When you combine change management and ABCD (Asset Based Community Development) great things can happen. The appeal of ABCD lies in its premise that communities can drive the development process themselves by identifying and mobilizing existing, but often unrecognized assets, and thereby creating and responding to local economic opportunities. They become economically independent and gain more self-reliance and self-respect.
As with any programme, there is an element of change management and change communication. During this process one needs to:
- Influence the community member’s beliefs and behaviours to bring about change
- Manage and lead the change to ensure business/ project outcomes
- Enable individual changes to bring about group change
- Ensure that everyone is on board
- Project strong and sensitive leadership and
- Help people through the transition period.
The underlying message is that we will be there to support you, but you, the community members, will be the ones doing it.
The elements needed to make change management effective and sustainable in community development are:
- The committed partnership and improvement of understanding.
- The local assessment through asset mapping.
- The co-creation of initiatives – never tell the community what they need to do. Pull the community together to build a vision and plan.
- Mobilize assets for development and information sharing.
- The communication and facilitation of the process.
- Ground and support the change. Leverage resources to support defined priorities.
- The monitoring and improvement of the process.
This will result in a community that takes charge of its own economic and sustainable social futures.
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