Advice Line | Bob Lewis » Managing business change

October 17, 2006 | Comments: (0)

Managing business change

TAGS: General

Dear Bob ...

Background:

I work in an office with approximately 1,000 employees. One of our core systems was home built 25 years ago on Wang equipment and converted to a non-obsolete platform in 1999 because of Y2K. We are two years into a three-year project to replace this old system.

Although we are one office, we have lots of silos and the user community will be divided into 12 separate user groups in the software. We are violating most principles that you have written about regarding projects of this nature. I don't have sufficient influence to change that. I have, however, been recruited to serve on the steering committee to guide the implementation. I have given copies of your new project manager book, Bare Bones Project Management, to the two people who have been put in the position to "make this happen" by the business sponsor.

Specific request:

Can you recommend any books on the topic of change management that would be similar to your Bare Bones Project Management? Specifically books written for the person who has a regular job and is called on to assist with these projects as an additional duty. I feel like it is imperative that we start engaging the user community in this project now or at some point in the near future, but that's one of my questions - what is the appropriate time to start creating a "buzz" in the user community about pending change? Too soon, they will probably lose interest before even starting; too late and it will be too late.

Besides a book recommendation, I would appreciate a column devoted to your ideas about change management that can be done by the non-IT folks, (or suggested by IT-folk to non-IT folk) and any suggestions you have for ways to involve a user community this large. Being a state agency, of course there is no money for t-shirts, prizes, etc.

- Changeling

Dear Changeling ...

I don't have any bulls-eye books for business change management. One I've read that I thought highly of covers a critical subtopic and should be of value, and that's Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change by William Bridges. Bridges makes the excellent point that the subject of transition is distinct from the subject of change. When my consulting company covers this ground, though, we generally don't make the distinction for the simple reason that you always have to handle both the transition and the change itself. Regardless, the book is worth reading.

I've been considering writing Bare Bones Business Change Management as a companion volume to Bare Bones Project Management, but haven't yet put pen to paper (okay, I never will since I use a word processor, but you understand). In its absence, here's a checklist you can use to start the right conversation. Business change management generally calls for the following:

* Stakeholder analysis - who cares about the change, how are they likely to react to it, and what can you do about it?

* Involvement plan - the more you involve people, the more it's their change instead of a change that's happening to them.

* Training plan - the more you help people succeed in the change, the less they'll be likely to resist it.

* Metrics plan - how will you tell if you're succeeding?

* Culture change plan - many business changes call for a change in how employees think and respond to different sorts of circumstances.

* Communication plan - employees will have questions and will get answers to them. The question is from whom - the rumor mill or you?

I hope that helps.

- Bob

Posted by Bob Lewis on October 17, 2006 08:34 AM

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