SUCCESSFUL CHANGE COMMUNICATION IN LARGE ORGANIZATIONS A Qualitative Case Study on a Planned Change in a Swedish County Council

Abstract: This qualitative case study explores a planned change project and its current change communication used to mediate change within one of Sweden’s largest county councils. A study on change communication is a relevant contribution to the field of organizational change communication as well as to large-scale organizations. By exploring employees’ perceptions and shared meanings about the ongoing planned change, the study aims to discover what aspects of communication that enables or constraints the change process within the organization. The empirical data is collected through three focus group interviews, examined through the theoretical framework of the theory Diffusion of Innovation (DOI), and analyzed through a qualitative thematic analysis. The analysis resulted in four main themes: Change communication, A complex, large-scale change, Stakeholder Diversity, and Opinion Leaders as Change Agents. The themes provide insights on what type of challenges the county council is facing concerning communication during planned change projects, as well as organizational members’ roles that are shaped and developed in this process. The study concludes that strategic change communication is essential for planned organizational changes to be successful and suggests practical implications and future research.