Behind the Mic with Dr. Diana Jayasauri on Leading Change as a Multi-Industry Prosci Change Management Practitioner

Dr. Diana is a seasoned expert in Organisational Change
Management with experience leading innovation, acculturation,
and digital transformation across Fortune 500 companies and
government institutions. Her work is dedicated to shaping a
forward-thinking, customer-centric service excellence.

For this edition of Behind the Mic, we had the opportunity to ask Dr. Diana Jayasauri a few key questions about driving organizational change across industries. Here’s what she shared with us.

Q1. What inspired you to specialise in organizational change management, and how has your career journey shaped your expertise in driving transformation across industries?

I came into the realm of Organisational Change Management by a mere chance of luck!

The inspiration set-off with a culture change Consulting role back in 2013, which offered me a differentiated lens of making Change happen through people, who are the soul of an organisation.

The journey itself till today is a tapestry of unique blend of experiences – cutting across different industries and generations of workforce, touching aspects of Governance, Digitalisation, Culture and Agility.

This has given me an in-depth insight into the significance of managing the Change Curve experience and ensuring the Team Agility are acknowledged and leveraged, whereby mistakes and failures are viewed as stepping stones that add value to the transformation’s growth and aspirations – establishing the Human-Tech connection.

Q2. What are some of the most significant challenges you have faced in driving organizational change within Fortune 500 companies or government institutions, and how did you overcome them?

It’s Mindset Shift.

An intentional process of changing one’s fundamental beliefs, perspectives and behaviour to be more positive, empowering and adaptive to embrace the change that is coming. And to experience mindset shift, it requires to address the three auto-triggered fundamental mishaps that one experiences:

Fixed to Growth – from this is not how we do it here to let’s test this idea and see how things can be improved.
Victim to Ownership – from I am going to lose my job to I am going to be upskilled for a new experience.
Scarcity to Abundance – from this is not how we do it here to let’s try doing it differently and it can be improved.

One trick I have learnt over the years to spark mindset shift and sustain it overtime is to get an inspiring Change Belief onboard based on Return On Intention (ROI). The narrative is to be connected to humanely feelings, leading from the heart and mind through a simple three step reflection.

The first thing: When Change is announced, people want to feel 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁.
i. What’s their role?
ii. Is their effort all those years valued?
iii. How well do they know the change impact?
The second thing: When Change implementation is progressing, people want to feel 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 h𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱.
i. What are the implementation plans? What will happen first, second, third and so on?
ii. How can work be simplified? How can balance to wellbeing be integrated?
iii. Will their ideas be considered and carried out?
The third thing: When Change is realised, people want to feel 𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗱.
i. How has their contribution made Change?
ii. What was most memorable? What impact did it result?
iii. Got rewards? Something that commemorates their goodwill pride.

Soulful Change is an intentional matter felt from within. And it’s enigmatic to shift mindset willing fully to inspire and sustain change.

Q3. Can you describe a specific instance where data analytics or behavioral insights helped you identify resistance to change and guided your approach to driving adoption?

In every transformation project, the Change journey kick starts with a Change Readiness Assessment (CRA) whereby the goal is to identify potential barriers, skill gaps, habits, preferences and resistance points to inform strategies for communication, training and support – ultimately increasing the likelihood of a smooth and successful transition for change implementation.

CRA is a tool that could be leveraged to rewire organisational behavior for transformation by measuring aspects such as leadership support, available resources, company culture, and employee awareness and desire to change. Its analytics reveal patterns, trends, and readiness levels, allowing tailoring of interventions, improving communication, and enhancing overall capacity to adapt and sustain the change that compliments the desired behaviors that welcomes change.

Q4. What best practices have you implemented to ensure transparency, trust, and consistency across all stakeholder communications during change programs?

Many times, along the implementation of change initiatives, I have come across people whisper in plain sight…

😏I don’t care about the Change (reflecting disinterest)
🙄It doesn’t really affect me (lacking concern)
🥴I will continue to do my work as I always have (declining sympathy)

These are the signs of Indifference to Change, and its antidote lies in understanding the negative consequences of distorted thinking.

One way to get by it is simply through the act of balancing the fine boundary line which co-exist between Return on Investment (ROI💰) and Return on Intention (ROI🩷). 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻 i𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲, 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗶𝘁?

𝗥𝗢𝗜 🩷𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱. And it calls for the application of Cognitive Reframing ~ which helps to connect an Individual to the meaning a Change initiative embodies, just like the prime elements in a beach side painting.

𝗟𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲
Clarity on their role, establishing their purpose for the Change.
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱
Understand their dislikes, gaining trust on their preferences being acknowledged.
𝗕𝗼𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗲
Identify their fears, making it easier to reduce their pessimism by simplifying the Change effort to be led by them.
𝗣𝗲𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀
Acceptance of their doubts, positioning clear information and action plans to address what concerns them and what assistance they may require.

These ensure transparency, trust, and consistency across all stakeholder communications during change programs. It’s a journey experience.

Painting by Abraham Hunter

Q5. Which change management frameworks or methodologies do you rely on most to align transformation with business goals and human-centric outcomes?

I opt for Prosci ADKAR® Model with the five essential building blocks of successful change: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement.

The ADKAR® Model is popular and people-focused. The model focuses on individual change because organisations change one person at a time. It’s very helpful in projects where individual behaviors mean the difference between success and failure, building a culture that welcomes change and risk.

ADKAR® Model key building blocks:

Building Awareness involves helping those impacted by the change understand the reasons behind it so they can embrace it.
Building Desire helps people actively support the change and engage in the change process.
Building Knowledge equips people with the necessary information and adequate training on how to change.
Building Ability in people helps them move beyond theoretical knowledge and put the change into action. This is where individuals adopt and use the change effectively in their daily roles.
Building Reinforcement helps people sustain a change for the long term, keeping them from reverting to previous working methods.

What makes this model interesting is that it emphasizes on helping individuals adopt change successfully by a simple and straightforward approach throughout their journey from the Current, Transition and Future states. And it binds-in well in aligning with strategy, structure and systems with organisational values.

The Prosci ADKAR Model

Conclusion

In her reflections, Dr. Diana Jayasauri underscores that successful organizational change is less about processes and more about people. Her journey demonstrates how mindset shifts, human-centric practices, and the right frameworks can transform resistance into resilience. By balancing return on investment with return on intention, she emphasizes the importance of trust, empathy, and purposeful communication in driving sustainable change. Ultimately, her insights highlight that true transformation happens when organizations recognize change not just as a business necessity, but as a human experience to be nurtured, guided, and celebrated.

“Dr. Diana Jayasauri’s insights in this edition of Behind the Mic remind us that real change is people-driven and purpose-led. To explore more such perspectives, join us at the Conversational AI & Customer Experience Summit. Thank you for reading!”