has found a negative relationship between role ambiguity and job performance, which makes role clarity especially important when employees are already learning new processes, systems, or behaviors [Tubre & Collins, 2000]. (journals.sagepub.com)
What this action is and when to use it
This action combines three practices: field observation, senior-leader role clarification, and direct support. It may look like a site visit, floor walk, virtual workflow observation, listening session, or structured leadership round. The purpose is to help leaders understand the current experience of the change and then clarify who will decide, communicate, coach, remove barriers, reinforce behaviors, and escalate issues.
Use it when adoption is uneven, managers are sending mixed messages, employees are asking “who owns this?”, resistance is increasing, or leaders are relying on dashboards without seeing the work. It is also useful before go-live, during hypercare, after a failed pilot, or when a change crosses multiple business units. Lean guidance on gemba walks emphasizes direct observation and inquiry before action, while IHI’s WalkRounds show how senior leaders can connect with frontline staff and signal commitment [Lean Enterprise Institute; IHI]. (lean.org)
Preparation: inputs, stakeholders, materials, timing, and decisions needed
Start with a short preparation conversation with the sponsor and senior leaders. Confirm the purpose of the visit, the parts of the business to observe, and the decisions leaders are prepared to make. Avoid a ceremonial tour. LEI warns that senior visits can become “being seen” rather than understanding real work; the better approach is to walk with purpose, ask about the process, and compare what leaders hear with what the management system shows [Lean Enterprise Institute, 2014]. (lean.org)
The change manager should gather the change impact assessment, adoption data, training completion, open risks, issue logs, stakeholder feedback, manager questions, and any “moments that matter” in the new way of working. Agree who needs to participate: the executive sponsor, relevant senior leaders, project lead, change manager, local manager, change champions, and a small sample of impacted employees. Gallup advises that employees need different information at different stages of change, and that implementation-stage questions often focus on steps, roles, and what employees should do [Gallup, 2020]. (gallup.com)
Step-by-step facilitation guide
Set the frame. Open with the business reason for the change, the purpose of the visit, and the expectation that leaders are there to learn, clarify, and support—not audit or blame.
Clarify leader roles before entering the field. Ask each senior leader to state their role in one sentence. Typical roles include visible sponsor, decision-maker, barrier remover, sponsor-coalition member, people-manager enabler, and reinforcement owner. Prosci describes senior sponsor responsibilities as active and visible participation, building a sponsorship coalition, and communicating support to impacted groups [Prosci, 2021]. (prosci.com)
Observe real work. Watch the changed process being performed. Ask neutral questions: “Where does the new process slow down?”, “What decisions are unclear?”, “What workarounds are emerging?”, and “What do you need from leaders or managers?”
Separate role issues from solution issues. Some findings will be defects in the process or system. Others will be role clarity gaps: managers do not know what to reinforce, employees do not know escalation paths, or leaders have not agreed decision rights.
Clarify in the moment where safe. If confusion is simple and the answer is known, have the accountable leader clarify it immediately. If the issue requires governance, record the decision owner and due date.
Debrief privately with leaders. Compare what was observed with adoption metrics, risks, and assumptions. PMI recommends that sponsors understand current and future states and agree adoption metrics with the project manager [PMI, 2013]. (pmi.org)
Close the loop publicly. Send a short summary: what leaders heard, what will change, who owns each action, and when the group will hear back.
Example: how this could be applied in a real change initiative
A company is implementing a new enterprise resource planning workflow for purchasing. Training is complete, but purchase requests are still being submitted through email. A senior leader, procurement director, change manager, and local managers visit two sites and observe request creation. They learn that employees understand the tool but do not know whether local managers or procurement approve exceptions. The sponsor clarifies that local managers approve business justification, procurement approves policy exceptions, and finance approves budget coding. The change manager updates the manager guide, and the sponsor asks all functional leaders to reinforce the same decision path in team meetings.
