Communicating about change
A practical course on communicating during change. You work with Kübler-Ross and ADKAR, build activating messages, deal with resistance and create your own communication plan.
NRTO quality mark
Free cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so feel free to book now.
In brief. Communicating about change is a 2-day classroom course. You can take it in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, in a group of no more than 8 participants. The price is EUR 1300 excl. VAT per participant, including course materials, lunch on site and a certificate of attendance. For a team or department we also deliver this course in-company.
- Direct application to your own change project
- Practical models: Kübler-Ross and ADKAR
- Plenty of practice with difficult conversations and criticism
- You go home with a ready-to-use communication plan
- Experienced trainer with a background in change management and communication
Change always provokes reactions: resistance, doubt, anger or silence. In this course you learn how to communicate about it in a way that reaches people and gets them moving. You go home with a communication plan you can put to use immediately.
Description
A reorganisation, a new system, a different strategy. As soon as something changes, it is almost never just about the content of the change. It is about how people hear about it, what they feel about it and whether they have the sense that they are being listened to. That is exactly where things often go wrong.
In this course you first look at the psychology of change. Why do people resist? What happens in the Kübler-Ross curve and how does the ADKAR model help you determine what a target group needs right now? You learn to distinguish between groups that do not yet know what is going on and groups that have long understood the change but do not want to go along with it.
After that, you start building. How do you formulate a message that not only informs but activates? How do you adapt it from the management team to the shop floor? And how do you hold a conversation in which emotions, cynicism or sharp criticism come to the table without becoming defensive? You practise with real situations from your own project.
At the end you draw up a communication plan for the change you are working on. Concrete, with channels, timing, messengers and moments for conversation. So that on Monday you can pick up where the course leaves off.
Topics
- The psychology of change: why people resist and what lies beneath it
- The Kübler-Ross curve: phases of change and what people need in each phase
- The ADKAR model: from awareness to reinforcement
- Target group analysis: which groups are in which phase and what that means for your communication
- Communication strategy: choice of channel, timing and messenger
- Building your message: why, what, how and what it means for you
- Storytelling in change: stories that land versus abstractions that float
- Conversation technique: listening before you broadcast
- Dealing with emotions such as sadness, anger, fear and cynicism
- Dealing with criticism: the difference between content and signal
- Drawing up a communication plan for your own change process
Result
Afterwards, you will understand why change provokes resistance and which needs lie beneath it. You will recognise which phase of the change process people are in and adapt your communication accordingly. You will know how to build a message that activates rather than merely informs.
Specifically, by the end you will be able to:
- Applying the Kübler-Ross curve and the ADKAR model to your own change project
- Analysing target groups and determining what each group needs in terms of communication
- Building a message that starts with the why and ends with what it means for the recipient
- Using storytelling to make abstract changes concrete
- Holding conversations in which you listen first before you transmit
- Dealing with emotions such as anger, sadness and cynicism without becoming defensive
- Recognising criticism at the level of content and at the level of signal, and responding to it appropriately
- Drawing up a complete communication plan for your change, ready to put into practice
Target audience
Is a change under way in your organisation and is it your role to explain it, embed it or communicate around it? Then this course is made for you.
The course is intended for:
- Managers who need to explain a change to their team and embed it
- Project leaders running a change project who need to get people on board
- HR professionals involved in organisational change
- Communications professionals who support change projects
- Consultants or interim managers brought in to guide a change
- Anyone who has to bring employees, teams or stakeholders along with something new
Teaching method
You work intensively under the guidance of an experienced trainer with a background in communication and change management. Explanations of models alternate with analysis of your own situation: where are your target groups in the process and what do they need? You are given practical frameworks that you can apply to your own project straight away.
There is also plenty of room to practise. You build messages, act out difficult conversations in role plays and practise responding to criticism. The trainer gives personal feedback on your style, your choice of words and the way you handle emotions in the group.
At the end you draw up a communication plan for the change you are working on. You take that plan home with you and use it directly in your work. The group is small, so there is ample time for your own case and for exchanging experiences with fellow professionals in comparable situations.
Prior knowledge
No specific prior knowledge is required for this course. It does help if you have a concrete change in your organisation that you are working on or will be working on shortly. Think of a reorganisation, a new system, a culture programme or a merger. That way you can link all the exercises directly to your own practice.
Comments
Bring along a change you are currently working on or will be starting soon. Your exercises, conversations and communication plan are all built around that case of your own.
Practical information
- Number of days
- 2 days
- Course times
- from 10 am to 5 pm
- Teaching hours
- 12 hours
- Education level
- Suitable for all levels
- Preparation time
- None
- Included
- Course materials and lunch on site
- Certificate
- At the end of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance
- Cancel
- Free up to four weeks before the start (cancellation terms)
Language
The course is given in Dutch as standard. The trainer speaks English. English-language course materials can be used. If at least 3 participants register, the course can also be given entirely in English.
In-company
Would you like to organise this training for a whole group or several groups? This can be cost-effective. For example, we can tailor the content entirely to your organisation, and training a whole group is also cheaper.
Are you looking at large numbers of participants or a complete academy? That involves a great deal. Consider planning and communication, for example, or identifying and agreeing the objectives and content of the training. Or differences in level, feedback mechanisms and safeguarding. Fortunately, Learnit has extensive experience in this field (more than 25 years) and we are happy to help you through this process.
