Change isn’t easy, but it’s necessary. In the business world, the change could consist of new software or the implementation of new processes. But did you know that almost 50% of change initiatives are unsuccessful? This is where the importance of a well-structured change management process comes into play. Successful change requires an organized approach; otherwise, it can throw people off, and most will resist it.
This article defines the change management process and breaks down the process into bite-sized steps that are easy to implement. We touch upon everything, from understanding how to get buy-in from critical stakeholders to creating a team to lead the process and then how to support the change smoothly.
What is organizational change? Simply put, it's any change that impacts the direction of a company or how it operates.
There are two types of organizational change: adaptive and transformational:
Adaptive changes are minor, gradual, step-by-step changes that an organization undertakes. These changes could be modifications to products, processes, and strategies over a period of time. An example could be hiring a new team member to address increased demand or implementing a new hybrid work or leave management policy to attract and retain top talent.
Transformational changes are larger and more complex than adaptive changes. They also involve a sudden shift from how things were being done earlier. Examples of transformational change could be starting a new product or business division or expanding internationally.
According to the American Society for Quality, the change management process is all the steps a company undertakes and implements to adapt to the change. The change management process aims to take a company from point A to point B successfully and smoothly. It’s a dynamic process that continues to evolve and develop as per the company’s requirements and external business environment.
An important distinction to remember is that the change management process is more specific and action-oriented than change management modules.
A change management process will increase the success rate of any change initiative. A thoroughly planned and executed change management process can generate the following benefits:
Improved communication and collaboration
Better return on investment (ROI)
Increased employee engagement and job satisfaction
More agility and adaptability within the organization
Alignment between organizational resources
Reduced frustration and fear
Culture of innovation and creativity
A dedicated management process will improve productivity, reduce risks, and increase profitability. Why? Because it forces the company to dig deep, evaluate, and implement new methods for the better.
A multitude of scenarios can warrant a change management process. It isn’t something for only complex and massive undertakings and mandates a drastic shift that can impact how the employees work or the company's direction. The process can also be beneficial in scenarios like:
New Technology: Introducing new software, systems, or tools can significantly alter workflows and require employee training and adaptation. A change management plan can ensure a smooth transition and minimize disruption.
Leadership Changes: When there's a shift in leadership or a restructuring of management teams, employees might experience uncertainty or fear. A change management process can facilitate communication, address concerns, and help teams adapt to the new leadership setting.
Work Culture, Vision, or Value: If your organization is adopting a hybrid or remote work environment, a change management plan can help employees understand the rationale behind the change. It can also help them make a cultural adjustment to the new working ways.
Mergers and Acquisitions: Merging with another company or acquiring a new entity presents significant challenges in integrating different work cultures, processes, and systems. A change management process can provide a structured framework for working through these complexities.
Workflow and Process Initiatives: Even seemingly minor changes to internal processes, such as updating the project tracking system, can benefit from a change management approach. By effectively communicating the reasons behind the change and providing training on the software, you can ensure employees adopt the new processes efficiently without much pushback.
Crisis Management: While crises often demand immediate action, a well-established change management framework can help guide communication and decision-making during these stressful times.
The key takeaway is that a structured change management process can effectively support any organizational shift that requires employee buy-in, adaptation of behaviors, or a transition to new ways of working.
Our 11-step change management process empowers you and your team to navigate transitions smoothly. By following these steps, you can play a crucial role in ensuring the change initiative's success, making you an invaluable part of the process.
Organizations often fall into the trap of doing the same things repeatedly because they have the mindset, “Why fix what’s not broken?” Such thinking can lead them to fall behind competitors because they failed to adapt. On the flip side, many organizations keep changing processes or products because it’s a new trend or what everyone is doing. Both cases have significant drawbacks.
The starting point of the change management process begins with the question, “Is there a need for a specific change?” This needs to be addressed before one jumps into implementation logistics. Is this change required, and what would its benefits be?
Identifying the need for change requires a thorough analysis of the status quo and data and an understanding of the company’s strategic goals. Do they match? If no, what needs to change and why?
A few ways to identify the need for change include evaluating workflows, conducting employee surveys, assessing company culture, and studying market trends and competition. This research will serve as the setting stone for the start.
