SAAF Change Management Template

1. Overview

To guide the structured implementation of change management activities across the SAAF lifecycle, ensuring users and stakeholders adopt AI solutions responsibly, confidently, and sustainably.

Scope: Covers all AI initiatives advancing beyond Stage 2 (Fund) and preparing for experimentation, scale, or enterprise-wide rollout.

2. Change Management Framework Alignment

SAAF Stage	Change Management Focus
Stage 1: Discover	Identify champions, assess initial readiness, and map stakeholder influence
Stage 2: Fund	Communicate intent, introduce governance expectations early
Stage 3: Plan	Design training and communications, embed feedback loops
Stage 4: Experiment	Support pilot testers, gather user reflections and red flags
Stage 5: Adjust	Prepare scaling playbook, refresh enablement plans
Stage 6: Scale	Deploy structured rollout, reinforce adoption behaviors
Stage 7: Govern	Maintain trust, amplify champions, and adapt based on feedback

3. Stakeholder Analysis

Stakeholder Group	Level of Impact	Engagement Strategy	Key Messages
Executive Sponsors	High	1:1 Briefings, Governance Reviews	Vision, value, investment logic
Business Unit Leaders	High	Co-design sessions, pilot steering groups	Alignment to business goals, ROI
End Users	Very High	Training, use case storytelling, peer mentoring	“What’s in it for me?”, safety, skill-building
Legal / Risk / Compliance	Medium	Policy alignment syncs, review gates	Trust, audit readiness, data ethics
Support / Ops	Medium	Knowledge transfer, playbooks	Role clarity, issue escalation
L&D / HR	Medium	PAAF-aligned enablement development	Upskilling, workforce evolution

4. Communication Plan

Phase	Message Theme	Tactics	Owners
Pre-launch	“Why AI, why now?”	Email, video from sponsor	PMO, Sponsors
Pilot	“What are we testing and learning?”	Sprint demo invites, surveys	AI PMs, Scrum Leads
Pre-scale	“Here’s what’s coming and what’s expected”	Team meetings, tool previews	Change Managers
Scale	“We’re live—here’s how to succeed”	Intranet banners, playbooks	L&D, Ops Support
Post-launch	“What’s working, what’s next”	Feedback forms, champions network	Product Owners

5. Training & Enablement Plan

Group	Training Type	Linked PAAF Stage	Format	Resources
End Users	Tool-specific and prompt literacy	2–4	Self-paced + Peer Labs	Role-Based Enablement Maps
Managers	Coaching on change conversations	3–6	Workshops + guides	Change Toolkit
Ethics Reviewers	Bias & audit procedures	5–7	Templates + Scenario Reviews	Go/No-Go Gate Checklist
Champions	Prompt mentoring & red flag recognition	6–7	Live sessions + forums	Prompt Library, Red Flag Log

6. Readiness & Resistance Management

Tool / Activity	Purpose
Change Readiness Assessment	Identify mindset, capability, and communication gaps before rollout
Adoption Pulse Surveys	Track awareness, comfort, and intent-to-use across departments
Resistance Heatmap	Map known blockers and design peer interventions
Opt-Out Analysis	Understand and document reasons for AI resistance or withdrawal

7. Sustainment & Reinforcement Plan

Activity	Cadence	Goal
Post-deployment check-ins	30/60/90 days	Gather feedback, resolve early issues
Learning refreshers	Quarterly	Update skills and prompt strategies
Champion showcases	Monthly	Share wins, build excitement
Governance reviews	Quarterly	Ensure ethics, performance, and feedback are tracked

8. Success Metrics

Metric Category	Sample Indicators
Adoption Metrics	% of users trained, active usage from Prompt Logs
Sentiment & Trust	Confidence scores, red flag resolution time
Performance Impact	AI ROI gains, error reduction, time savings
Governance	% of scaled tools with Go/No-Go approval, retraining compliance
Enablement Progress	% of users progressing through PAAF stages 4–7