Strategic Change Specialist

Everwise Credit Union•South Bend, IN

About The Position

The Strategic Change Specialist partners with project teams and business leaders to assist in the development and execute change management strategies that drive successful adoption of enterprise initiatives. Leveraging the ADKAR methodology (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement). This role develops strategic change plans, coordinates communication and release activities, supports change control processes, and helps prepare employees for changes to systems, processes, policies, and organizational priorities. By promoting effective change adoption and reinforcing sustainable behaviors, this position enables the organization to fully enable the business benefit of strategic initiatives.

Requirements

Strong working knowledge of the PROCI, ADKAR and other change management models.
Solid project management skills, including planning, scheduling, and stakeholder coordination.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with ability to tailor messaging to varied audiences.
Experience with change control processes and documentation.
Strong organizational skills with ability to manage multiple concurrent initiatives.
Analytical mindset with ability to assess change readiness and impact.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office and project/change management tools.
Ability to work collaboratively across departments in a financial services or credit union environment.
Bachelor's degree in Business, Communications, Organizational Development, or related field, or equivalent work experience.
3+ years’ experience in leading or supporting change management initiatives.
2+ years’ experience in project management.
Change management certification required (e.g., Prosci Certified Change Practitioner or equivalent).

Nice To Haves

Assist in designing and implementing change management as a core competency within the credit union.

Responsibilities

Develop and implement change management plans for assigned initiatives using the ADKAR methodology to drive employee adoption and achieve desired business outcomes.
Develop change strategies aligned with organizational priorities, project objectives, and implementation timelines.
Coordinate release planning activities, including scheduling, sequencing, and stakeholder readiness, and cross-functional alignment for system and process implementation.
Develop and execute change communication plans that provide timely, consistent, and effective messaging to employees, leaders, and stakeholders throughout the project lifecycle.
Assist in change control management, including documenting, tracking, and routing change requests through approval workflows.
Conduct change impact, stakeholder, and organizational readiness assessments to identify risks, and adoption readiness, and develop mitigation strategies.
Partner with project managers, business leaders, and technology teams to integrate change management activities into project plans and implementation milestones.
Partner with business leaders and learning teams to develop and coordinate training, coaching, and reinforcement activities that support successful adoption.
Monitor, analyze, and report on change management metrics, including adoption, readiness, engagement, resistance, and business outcomes, to evaluate effectiveness and inform continuous improvement.
Maintain documentation of change management processes, templates, and lessons learned for continuous improvement.
Generate adoption and change impact reporting for individual initiatives.
Promote change management best practices and help build organizational change capability by coaching leaders and reinforcing a culture of effective change adoption.
Assumes additional responsibilities as necessary for the continued growth and advancement of the Credit Union.