Have you identified what you need to change or upgrade? Great! This next stage is all about setting a vision and goals for the change. What is it that your company wants to achieve by implementing this change? For example, is the goal for implementing a resource management system to improve employee utilization, or is it to increase employee satisfaction?
As part of crafting a vision, you should not only set key performance indicators (KPIs) but also list how the success will be measured. Setting clear and measurable goals is crucial for a successful process. Here's how to effectively define your goals:
Ensure they are aligned with the organization’s long-term goals
Are S.M.A.R.T
Can be categorized into short, medium, and long-term goals
Focused on outcomes and not just actions
Examples of effective goals and KPIs are:
New CRM will reduce customer service response time by 15% within 8 months.
The use of timesheets will reduce overtime costs by 20% in the next year.
A change management team is a dedicated group of individuals within an organization who are responsible for planning, implementing, and overseeing the success of a change initiative. Without a dedicated change management team, the change process can be haphazard and in some instances, the change might never get implemented.
Who should be on the team? It’s best to compile a team with different expertise, represent different facets of the organization, and have the ability to influence others. Other skills that are valuable are strong communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. Any previous experience in leading a change is an additional plus point.
Within the change management team, people can assume different roles, such as:
Sponsor: The one who sets the vision and leads the team; they are the driving force of the change
Change champions: Those who work one-on-one with employees to drive and advocate the change; they understand the concerns and address them. You can think of them as change cheerleaders
Communications: They properly message the change and communicate with internal and external stakeholders about the benefits of it
Training: They facilitate the change by providing proper support and training tools
The change management team is the backbone of the entire process. Their expertise, focus, and efforts can significantly increase the likelihood of a smooth transition for the employees and the overall organization.
This stage involves detailing and documenting all the action points and “how to” of the change. Think of it as a reference or guidebook that anyone from the change management team can refer to if they need clarification or understanding about the change process.
Typically, a change management plan includes the following components:
Definition of change
Area of impact
Benefits of change
List of people on the change management team
Goals, KPIs, and metrics of change
Required resources and budget
Tasks list
Timeframe
It’s advisable to include contingency steps or a risk management plan to manage the change if something veers off track.
A crucial step in the change management process is knowing your stakeholders. Don’t skip this stage because only when you know all the stakeholders will you be able to anticipate their questions, support, and/or resistance for the change.
Gather all the important information about the stakeholders through interviews, questionnaires, or observations. Try utilizing both qualitative and quantitative methods to source information so you are confident about their true needs and challenges.
Also, remember that the change could impact people outside of the organization, like clients or vendors, so do seek their perspective as well.
It’s important for everyone to understand why the change is occurring, what it’s all about, and how it might impact them. Building a communication strategy is part of generating awareness about the change and ensuring there’s enough support to manage the change.
Communication strategy also consists of delivering important information about the change and serves as a platform for receiving feedback and/or asking questions.
According to the Standard for Change Management, creating a change management communication plan is a multi-step process that starts with a deep understanding of the organization, stakeholders, and how the change impacts all. The purpose of the communication plan is to ensure that all employees feel motivated to drive change and be able to address their deepest concerns, such as ”How will this change impact my job?” or “Is my job at risk as a result of this change?”
A successful communication strategy should include:
Develop clear and concise messages that explain the “why,” “what,” and the “benefits.”
Use a mix of communication channels and mediums (social media, email, infographics, posters, FAQs, meetings, video messages)
Involve continuous messaging (it’s not a one-time image)
Effective training and support are critical components of change management as they help employees feel confident in adapting to the change. In addition to a communication plan, training and support can help break down the employees’ fear and resistance to change.
Training can also help employees and stakeholders understand their roles and responsibilities, learn new processes and procedures, build confidence, and develop skills and knowledge. Proper training can minimize operational disruption, enhance collaboration, ensure success, and improve performance.
Several training methods are available, such as instructor-led training, online self-paced courses, on-the-job training, role-play, and simulations.
All the planning is done, and it’s time to spring into action. Here's what typically happens during the implementation phase:
Official Roll-Out: This is the official kick-off of the change initiative. Depending on the scale and complexity, it could be done through one company-wide rollout or a phased or multiple-stage approach where each phase is focused on specific departments or teams.