Roles and responsibilities
Role | Responsibility in this action |
Executive sponsor | Clarifies why the change matters, confirms decision rights, removes barriers, and reinforces expected behaviors. |
Senior leaders | Act as local sponsors, align messages, model the new behavior, and escalate cross-functional issues. |
Change manager | Designs the session, facilitates observation, captures role gaps, and tracks follow-up. |
Project lead | Confirms solution constraints, defect fixes, timelines, and operational dependencies. |
People managers | Translate the change into team routines, answer employee questions, coach behavior, and escalate resistance. Gallup emphasizes the manager’s role in answering questions and using feedback loops during change [Gallup, 2020]. (gallup.com) |
Employees and change champions | Describe the lived experience of the change and test whether role clarification is understandable. |
Common mistakes to avoid
The first mistake is treating the visit as executive theater. If leaders only present slides, inspect compliance, or repeat talking points, they may miss the real adoption barriers. The second mistake is allowing leaders to problem-solve too early; observation should come before conclusions. The third mistake is clarifying roles only at the executive level while leaving managers without coaching language. The University of Iowa’s change roles guidance positions people managers as connectors who support employees, address concerns, and foster adaptation [University of Iowa]. (hr.uiowa.edu)
A fourth mistake is failing to follow up. A listening visit without visible action can increase cynicism. This is especially risky in high-resistance environments; use smaller groups, acknowledge concerns directly, and clarify what can and cannot change.
Measures of success or adoption indicators
Measure whether the action improves clarity and adoption, not whether the visit occurred. Useful indicators include reduction in repeated role questions, fewer escalations caused by decision ambiguity, improved manager confidence, closure rate of leader-owned actions, increased use of the new process, fewer workarounds, and improved proficiency in the changed task. Prosci recommends measuring adoption through speed of adoption, ultimate utilization, and proficiency [Prosci, 2024]. (prosci.com)
Also track whether senior leaders are performing their sponsor roles: attendance at field sessions, decisions made, barriers removed, manager briefings completed, and reinforcement messages delivered.
Checklist for the change manager
Confirm the adoption problem this action is meant to solve.
Brief senior leaders on purpose, roles, and expected behaviors.
Select sites, teams, or workflows based on adoption risk.
Prepare observation questions and role-clarification prompts.
Invite the right mix of leaders, managers, employees, and project experts.
Capture role gaps separately from process defects.
Assign every action an owner and date.
Communicate what was heard and what will happen next.
Recheck adoption indicators within two to four weeks.
Optional reusable worksheet
Prompt | Notes |
What part of the change is being observed? | |
What adoption issue triggered this session? | |
What decisions can senior leaders make today? | |
What is the sponsor’s role? | |
What is the people manager’s role? | |
What is unclear to employees? | |
What barriers require escalation? | |
What clarification will be communicated after the visit? | |
Owner and due date for each follow-up action |
References
Prosci. “Sponsor Checklist for Change Management.” Published April 19, 2021; updated October 31, 2025. https://www.prosci.com/blog/sponsor-checklist-for-change-management
Project Management Institute. “The Sponsor as the Face of Organizational Change.” PMI White Paper, November 2013. https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/sponsor-face-organizational-change-11131
Lean Enterprise Institute. “Gemba Walk.” No date listed. https://www.lean.org/lexicon-terms/gemba-walk/
Lean Enterprise Institute. “Gemba Walks: Are You Going To See or To Be Seen?” August 19, 2014. https://www.lean.org/the-lean-post/articles/gemba-walks-are-you-going-to-see-or-to-be-seen/
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. “Patient Safety Leadership WalkRounds.” No date listed. https://www.ihi.org/library/tools/patient-safety-leadership-walkrounds
Gallup. “Proven Change Management Principles: How to Effectively Initiate It.” July 15, 2020. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/315602/proven-change-management-principles-effectively-initiate.aspx
Tubre, Travis C., and Judith M. Collins. “Jackson and Schuler (1985) Revisited: A Meta-Analysis of the Relationships Between Role Ambiguity, Role Conflict, and Job Performance.” Journal of Management, first published February 2000. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/014920630002600104
Prosci. “Metrics for Measuring Change Management.” Published March 26, 2024; updated September 2, 2025. https://www.prosci.com/blog/metrics-for-measuring-change-management