Introduction: why this action matters for adoption
A change can have a strong business case and still fail to gain adoption if leaders across the organization do not sponsor it consistently. The primary sponsor may hold formal authority, but impacted employees usually experience the change through local executives, functional leaders, and people managers. That is why one-on-one meetings between the primary sponsor and other sponsors are a change-management intervention, not a courtesy check-in. They build alignment, surface resistance, clarify sponsor behavior, and prepare each sponsor to reinforce the change in their own part of the organization [Prosci, 2026; PMI, 2013]. (prosci.com)
This action works because adoption requires more than announcements. Effective transformation depends on leaders modeling new behaviors, building understanding and conviction, reinforcing the change through formal mechanisms, and helping people build the capability to work differently [McKinsey, 2015]. (mckinsey.com)
What this action is and when to use it
This action is a structured, live, facilitated engagement in which the primary sponsor meets individually with another sponsor or senior leader. The purpose is to align on the change, answer questions, identify risks, agree sponsor actions, and prepare that sponsor to communicate and role-model the change locally. It belongs in the category of facilitated live engagement and learning because it combines dialogue, coaching, issue discovery, and practice.
Use it when the change crosses functions, geographies, business units, or leadership layers; when sponsors vary in commitment; when senior leaders are giving inconsistent messages; before visible employee communications; before manager briefings; and at major project phase gates. Prosci describes effective sponsorship as active and visible participation, coalition building, and direct communication, while PMI emphasizes sustaining sponsorship through layers of leadership [Prosci, 2026; PMI, 2013]. (prosci.com)
Preparation: inputs, stakeholders, materials, timing, and decisions needed
The change manager should prepare the primary sponsor, not replace them. Inputs include the case for change, impact assessment, stakeholder analysis, sponsor coalition map, readiness or resistance data, key messages, adoption measures, known risks, and the specific sponsor “ask.” ACMP positions sponsorship, stakeholder engagement, communication, readiness, learning, and measurement as core parts of a change management plan [ACMP, 2025]. (acmpmexico.org)
Materials should be short: a one-page sponsor brief, a tailored impact summary for the sponsor’s area, three core messages, expected sponsor behaviors, open decisions, and an action log. Schedule the meetings before major public communication, before training launch, before go-live, and again during sustainment if adoption stalls. Decide in advance which issues the primary sponsor can resolve, which require governance escalation, and which are simply feedback to monitor.
Step-by-step facilitation guide
Confirm the outcome. Define whether the meeting is for commitment, clarification, resistance management, decision-making, or preparation for downstream engagement.
Brief the primary sponsor. Rehearse the opening message, the specific ask, likely objections, and what must not be over-promised.
Open with purpose and context. The primary sponsor should explain why the change matters, what success looks like, and why this sponsor’s leadership is needed.
Explore the sponsor’s local reality. Ask what will be hardest for their teams, where resistance may appear, what competing priorities exist, and what support managers will need. Psychological safety research supports leaders creating conditions where people can raise concerns and questions without negative consequences [HBR, 2024]. (hbr.org)
Align on sponsor behaviors. Agree what the sponsor will say, do, reinforce, and stop tolerating. This may include attending key events, opening manager briefings, removing barriers, recognizing early adopters, or challenging inconsistent behavior.
Practise the message. Ask the sponsor to explain the change in their own words. Refine language until it is clear, local, and credible.
Capture issues and decisions. Record risks, objections, dependencies, and commitments. CIPD guidance on employee voice emphasizes not only creating channels for input but also showing how input influences action [CIPD]. (cipd.org)
Close with a commitment. Confirm the sponsor’s next three actions, owner, date, and follow-up mechanism.
Example: how this could be applied in a real change initiative
In a CRM implementation, the chief commercial officer is the primary sponsor. Sales, service, finance, and regional leaders are sponsor coalition members. Before manager briefings begin, the primary sponsor meets each leader for 45 minutes. The finance sponsor worries that data quality will affect reporting; the regional sponsor worries sellers will see CRM as surveillance. The change manager captures both issues, adjusts the manager briefing, adds a data-quality decision to governance, and prepares a seller-focused message about customer continuity. The result is not “everyone agrees”; it is that each sponsor knows what to reinforce and what barriers they own.
