How to Implement Change Management in Your Business

Sadly, the success rate of change managementThere are various models to guide your change
projects in today's companies is sobering basedefforts. Many books have been written and
on statistics:programs created to make this process involved
· 30% success rateand complicated. And to help others make money.
· 9% software change proved worth theIt is neither.
costUse this simple, methodical 4-step Plan:
· 31% software change got cancelledDirection: Your people need to understand what
before completionorganizational goals will be achieved. The direction
· 53% software change resulted in costneeds to be clear, consistent, coherent, and
overrunscredible. As you proceed through the project,
The reasons that change efforts so often fail are:ensure data collection is specifically addressed to
· Failure of management to communicateeach goal.
a clear picture of the desired outcomeMotivation: External (bonuses, good performance
· Did not obtain buy in from stakeholders,reviews) and internal (job satisfaction, job
resources, and end userssecurity) motivation are the forces that energize,
· Miscalculated the effort to changedirect, and maintain staff behavior through the
individual behaviorproject. Show staff members how the change will
· Focused in the business plan, not themake things easier, understand and accept their
peoplerole in using the new system or process, and
· Did not sustain leadership and focuspush them to a higher level, new opportunities.
· Lacked a thorough processStaff member motivation is the key in your
The bottom line is that too many organizationsChange Management Project. By letting people
change processes or introduce new technologiesknow what is going on and how it will positively
but do not prepare their people to make theimpact them, by allowing people to ask questions
change or adapt the organization to sustain theabout the change, and by enabling people to make
change.sense of the change for themselves, they will be
What is Change Management?more mentally engaged in the change process and
It is a process that prepares people to makemore willing to go along with it.
changes and implement new processes or newCompetence: This is the knowledge, skills, and
technologies. And it prepares the business toabilities that will be required to perform
support the change.successfully after the change has taken place.
Change Management proactively achievesIdentify the new technical, functional, and
business goals while minimizing the impact on staffinterpersonal skills that will be required from an
members, productivity, budget increases, and anyoperational and financial perspective.
adverse impact on your customers.Opportunity: This refers to the ease of access
Your approach to managing change needs to be aand proper functioning using the new system or
conscious, deliberate, collaborative effort thatprocess. Management has demonstrated your
improves both individual and organizationalcommitment to make job performance easier.
performance.Well done.
Just as Six Sigma, DMAIC, et al, follow a provenPay attention to all 4-steps and you will increase
methodology, your company's Changethe effectiveness of the entire implementation
Management Project needs to follow a provenprocess. Pay special attention to staff members'
methodology based on industry standards andwillingness to follow through with change. Lead by
best practices.example!