This practical, insight-driven course equips communicators with the confidence and skills to help people navigate change with clarity, empathy, and trust - wherever they sit in the organisation, and however hard they are to reach.

You’ll explore how people experience change, including what neuroscience and behavioural science reveal about motivation and resistance, and the drivers of genuine behaviour change. The focus is firmly on communicating with employees, not to them - building a shared understanding and commitment rather than compliance.

A core theme of the course is the power of listening not just as a communication skill, but as a superpower for leading change.

You’ll discover how truly listening to your people helps you to understand what they need, what they fear, and what will help them move forward. You’ll learn how to use those insights to shape messages that meet people where they are and make change feel relevant and achievable.

And by creating genuine space for dialogue and two-way communication, you’ll turn change from something that’s done to people into something that’s built with them.

You’ll also grow your confidence to work side by side with colleagues leading change, whatever the challenge. Whether it is a new strategy, digital transformation, cost reduction, or a merger, you’ll learn how to translate complex plans into clear, human stories that connect, motivate, and inspire.

By the end of the course you’ll be able to create communication that doesn’t just inform people about change, but also helps them to be part of it.

Who should attend?

This course is most suitable for those working around levels 2 and 3, and towards level 4 of the IoIC Profession Map, but it would be useful for anyone who needs to support successful change within their organisation.

Learning objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Understand people-centred change: Learn how people react to change, the questions they ask, the importance of emotion as well as logic, what neuroscience and behavioural science tell us and what this means for communicators.
• Redefine the communicator’s role: Shift from telling people about change to building trust, collaboration and inclusion at every stage.
• Tailor communication for diverse audiences: Recognise that one size doesn’t fit all, and adapt your approach to meet different needs, including hard to reach (or ‘non-wired’) employees.
• Listen effectively: Use listening as a core skill, build understanding, create opportunities for feedback, dialogue, and shared ownership.
• Engage and influence stakeholders: Understand the vital role leaders and other key stakeholders play during change and what this means for communicators.
• Create messages that connect: Learn practical storytelling and framing techniques that help people make sense of change and feel part of it.
• Build confidence in planning and measuring: Develop clear, practical change communication plans and know how to evaluate impact.

The course will cover

Part One (13th January, 14:00 - 17:30) 

Part Two (20th January, 14:00 - 17:30)

• Reflection on personal experiences of change, what works and what doesn’t.
• Building trust and belief in change.
• The tension between communicating to the heart and communicating to the head.
• Key change models, including SPACES, ADKAR, and the Change Curve.
• Understanding audience motivations and bridging the gap between what the organisation wants to say and what employees need to hear.
• Listening strategies: how to listen well, why it matters, and how to design opportunities for feedback and conversation.
• Creating people-centred narratives through storytelling and dialogue.
• Reaching “hard-to-reach” audiences, including frontline and ‘non-wired’ teams.
• Building and supporting effective champion or ambassador networks.

Key benefits:

After completing this course, participants will:

• Build trust and engagement through change communication that inspires action.
• Advise leaders confidently on complex transformation programmes.
• Use practical tools and frameworks immediately to create impact.
• Listen strategically to shape and improve change initiatives.
• Lead people-centred communication that informs, involves, and motivates.

Additional benefits

  Additional benefits include:  

• Learn from an expert on organisational listening
• Pre and post course access to Canvas, the IoIC's online learning environment, where you will find all course materials and be able to engage with their fellow participants through forum discussions
• Worth eight CPD Points for IoIC Members (20% of your recommended annual CPD)
• Connect with and learn from other internal communicators 

• Places are strictly limited to ensure every participant gains the support and guidance they need, and to facilitate maximum opportunity for interaction, connection and engagement.

Please note that we use Zoom and Canvas: The Learning Management Platform for our online courses. Please ensure that you are able to access these systems where you are based before booking your place. All times are in GMT.

Trainer

Howard Krais

Co-founder, True

Find out more