Agents of Change The Agents of Change ( formerly known as Protestors or The Contingent ) were formed during the reign of Triple H as COO . They are a heel stable unsatisfied with management decisions , who co - operated with a walkout that ended with Hunter being relieved of his duties . Etymology . Michael Cole named the group on October 10 , 2011 . 2011 . Prelude . John Laurinaitis had been the head of talent relations for many years . David Otunga got a taste for power when , after winning an NXT competition , he got to be Raw GM for a day . Both men coveted the position . They eventually began to form a friendship , and manipulated other superstars ' grievances to gain power . Formation . The group began with the United States Champion Dolph Ziggler and his manager Vickie Guerrero . They were joined by enforcer ( and fellow former World Heavyweight Champion ) Jack Swagger , who Vicky also began to manage . The pair unsuccessfully contended for the tag titles but were unable to wrest them from Air Boom . Vicky attempted to bring in Mason Ryan as an ally , but he immediately turned on them in their first match together , aiding Air Boom . After being joined by Harvard Graduate , the Juris Doctor David Otunga , the agents widened their power base by incorporating former world heavyweight champion Christian along with the current Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes from Smackdown . Christian had had experience with litigation , as he used it to win back the title from Randy Orton in the past . Cody is also an enemy of Orton , having bitterness over the Legacy betrayal and recently , Randy splitting Cody ' s head open with the ring bell . Recruitment . The group has worked in close association with John Laurinaitis , their actions helping to discredit Triple H and bring Laurinaitis his role as General Manager of Raw . The former Johnny Ace tried to cover this up and claimed ignorance of the planned walkout . The agents were then joined by Alberto Del Rio , who lent his weight as WWE Champion to bring 3 of the singles titles under their flag . In doing so , it seems that he and Christian put their past post - Wrestlemania rivalry behind them . Del Rio had in the past been given unprovoked sweet chin music from HBK , a friend of Triple H ' s , which could have been the early start of his hostility towards the Cerebral Assassin . Co - operation . Only the then - current world champion Mark Henry has not officially affiliated with the group , although he was in his own way helping to bring down Hunter ' s reign by his attack on Jerry Lawler . Eventually even Mark Henry and other superstars from Smackdown joined the Agents in a WWE boycott against Triple H . The group also got support from the heels in the Diva division , led by Beth Phoenix . They even managed to recruit the support of Jerry Lawler in supporting their boycott . Even though Triple H referenced Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne ( tag champions as Air Boom ) as some of the hard - working super - stars who worked hard without complaining , even they joined the boycott . While Miz and Truth did not join the boycott ( as they were already suspended ) , their attack on Alberto Del Rio ( which was hinted at to be orchestrated by Laurinaitis ) was a factor in ADR ' s recruitment to the group and Otunga ' s allegations of excessive violence and risk to the superstars . Aftermath . After November 2011 , the group seems to have drifted apart with Ziggler , Swagger and Vickie heading into a feud with Zack Ryder , Otunga becoming an assistant to John Laurintus , Christian getting into a feud with Sheamus and getting injured , Alberto Del Rio going to a feud with CM Punk and Cody Rhodes headed into a feud with Booker T . Members and their allies lost power . Dolph Ziggler lost his US title to Zack Ryder , Alberto lost his WWE title to CM Punk , and Mark Henry lost the heavyweight title to Big Show . 2012 . Reuniting . While Laurenitas no longer had any support from world champions , Cody Rhodes has continued to retain his title , and Swagger managed to win the US title back from Ryder . Due to his lack of impartiality in the CM Punk vs . Dolph Ziggler matches , John almost lost support of the Board of Directors . Ultimately they reviewed him and kept him instated as the interim GM for RAW . Triple H ' s attempt to fire him was distracted by the return of the Undertaker . On February 17 , 2012 , the Smackdown before Elimination Chamber , a change was foreshadowed by John and David visiting Teddy Long . They questioned his leadership by not having ' star power ' to make the Battle Royale for Randy Orton ' s spot in Elimination chamber exciting . In spite of Otunga shiftily eyeing the GM position ( which he had held for a night previously ) during John ' s rough patch , John supported Otunga by recommending him for the match , which he almost won until being eliminated by the winner Santino ( who had stood against prior heel stables through APPLE ) . In response to his generosity , Otunga revealed a plan to John about how he could become the GM of Smackdown in addition to Raw . On February 19 , during Elimination Chamber 2012 , David and John conferenced with 3 superstars who did not have a chance to participate in it . Mark Henry , Christian and Alberto Del Rio had all been out with injuries and showed solidarity once more in supporting John . Both Christian and Mark had been denied championship opportunities by Teddy ( Henry had recently been suspended for pulling on his tie ) and the pair of Smackdown superstars were particularly hostile to Teddy Long and want John to replace him as SmackDown GM . In the past , Ziggler had also attacked Teddy Long so that Vicky Guerrero could take over his position , which was a key tool in Ziggler ' s defeating Edge to win the World Heavyweight Championship . Around WrestleMania 28 , Mr . Laurinaitis began recruiting members for his team against Team Long , having the big three members of The Agents join with David Otunga as captain , Mark Henry as the muscle and the returning Christian as the brains . Team Johnny . His team beat Team Teddy at Wrestlemania 2012 . The following Raw he announced People Power is the name of the new era . People . Allies . " fifty - some - odd individuals " according to Vince McMahon :