Towards a theory of change management in the implementation of state development programs for strategic sectors of the economy

Abstract

This article examines the mechanisms of change management at the enterprise level in the context of implementing state development programs for strategic economic sectors. The relevance of the study is determined by a fundamental discrepancy between the prescriptive framework of state development initiatives and the conceptual insufficiency of classical change management models, which were originally designed for internally driven business transformations rather than for externally imposed program-based change. This gap is further compounded by the misalignment between the pace of regulatory adjustments, the technological maturity of digital platforms, and the adaptive capacity of enterprises operating in strategic sectors. The study aims to refine the conceptual framework of change management by accounting for three critical dimensions: the expansion of the change management object to the ecosystem level, the shift towards a continuous (rather than episodic) nature of organizational change, and the emergence of platform-based coordination mechanisms as key drivers of institutional adaptation. The theoretical foundation integrates classical and contemporary change management theories and models (K. Lewin, J. Kotter, ADKAR), the diffusion of innovations framework (E. Rogers), ecosystem and the stakeholder approachs, which collectively enable the interpretation of public ‒ private interactions as a multi-level process of organizational and institutional adaptation. The analytical approach combines comparative analysis, logical-analytical reasoning, a systematic review of the scientific literature, and interpretive analysis of management practices. The findings demonstrate that, in the context of state development programs, change management should be redefined as a continuous process as a continuous process of coordinating the interests of the state, private actors, and digital platforms, in order to facilitate enterprise adaptation to externally determined development paths. The study argues that the formation of a public ‒ private ecosystem (PPE) enhances the coordination of stakeholder actions, reduces institutional barriers, and facilitates the more effective implementation of strategic industry priorities. The authors introduce a conceptual model of adaptive change management, which integrates a proactive approach to managing resistance within the ecosystem and draws upon the learning organization model as a systemic mechanism for generating diagnostic information to support organizational learning.