TECHNOLOGY · 2 HOURS
Digital Change for Managers
Digital Change for Managers teaches line managers leading a change of tool to describe it as the things their people will stop and start doing, and to plan for the harder first two weeks. You finish with a two-week plan for your own team, so the change holds and every objection gets a proper answer.
About this course
When a team moves to a new tool or way of working, such as from email to a shared task board or from paper forms to a system, the decision is usually made above the line manager, but the change succeeds or fails in the manager's team. Most such changes fail in the first fortnight, because the announcement described the tool, the old route stayed open, and nobody decided in advance what success would look like in the work. This course teaches line managers to lead that fortnight well, with no technical knowledge of the tool required.
You learn to restate a tool change as the things your people will stop and start doing, to set a date and a way for the old habit to end, to plan the first two weeks with a lighter load and a named person to ask, and to tell a real cost from a request for reassurance. You finish with a signed two-week plan for a real change in your own team that a colleague covering your leave could run without ringing you.
What you will take away
- You will be able to rewrite a feature announcement as sentences about what people will do, and what it replaces, while keeping the go-live date.
- You will be able to name the old habit that must stop, the date it stops and the way it is closed, such as an automatic reply or a spreadsheet made read-only.
- You will be able to plan the first two weeks as work people can feel, with a lighter load where the change bites, a named person to ask, and a short regular check-in.
- You will be able to tell an objection that names a real cost in the work from one that asks for reassurance, answer each in the way it needs, and set a sign in the work to check at the end of week two instead of a count of logins.
- You will leave with a signed two-week plan in eight parts, including what people stop doing, who they ask, the objections you expect, the sign in the work, and what you will not pretend.
Who this course is for
- Line managers whose team is about to change a tool or a way of working that was chosen by someone else in the organisation.
- Team leaders who have been handed a supplier's feature list and need to explain to their team what will actually be different in their week.
- Managers who have seen a previous change drift back to the old spreadsheet or inbox and want this one to hold.
- Supervisors who expect objections from experienced staff and want to know which ones should change the plan.
What you will do
Each lesson teaches one part of the method, works through a realistic example, and ends with a check on a case you have not seen. The course closes with an assessment and then the piece of work you sign.
- 5lessons with a worked example and a check
- 6scenario questions in the course assessment
- Signedthe two-week plan, with a record anyone can verify
- 2 hoursat your own pace, with progress saved
- 01
Lesson
A tool change is a change in work
This lesson explains that your team will feel a new tool as changes in their week rather than as a list of features, and why announcements usually come out the wrong way round. You rewrite a feature announcement and mark sentences as something they do or something the tool has.
- People feel a change in their week
- Two kinds of sentence
- Why announcements come out the wrong way round
- The mistake people usually make
You mark 4 statements from a realistic case and receive an explanation for each one.
- 02
Lesson
What they stop doing
This lesson shows why changes fail when the old way stays open, and how to give the old habit a name, a date and a way it stops after a supported overlap. You edit a plan with no end and choose the announcement that says what stops.
- Changes fail because the old way is still there
- A name, a date and a way
- What stopping is not
- The mistake people usually make
You compare two versions of the same piece of work, choose the stronger one, and see the reasoning behind the answer.
- 03
Lesson
The first two weeks
This lesson explains why people are slower before they are faster, and what a plan for the first two weeks must contain beyond emails and training. You mark plan lines as work people can feel or only an announcement.
- People are slower before they are faster
- What a two-week plan contains
- Two kinds of line in a plan
- The mistake people usually make
You compare two versions of the same piece of work, choose the stronger one, and see the reasoning behind the answer.
- 04
Lesson
Hearing the objection
This lesson teaches you to hear objections as information and to tell one that names a real cost in the work from one that asks for reassurance. You choose responses that treat a real cost as a cost and mark comments from real teams.
- Objections are information
- Two kinds of objection
- Why the distinction matters
- The mistake people usually make
You mark 4 statements from a realistic case and receive an explanation for each one.
- 05
Lesson
How you know
This lesson shows you how to decide before go-live what you should see in the work at the end of week two, and how you will check it. You turn a login target into a sign in the work and mark measures as signs or counts of activity.
- Decide in advance what you expect to see
- Two kinds of measure
- Say how you will check
- The mistake people usually make
You mark 4 statements from a realistic case and receive an explanation for each one.
- 06
Course assessment
Putting the two weeks together
This course assessment recaps the whole method and shows how each move depends on the one before it. You compare two managers' notes and then apply every move to six situations set in teams you have not met in the course.