Request a quote More about Communicating about change in-company
All start dates
2 training days. In order of date.
- Wed 3 & Thu 4 February 2027 Amsterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 6 January Enrol
- Tue 27 & Wed 28 July 2027 Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 29 June Enrol
No suitable start date? Send us a date request, and we'll look at the options together.
This course for your team?
Plan your own group on a date that suits you, at your office, at our premises or online. We tailor the content to your day-to-day work, and training a whole group is cheaper than individual bookings.
- Your date and location
- Tailored content
- Multiple groups or an academy are also possible
- More than 25 years' experience
What others say about this course
"Extremely instructive, built up step by step and easy to understand for people with no prior knowledge of this."
"The course was delivered at a good pace, allowing the participants to keep up well. It was not a large group, so there was plenty of room for the individual. The material was in a logical order, so that as you progressed through the course the basics kept being repeated, which made them stick."
"A highly professional organisation that delivers tailored solutions. Pleasant intake process and handling of the course."
"A course with strong content, in which good course materials are used to teach new things effectively and efficiently."
"Fine, short yet complete basic course."
Training formats
Classroom
2 days€ 1300,-- Pleasant venue with a good trainer
- Small groups
- Inspiring and motivating
In-company
Bespoke trainingOn request- 100% for your group
- Bespoke training
- At your place or ours
Workshop
Up to 4 hours for groupsOn request- Suitable for events
- Interactive and inspiring
- Large groups too
Private training
At our place or yoursOn request- 100% just for you
- Achieve a lot in little time
- Whenever you want
Frequently asked questions
Can I cancel free of charge?
Yes. Up to four weeks before the first day of the course you can cancel free of charge, without giving a reason. You then receive a credit note or, if you have already paid, a refund. If you cancel later, you pay part of the course fee: 25% between four and two weeks before the start, 75% in the two weeks before it and 100% in the final week. Moving to another start date is free of charge up to two weeks before the start, after that 50%. Sending a colleague in your place is always possible. Read the cancellation terms.
What does the Communicating about Change course cost?
You can find the current price at the top right of this course page, along with the schedule, location and delivery format. For in-company or bespoke courses we are happy to provide a quotation on request.
Do I need any prior knowledge to take part?
No specific prior knowledge is required. What you mainly need to bring is a change in your organisation that you are involved in or will soon be working on. Experience with communication or managing people is useful, but not a requirement. The models covered are explained from the ground up.
Who is this course intended for?
The course is designed for anyone whose role involves communicating a change. Think of managers who have to take their team along, project leaders on a change project, HR professionals, communication professionals and advisers supporting change projects. If it's your job to get people on board with something new, you're in the right place.
What exactly will I learn on this course?
You learn why people resist and which needs lie beneath that resistance. You work with the Kübler-Ross curve and the ADKAR model to analyse your target groups. You also learn to build a message that activates, to use storytelling, to listen before you broadcast and to deal with emotions and robust criticism. At the end you will have drawn up a communication plan for your own change process.
Can this course also be taken online or in-company?
By default we deliver this course in the classroom at our locations, because practising conversations and emotions works best in a physical setting. In-company is certainly possible and is often chosen because it allows you to work with colleagues on one shared change project. Get in touch if you would like to discuss which format suits your situation best.
Do I receive a certificate on completion?
Yes, on completion you receive a certificate of participation from Learnit. It states which topics were covered and that you took an active part. It is a perfectly good piece of evidence for your personal development plan or portfolio.
Which teaching methods are used?
There is a mix of short explanations of models, case analysis, group discussions and plenty of practice. You take part in role plays to practise difficult conversations, you build messages and receive personal feedback on them. You also work step by step on your own communication plan. Theory alternates with doing, and your own case runs as a common thread through the course.
Why should I choose this course instead of reading a book about change communication?
A book gives you models and insights, but you do not practise with them. In this course you take part in a difficult conversation yourself, formulate a real message for your team and receive feedback from a trainer and fellow participants. You also work on a concrete plan for the change that is on your desk right now. That difference in learning outcome is considerable, certainly with a subject in which behaviour and emotion play such a large part.
Can I apply what I have learned directly in my work?
Yes, that is the starting point for the entire course. You do all the exercises, analyses and discussions on the basis of a change you are working on right now. The communication plan you produce is not a template but a concrete plan for your situation. In many cases, participants take the first steps from their plan in the week after the course.
What is the difference compared with a change management course?
A change management course takes a broad view of how you set up a change project: strategy, planning, stakeholders, structure and interventions. This course zooms in specifically on the communication side: how do you get people on board, how do you formulate messages, how do you hold the difficult conversations. The two courses complement each other well. Choose this one if your main question concerns the communication itself.
I'm a manager with no background in communication. Is this course still suitable for me?
Certainly. Many participants are in fact managers or project leaders with no formal training in communication. The models are explained from the ground up and the exercises reflect situations managers face every day: a team that grumbles, an employee who clams up, a management team that has to explain a decision. You don't need to know any communication jargon to get value out of this course.
How do I deal with a change that I am not entirely behind myself?
That is a difficult but common situation, and it is addressed explicitly during the course. You learn the difference between communicating loyally and overselling a message you do not believe in yourself. You also practise being honest about your doubts without undermining the change. In practice, authenticity often proves more effective than a perfectly polished story that people see straight through.
Next start date: Wed 3 & Thu 4 February 2027 in Amsterdam
Free cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so you can secure a place now.