The Change Management Process: An Expert's Guide

Change management is the application of a structured process and a set of tools to lead change from the perspective of people and achieve the desired result. It focuses on how to help people participate in, adopt and use change in their daily work. Change management is defined as the methods and ways in which a company describes and implements change in its internal and external processes. This includes preparing and supporting employees, establishing the necessary steps for the change, and monitoring activities before and after the change to ensure successful implementation. Organizations need a plan to implement changes and consolidate those changes as the new norm.

Research shows that projects with excellent change management are six times more likely to meet the objectives than those with poor change management. The American Express change process, a model of change that was applied at the launch of Six Sigma, shows how addressing human variables makes project initiatives work. During the implementation process, change managers should focus on empowering their employees to take the necessary steps to achieve the objectives of the initiative and celebrate any short-term achievements. Service transitions help organizations plan and manage the change in the state of a service in its lifecycle. Creating a change management plan helps organizations make smoother transitions in times of change. Empowering change management leaders, as well as employees, to participate in the change process by giving them freedom to make their own decisions and implement new ideas makes it possible for change management teams to focus on activities that are directly related to the objectives that the company is trying to achieve.

Change managers can use the model to learn about the various challenges in the change management process, so that effective training can be offered to employees. This is particularly important for organizational change related to business processes, such as workflows, culture and strategy formulation. If the ADKAR model describes what a person needs to make a successful change, organizational change management is the set of actions that help generate awareness, desire, knowledge, capacity and reinforcement throughout the organization.