Change Management and Your Business

Any kind of change in a business or personal life is often met with resistance.  I do not know how many interviews or resumes I see where people express that they thrive on change, or can adapt to any environment, etc.  I am sure you have heard it all before, even used something similar on your own resume or interview.  In the end, as a group, employees generally resist change to their environment and processes.  When your business grows or downsizes or the job functions or processes need to change to meet that changing market, it is essential that you have a change plan and effective change management systems in place to deal with it.

What is change management and how does it apply to my business?  Well, change happens, you can either let it happen and try to adapt as you go, or you can manage it and control how your business will react and respond to the market.  Any change management plan or initiative needs clear and concise communication.  What leads to resistance is the lack of involvement with the business employees, an early inclusion is fundamental to a successful change management process.

Part of change management system usually always include a Information Technology component.  The IT infrastructure is what your basic change management software will be running on anyways.  IT is a fundamental and integrated part of any change in business.  If you think about it, every aspect of a modern business runs on computers.  Some are larger then others, from the massive server-client bases to single desktop computers.  There are still small businesses that are run without computer systems at all, but those businesses are generally small and often shrinking in number.

Approaching change in your business should be planned.  A change management plan does not go over well when presented to large groups or just “emailed” around.  This process must be part of the change itself and not overlooked.  The best approach is usually and educative one.  By taking a path to work with your business areas and staff and get them engaged in the change process will bring about a more welcome message. Workshops and seminars that involve discussions, presentations and interaction with everyone will encourage a more positive attitude about process change.

One of the key components to include in discussion are why we should change, or why we should improve.  As one of the first and most important steps in any change management exercise is to understand why you are going through the process in the first place.  Without a solid understanding or reasons for changes in a business environment will lead to great resistance.  Not only should you everyone understand, they should also agree or have input into criteria that defines the need for change and improvement.

Balancing the management and technology is key to successfully managing change.  There needs to be clear focus and context to the change process as well.  Business goals, vision and values need to be aligned to accommodate the changes needed.

Change management in business encompasses nearly every aspect of it.  Changes to business process or systems usually affect customer interaction in some way, having initial customer involvement with the change process will help solidify that partnership as well.  You need to look at leadership, management, technology, vision and ideals, organizational map, customers, business partners, business practices, individuals needs and the management software as well.

The hardest part in change management solutions is the people.  Changes to hardware and equipment is easy.  Updating a procedure or task is easy.  But changing the business culture and people within it is one of the most difficult parts of a change management plan.  From ADKAR to ITIL, change management models and methodologies will not work without the people of the business.