- The method in one place
- How the moves depend on each other
- How the assessment works
You judge 6 new workplace situations, with feedback on every option, and need 5 correct to pass.
- 07
Final work and signed record
Your two-week plan
In this final lesson you write the two-week plan for a real change you are about to lead, in eight parts. You test each line against whether a colleague covering your leave could run it, and then sign the plan for your record.
- What the plan covers
- What the plan is not
- The covering test
- How the plan is checked
You write the two-week plan for your own work, part by part, and sign it as your record.
GOOD WORK.THE TWO-WEEK PLAN, SIGNED.
WHAT CHANGES
What the course changes for you and your organisation.
- 01
Changes that hold past week two
The course deals directly with the reasons tool changes stall: the old route left open, a fortnight nobody planned, and success judged by logins. Your organisation's investment in a new tool is more likely to show up in the way the work is actually done.
- 02
Objections treated as information
You learn to recognise when a team member has found a real cost, such as a case the new tool handles badly, and to act on it before private workarounds spread. Worries that only need reassurance get help instead of an endless list of redesign requests.
- 03
A plan someone covering could run
Every line of your plan gives a date, a name, a time or a check, so the change does not depend on you being in the office. It also includes an honest sentence on what you will not pretend, which protects your credibility with the team.
- 04
Managers equipped to lead change
A 2023 Gartner survey found that 82% of HR leaders believe managers are not equipped to lead change. Line managers who can describe a tool change as specific new habits, and plan for the first two weeks, help employers make change hold without adding to fatigue.
QUESTIONS
Questions about Digital Change for Managers
- What is Digital Change for Managers about?
- When a team moves to a new tool or way of working, such as from email to a shared task board or from paper forms to a system, the decision is usually made above the line manager, but the change succeeds or fails in the manager's team. Most such changes fail in the first fortnight, because the announcement described the tool, the old route stayed open, and nobody decided in advance what success would look like in the work. This course teaches line managers to lead that fortnight well, with no technical knowledge of the tool required. You learn to restate a tool change as the things your people will stop and start doing, to set a date and a way for the old habit to end, to plan the first two weeks with a lighter load and a named person to ask, and to tell a real cost from a request for reassurance. You finish with a signed two-week plan for a real change in your own team that a colleague covering your leave could run without ringing you.
- Who is Digital Change for Managers for?
- Line managers whose team is about to change a tool or a way of working that was chosen by someone else in the organisation. Team leaders who have been handed a supplier's feature list and need to explain to their team what will actually be different in their week. Managers who have seen a previous change drift back to the old spreadsheet or inbox and want this one to hold. Supervisors who expect objections from experienced staff and want to know which ones should change the plan. No specialist background is assumed, and every term is explained before it is used.
- What will I be able to do after Digital Change for Managers?
- You will be able to rewrite a feature announcement as sentences about what people will do, and what it replaces, while keeping the go-live date. You will be able to name the old habit that must stop, the date it stops and the way it is closed, such as an automatic reply or a spreadsheet made read-only. You will be able to plan the first two weeks as work people can feel, with a lighter load where the change bites, a named person to ask, and a short regular check-in. You will be able to tell an objection that names a real cost in the work from one that asks for reassurance, answer each in the way it needs, and set a sign in the work to check at the end of week two instead of a count of logins. You will leave with a signed two-week plan in eight parts, including what people stop doing, who they ask, the objections you expect, the sign in the work, and what you will not pretend.
- How long does the course take, and how is it taught?
- The course takes about 2 hours and is studied online at your own pace. It has 5 lessons, each with a worked example, a practice exercise, and a check on a new case, followed by a course assessment of 6 scenario questions in which you need 5 correct to pass. Your progress is saved to your account.
- Do I get a certificate?
- Yes. When you pass, you sign a record that names you, the course, and the two-week plan. Anyone you share it with can verify it online and download it as a PDF. The record confirms what you completed and does not claim compliance with any regulation.
- How much does it cost, and when can I start?
- The course costs £129, paid once by card through Stripe. Access begins as soon as payment is confirmed, and you can save a sign-in to return to the course from any device.
- Can my organisation train a whole team?
- Yes. Individuals can buy any self-paced course online, and organisations can book trainer-led courses for teams, in person or online, through the Experrt Academy.
More technology courses are listed on the self-paced technology courses for non-technical teams page.
THERE IS A NEXT CHAPTER.
Start today, and finish with
the two-week plan your organisation can use.
Checkout takes an email address and a card, and access begins as soon as payment is confirmed. When you finish, you sign a record that names you and the two-week plan, which anyone you choose can verify online. The record confirms what you completed and does not claim compliance with any regulation.