Checklist intake change communication: for a good start

Why a good intake matters

An intake conversation is not a formality. It is the foundation of effective change communication. Especially at the start of a change process, it becomes clear whether communication can make a strategic contribution or risks becoming a collection of loose tools and ad hoc solutions.

A strong intake helps sharpen the real challenge, make expectations explicit on both sides, and establish clear agreements about roles, responsibilities, and decision-making. By taking time together to explore context, ambitions, risks, and assumptions, you reduce the chance of misunderstandings later and increase the likelihood that communication will genuinely contribute to behavior change and support.

This checklist offers examples of questions you can use during an intake conversation with your (internal) client or the change team.

The six core questions

What do you see as the real problem that communication can help solve?
What is the most important goal for you?
Who needs to start thinking or acting differently?
What does success look like to you?
What could go wrong?
What exactly do you expect from me?

The intake checklist for change communication

Below is the extended version. Select the questions that are relevant for your specific situation.

1. Trigger and context

What triggered this assignment?
Why does the organization need to change, and what are we moving away from?
What is currently happening in the organization or the project?
What has already been tried, and what worked or didn’t work?
What creates urgency, and why now?

2. The challenge or problem

What exactly is the challenge we are facing?
Can you describe the core of the issue in one sentence?
What happens if we do nothing?

3. The client’s view on change

How do you look at this change?
What is the intended outcome of this change in your view?
What needs to change in terms of behavior, ways of working, or culture?
What are the main leverage points?
Is the change mainly driven by clear frameworks and plans, or by individual initiatives?
Which other disciplines, such as HR or IT, are needed for success?
What do you see as the key conditions for success?

Change color and approach (making assumptions explicit)

How do people, in your view, actually change?
Is this change primarily blue (structured and planned), yellow (driven by interests), red (focused on motivation), green (learning-oriented), or white (creating space)?
Which approach fits this situation best?
What role do you expect communication to play in that approach?

Implications for communication

Where do you see opportunities or risks for communication?
How important are participation and dialogue in this change?
Have any agreements already been made with the works council?
What absolutely must not go wrong?

4. Goals and desired outcomes

What do we want to achieve?
What does success look like to you?
How will the organization be better off?
When will you be satisfied?

5. Target groups and stakeholders

Who do we want to reach or involve?
What do they currently know, think, or do, and what needs to change?
How do they relate to the change, and how much influence do they have?
Are there sensitivities or resistance we should consider?

6. Core message or change story

Is there already a core message or change narrative?
What should really stick with people?
What should we not say or do?

7. Approach and tools

Do you already have ideas about the approach?
Are there specific wishes or limitations regarding tools or formats?
Which channels are available, and which ones work well in your organization?

8. Planning and milestones

What is the desired timeline?
Are there hard deadlines or external moments to consider?
When would you like to see the first results?

9. Preconditions

Budget, either global or specific.
Available capacity and involved colleagues.
Access to experts, data, and sources.
Who decides what?

10. Risks and sensitivities

What could slow down the project or put pressure on it?
What are the reputational or organizational risks?
Are there internal tensions we should be aware of?

11. Roles and responsibilities

Role of the client

What do you expect from communication?
What will you take on yourself?
How quickly can you provide feedback or make decisions?
Who is ultimately responsible for the content?
Who truly commits to the change?

Role of the communication manager

Am I primarily an advisor, director, executor, or sparring partner?
Where do I have a mandate, and where don’t I?
What do you need from me to feel supported?
On which topics should I always check back with you?

Collaboration

How will we stay in touch, for example through weekly check-ins, ad-hoc contact, or a Teams channel?
If I want communication to stay on the agenda, how do we align on that?
Who is the first point of contact?
How do we handle changes in planning or scope?

12. Closing

Summarize what has been agreed.
Define a clear next step, such as advice, a plan, a proposal, or a quick scan.
Capture the agreements in a short intake summary.

Select

You don’t need to ask every question literally. Not every question is relevant in every intake conversation, and rarely in this exact order. Use what helps, skip what is already clear, and zoom in where things feel tense or unclear. A good intake is not about asking all the questions, but about asking the right ones.

Huib Koeleman