Roles and responsibilities
Role | Responsibility |
Primary sponsor | Leads the conversation, explains the business case, asks for commitment, removes barriers, and holds other sponsors accountable. |
Other sponsor | Shares local impacts and risks, commits to visible actions, reinforces the change, and escalates barriers early. |
Change manager | Prepares materials, coaches the primary sponsor, facilitates if needed, captures actions, and monitors follow-through. |
Project or change lead | Provides project facts, timing, decisions, and adoption data. |
Sponsor coalition | Maintains consistent leadership signals across impacted groups. |
APM describes sponsors as accountable leaders who promote, advocate, shape work, and remain accountable for benefits over time [APM]. (apm.org.uk)
Common mistakes to avoid
Do not turn the meeting into a project status update. Do not let the change manager deliver the sponsor message on behalf of the primary sponsor. Do not use the same script for every sponsor when impacts differ. Do not leave without a specific action. Do not meet only friendly sponsors; resistant or overloaded sponsors often need the conversation most. Finally, do not collect concerns without follow-up, because that teaches leaders that speaking up has little value [CIPD; HBR, 2024]. (cipd.org)
Measures of success or adoption indicators
Track whether priority sponsor meetings happened, whether actions were completed, whether sponsor messages are consistent, whether risks are resolved faster, and whether managers report clearer direction. Also track readiness, stakeholder commitment, attendance at downstream engagement sessions, questions raised, resistance themes, adoption behaviors, system or process usage, and benefits realization. PMI highlights adoption metrics and sponsor review of stakeholder support and influence; ACMP emphasizes measurement and benefit realization planning [PMI, 2013; ACMP, 2025]. (pmi.org)
Checklist for the change manager
Sponsor coalition map completed
Priority sponsors selected
Meeting objective defined for each sponsor
Primary sponsor briefed and rehearsed
Tailored impact summary prepared
Key messages and sponsor ask drafted
Resistance themes and likely objections prepared
Issue and action log ready
Follow-up owner and cadence agreed
Measures added to the change dashboard
Optional reusable template: 45-minute sponsor one-on-one agenda
Opening — 5 minutes: “I’m meeting each sponsor individually because this change will only land if our leadership is aligned and visible.”
Change context — 10 minutes: Why the change matters, what success looks like, what is changing for this sponsor’s area.
Local impact discussion — 10 minutes: “What will be hardest for your teams? What might people misunderstand? Which managers need extra support?”
Sponsor role and practice — 10 minutes: Confirm what the sponsor will say, do, reinforce, and escalate. Ask them to practise the message in their own words.
Actions and close — 10 minutes: Confirm three actions, due dates, risks, support needed, and follow-up.
References
ACMP. Standard for Change Management© 2.0. Association of Change Management Professionals, 2025. https://acmpmexico.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/ACMP_Standard_2.0.pdf
APM. What is project sponsorship? Association for Project Management. No publication date listed. https://www.apm.org.uk/resources/what-is-project-management/what-is-sponsorship/
CIPD. Employee voice. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. No publication date listed. https://www.cipd.org/en/views-and-insights/cipd-viewpoint/employee-voice/
Gallup. Disruptive Change Is Hitting Leaders and Managers Hardest. Gallup, May 23, 2024. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/645152/disruptive-change-hitting-leaders-managers-hardest.aspx
Harvard Business Review. What Is Psychological Safety, Really? HBR On Leadership, July 2024. https://hbr.org/podcast/2024/07/what-is-psychological-safety-really
McKinsey. The science of organizational transformations. McKinsey & Company, September 1, 2015. https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-science-of-organizational-transformations
PMI. The Sponsor as the Face of Organizational Change. Project Management Institute, November 2013. https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/sponsor-face-organizational-change-11131
Prosci. 5 Ways to Help Sponsors Build a Coalition of Support for Change. Prosci, published May 11, 2022; updated April 22, 2026. https://www.prosci.com/blog/5-ways-to-help-sponsors-build-a-coalition-of-support-for-change