What is Change Management?

At its core, Change Management revolves around an organisation’s ability to understand and manage risk during change implementation. It is a structured approach that prepares, equips, and supports individuals in successfully adopting change, ultimately driving organisational success and achieving desired outcomes.

Change management focuses on facilitating effective transitions through change. It aims to guide employees through various alterations pertaining to processes, systems, or structures.

Benefits of Change Management

• Increased preparedness and support for individuals affected by change.

• Enhanced success rates of change initiatives.

• Higher levels of employee engagement.

• Greater likelihood of achieving change objectives—six times more likely to meet set goals.

• Five times more likely to adhere to project schedules.

• Two times more likely to remain within budget constraints.

• Reduction in implementation time.

• Decreased resistance to change.

• Identification of holistic impacts of change.

• Measurable returns on investment that are people-dependent.

The primary goal of Change Management is to establish agile and efficient procedures that significantly reduce the risks and impacts associated with adding, modifying, or removing services, processes, components, or business artefacts that affect an organisation's operations, products, or functions.

Change management is a specialised leadership practice that integrates analysis, planning, support, communication, evaluation, and continuous improvement. It draws on a solid understanding of business practices, risk management, agile methodologies, systems thinking, and a pragmatic approach that seeks to streamline processes without compromising operational effectiveness.

According to ITIL v4.0 (Section 5.1.6), the change management practice aims to ensure that changes within an organisation are implemented smoothly and successfully, delivering lasting benefits through effective management of the human aspects of change.

While change management is focused on minimising risk, it should not be confused with risk management. The latter teaches organisations to accept, ignore, reduce, or exploit risk based on their business strategies and capabilities, whereas change management focuses on managing risk within the organisational context. These concepts can and should be used in tandem to foster a robust change environment.

Why Do We Engage in Change Management?

Change is an inherent aspect of organisational life and vital for continuous improvement in response to internal and external factors. Changes occur daily within organisations, impacting how tasks are performed, the development of strategies and products, and the systems and processes that shape workflows.

Any changes affecting operations, safety, risk, or quality must be thoroughly assessed and approved by management or a designated representative before implementation. This thorough evaluation ensures that all potential impacts are considered, thus safeguarding the organisation’s operational integrity.

For further reading on change management principles and practices, you can explore resources from reputable organisations such as ITIL and other change management frameworks.