Communication and Training: Employees should receive the necessary and consistent communication and training to understand the new processes, systems, or behaviors expected of them. Regular updates with explanations and training material will provide employees with the tools and knowledge to adapt effectively.
Monitoring and Adjustments: Even in the implementation phase, it’s essential to monitor progress and identify any obstacles that may hinder or delay the adoption of the change. Similarly, the implementation plan should be flexible enough to allow for adjustments based on real-time feedback and emerging challenges.
The change management process doesn’t finish at the implementation stage. Collecting and analyzing qualitative and quantitative data is important to understand if the planned change is working. The implementation data will help you make smart and informed decisions.
Progress can be monitored at multiple levels: individual, organizational, and change management levels. Individual-level progress can be monitored through employee surveys and numerical data, such as how many people have completed the training.
At the organizational level, use the predefined KPIs to understand the impact and success of the change.
Expert Tip: To get reliable, updated, and accurate data, set up a regular schedule for analyzing the reports. Depending on your organization, pick a bi-weekly, weekly, monthly, or quarterly system for gathering and reviewing reports.
Human nature’s first natural response is to resist any change, even if it is for the better. This could be due to human psychology, underconfidence, or a lack of skills or knowledge. But the good news is that this mindset isn’t permanent, it can be changed.
Use the reports and data to understand resistance and acceptance trends. Data can help you gauge everyone’s temperament and make adjustments and modifications to ensure successful change. For instance, an increase in help desk/IT tickets related to a new CRM software might indicate a need for additional training or improved user guides.
It’s also important to communicate the insights from the data to stakeholders. This transparency builds trust and can help reduce their resistance or fear.
As much as change is difficult and painful, it’s an ongoing process that isn’t set in stone. Remember to adapt your plan based on data insights and identification of roadblocks. This might involve additional training, communication tweaks, or even adjustments to the change itself if necessary.
A few tips to ensure change is sustainable in your organization are:
1) Reinforce systems and processes that support the new change
2) Consistently follow up with training and support to ensure the change is embedded into the company culture.
3) Recognize and reward those who are adopting the change so they can set an example for others.
Another way to solidify the change is to update the company’s documentation to include the new processes, behaviors, or systems This helps prevent regression to the old way of doing things and make the change a permanent part of the company culture.
Technology can be a powerful asset throughout the change management process, acting as a facilitator, communication booster, and data-driven guide. The right tech support can make the various stages smoother.
A resource management software can make it easier to break down all the tasks related to the change management process. The system can also help them identify the best talent to be part of the change management team.
Tech tools facilitate clear, consistent, and targeted communication across all levels of the organization. Platforms like online whiteboards, project management software (eRS, Asana), and communication apps (Slack) can streamline brainstorming sessions, remote team collaboration, and documentation of the change plan.
Use data dashboards and business intelligence tools to automatically track key performance indicators (KPIs) and monitor progress towards your change goals. It will save time from gathering data and compiling reports.
The success of any long-term change hinges upon a solid change management plan. A thoughtful process with the right members and technology support is required.
Do you still have more doubts about the change management process? The following answers should clear any lingering questions or concerns.
These are the most frequently identified issues in any change initiative:
Lack of executive support and active sponsorship.
Ineffective and misaligned communication.
Limited training and support.
No feedback or data tracking system.
A change overload — tackling too much at once.
What technologies can aid the change management process?
Multiple technology tools can aid the change management process. You can invest in a collaboration tool, communication app, content creation software, Learning Management Systems (LMS), or even a resource management software. They all can help with different, if not all, stages of the change management procedure.
The majority of change initiatives fail because they aren’t appropriately planned or lack a proper change management process. When organizations don’t understand the need for change or define the scope and set up training to sustain it, they often fall into the trap of “pushing too hard or trying to alter too many things at one go.” This lack of clarity and support tends to increase the resistance from stakeholders and employees.
The eRS platform is highly flexible and can be tailored to meet the specific needs of your team and company. It is an effective tool to help you adapt to changes and manage processes efficiently.
With the eRS timesheets module, you can plan, capture, manage, and report on work from anywhere, which can help your team be more productive. The financial reporting module includes all the key metrics to provide real-time visibility into work, schedules, and costs. The automated workflows and centralized dashboard can help you communicate changes with everyone and maintain accountability and transparency.
Also read:
